The Dhammapada Houstoniana: Verse 53

The Dhammapada Houstoniana is an image macro project in which excerpts from the classic Buddhist scripture are contemplated within the context of life on the upper Texas coast. Individual verses will be published from time to time in blog entries, and if you would like a complete PDF copy of the project, please email me. For a more complete explanation of The Dhammapada, please see this introductory post. Click on each verse JPG below to enlarge and improve image resolution.

Galveston County listing resource for faith groups

South Houston Sangha News was initiated in large part because no other comprehensive or up-to-date Buddhism and meditation resource lists were known to be maintained in the greater Houston area at the time of its inception (see this summary for further detail). 

However, local general religious practice and resource lists are published in our area by a number of commercial and on-line sources.  One extensively-developed example is the devotional resource list published by Galveston Daily News every Saturday. 


Instructions for having a religious institution included in this local directory. 

The list for April 20, 2013 included approximately 270 religious centers (there was some repetition across descriptive categories, so this is a rough total quickly counted). 

Screengrabbed from Galveston Daily News, downsampled to illegibility as a Fair Use conformance. 

Not unexpectedly given local demographics, these listings are predominantly Christian.

Again, these percentages are very rough given repetition of listings across categories and other sorting issues. 

The "Other" category encompassed Jewish, Baha'i, Muslim, and Unitarian Universalist groups. 

However, as I verified with Ms. Rhoades by email recently, there are no denominational exclusions intended by Galveston Daily News.  If a faith group such as a Buddhist organization is not represented on this list, that has occurred because the group simply hasn't requested that their information be added.

So with that in mind, I'd encourage Buddhist temples and groups within Galveston County to consider submitting their information to that newspaper.  There's no charge for this public service and the information could prove to be valuable to local seekers. 

In contrast to the local pie chart above, here is Wikipedia's world religions estimate. 

Recent developments in the local Buddhist community

• Diamond Way Clear Lake recently announced a venue change, as it shifted from a residential location in League City to a commercial storefront on NASA Road 1.  Further information can be found at their website linked above.

• An individual apparently affiliated with Diamond Way Clear Lake recently commenced a blog titled buddhismhouston.com on the Wordpress platform.   To date, the content appears to be primarily of the personal reflections genre (as opposed to representing specific institutions, lineages, educational initiatives, or news content).  

• A new Buddhism discussion group recently formed at Bay Area Unitarian Universalist Church (BAUUC) on El Camino Real in Clear Lake.  The group meets at 9:30 a.m. Sunday mornings in the library of the church, and appears to be distinct from the meditation group associated with the same church.  Additional information will be provided in a future post. 

Buddhism-related family camps

I'm currently in the process of compiling information on 2013 summer camps and retreat-type functions that incorporate a Buddhism and/or mindfulness element, camps that would be suitable for both families and teenagers as a separate group.

Well, yes, that would be a challenge.

Screengrab from this Beliefnet post. 

I'm most interested in those offerings that have less emphasis on the doctrine of specific Buddhist lineages and less of a cultural and ritualistic emphasis.  In other words, venues that practice and teach the fundamentals of Buddhist belief in an introductory and less formal interactive context. 

If you have any suggestions in this regard, please feel free to email me (SouthHoustonSangha - at - gmail).  Thanks!!