Sangharakshita Library
The Library is set in the grounds of Adhisthana
Urgyen Sangharakshita had a vision of a library to preserve his legacy as a teacher and as the founder of the Triratna community. He wanted it to house all the books that he had collected and all those that he had written. Now we have that library in the grounds of Adhisthana. There are 11,000 books in Sangharakshita’s collection alone, as well as an archive of other material which provides a wonderful picture of the development of his teaching and of the whole Triratna movement.
Having Sangharakshita’s complete personal library in one place offers a glimpse into what shaped and inspired his thinking. As well as the Buddhist texts – and that includes the hundred books that he brought back from India and which form the background to his writing of the Survey － there is philosophy, psychology, art history, biography, literature and much more. It is fascinating to be able to see, in concrete form, the texts that have helped to influence his ideas and his writing.
Those first hundred books are now worn and faded but have been given pride of place in the library as a way of acknowledging their importance in the development of Sangharakshita’s teachings.
We now have the delightful task of bringing Sangharakshita’s library to life as a place of inspiration and creativity for the Triratna Community, preserving and building on his legacy for the future.
The library can be a source of inspiration for the whole of Triratna as we preserve and build on Sangharakshita’s legacy. Its resources are available to all members of the Triratna community; visitors to Adhisthana can use the collection and there are library tours during big gatherings.
The work is far from complete though. We are exploring ways in which we can raise awareness of this precious resource and bring it ever more to life. We also want to make it easier for people to access it. As a first step we are working to complete our digital catalogues which will be available here and on the Adhisthana website.
The librarian, Dharmalila, is always happy to answer queries about the collections and to do what she can to help people to use them. Contact her on library@adhisthana.org
The work of the Sangharakshita Library is supported by the Friends of the Sangharakshita Library (FOSLs). They help with practical tasks and share their enthusiasm for the role of the Library within Triratna. We now have a dedicated core group of people who come on retreat at Adhisthana twice a year and spend several days working in the Library. The jobs we do on these long weekends include:
cataloguing and digitising the catalogue
reorganising the collections
stamping and labelling new acquisitions
keeping the collections clean and in good repair.
The retreats give participants the chance to immerse themselves in the Library and include meditation, puja and sharing of poems and readings as well as rewarding work. They make a vital contribution to developing and caring for Sangharakshita’s Library.
We always welcome new FOSLs. If you are interested please contact Dharmalila on library@adhisthana.org for more information