Can someone please guide me to theravada buddhist monastery in France or Netherland?

Question

Looking for someone who could guide me to Theravada Buddhist monastery in France or Netherland on July

Answer 1

I just checked the link. Actually i don't have idea which monastery i should go. I will only two days in france and already have full schedule for city tour. I think I just have time night time. Are you from france @ChrisW

I am in France, but not near Paris. I can read French, if that's any help: if you want me to search for something specific on the internet. Two days with already a full schedule isn't very much time.

---

This page, Les Centres et les Temples Bouddhistes à Paris (75) says it lists Buddhist centres and temples in Paris. Almost all of them are either Zen or Tibetan.

This one is Theravada (Thai Forest):

18. Association Bouddhique Theravâda "Vivekârâma"
école : Theravâda (tradition des "moines de forêt" de Thaïlande) 

lieu de pratique : 14 rue Philibert Lucot 75013 Paris

siège social : c/o Michel-Henri Dufour 
22 rue de la Grange Aubel 71000 Sancé Tél. 03.85.20.14.42

Their web site is at http://vivekarama.fr/activites-3/activites-paris which says they have 3-hour guided sessions every third Sunday, and free sessions once a month on Fridays (it's not a temple, they meet in a room somewhere).

They have a calendar here and they ask you to contact them (by email I suppose) first.

So that's not a monastery.

---

This search finds no Theravada in Paris.

---

There's a centre that's near Paris: http://centrebouddhique.fr/ It's near the "Le Bourget" airport. They have a calendar here.

---

There's a Pagoda in Vincennes which is virtually inside Paris (Vincennes are a wood or park, on the south east edge of Paris): it's not Theravada and not a monastery but is a multi-denominational Buddhist place (without a teacher) that might be within your reach if you have limited time in Paris.

---

If you're looking for Theravada monasteries, this map says it shows the Theravada monasteries in Europe.

The two which are near Paris have these web sites:

• http://dhammayutta.free.fr/ (located 11 km from Paris, beware that the web site is 2012)

• http://www.burmeseclassic.org/dir.php

  U Kumara Association Bouddhiste Birmane 
  63 Avenue Maurice Thorez 94200 Ivry sur seine France.
  Tel: 33 (0) 146717240, 33 (0) 677463943
  

---

In summary I don't know whether you'll be able to go to a Theravada Buddhist monastery in France.

---

If you have questions about travel rather than Buddhism there's a Travel.SE site which may be useful.

Answer 2

If you go to this website you will see a list of theravada monasteries in The Netherlands.

If you press one of them there is more information such as email, website and also google maps to easier find their location.

Answer 3

Since you mentioned elsewhere that you like Thich Nhat Hanh, you may want to visit his monastery, Plum Village, in Bordeauax, France - http://plumvillage.org

It is a beautiful monastery with very mature practitioners both lay and ordained.

Thich Nhat Hanh is Vietnamese Zen, not Theravada but a great practitioner and in my opinion a living Bodhisattva.

Edit: You say you only have 2 days. I don't know where in France you will be, but it is a big country, and getting to Bordeaux from Paris will take a 1-2 hour flight, and a bus or car from there to the monastery - about 100kms.

Answer 4

Paris International Buddhist Center ( paris vihara ) is one of the oldest and well-established Buddhist Temples in Europe.