Meditation Hall (Gompa)
The Meditation Hall, or Gompa, is the focal point of Buddha House. It is a meditation room with a Buddhist altar used for meditation, teachings, pujas, and celebrations on auspicious days.
“Gompa” is Tibetan word, usually used by westerners to mean “a place of study”.
If you are attending events at Buddha House it is useful to be familiar with some basic guidelines for etiquette in the Gompa. See Planning a Visit for details.
Library
The Buddha House Library is extensive, under the guardianship of senior student Cathy Davis, with an excellent range of Dharma books available for borrowing by Members.
Become a Member and avail yourself of this extensive Dharma reading material.
Book and Gift Shop
Are you looking to set up an altar, or rejuvenate the one you have? If so, Buddha House has lovely brocade altar cloths and mats, statues and stupas as well as candle holders and a range of water bowls. Create further offerings with beautiful incense, either traditional Tibetan or delicately scented Japanese, which are also available boxed, making special gifts for family and friends. Choose a meaningful card to go with the gift.
We stock many other items to support and deepen your practice of the Dharma, including protection amulets and stickers, a beautiful selection of thangkas (cloth wall hangings in the Tibetan Buddhist Style), meditation cushions and prayer flags. There is a wide range of malas (prayer/mantra counting beads) to enhance your practice and beautiful brocade bags to keep them in.
We also continue to offer Dharma books. They range from introductions to Buddhism, through those showing how we can live the teachings in our daily lives as lay people, to the more advanced traditional texts. There is also a small, very popular section of second-hand books available and, if you would like to buy any text not on display, we can order it for you.
The gift shop is open Monday-Friday 9:30 am – 12:30 pm (except public holidays). Members enjoy a 10% discount on all items, including books, purchased from the shop.
Tara Hall Venue Hire
Tara Hall is a newly renovated hall for hire with plenty of natural light, outside courtyard and a fully equipped kitchen.
Hiring our kitchen gives you plenty of bench space, a large refrigerator, plenty of utensils, and cook-top for BYO or external catering. Please note if the kitchen is not hired there is no access to the kitchen.
There is a raised stage suitable for presentations, lectures or demonstrations, or even a performing group. If required, there is all the equipment to make your event hi-tech and professional.
For more information and hire costs, check out Tara Hall’s own website at https://tarahall.org.au.