Anna and Venerable Juewei joined Meredith Lake in an episode of Soul Search to share “The Untold Stories of Buddhism in Australia.” Anna met Meredith in Alice Springs, and Venerable Juewei joined them on the phone from Wollongong.
The conversation traces a Buddhist presence in Australia extending back to the nineteenth century. It highlights lesser-known stories of early Asian communities, including Sri Lankan, Chinese and Japanese settlers.
Anna shared her excitement in connecting with descendants of the Mendis family, one of the first Sri Lankans on Thursday Island, who also established and support the Brisbane Buddhist Vihara.
Venerable Juewei told Meredith that the project opened her eyes to the breadth and diversity of Buddhism in Australia.
Drawing on fieldwork, archival research and interviews conducted across Australia, the Buddhism in Australia research project covers three periods in Australian history to reveal flows of migration as well as flow of ideas from the 19th century to the present. It highlights the triangulated relationships between First Nations people, Asians and Europeans that together make up the fabrics of the Australian society.
Listen to the conversation on ABC Radio National’s Soul Search: “The Untold Stories of Buddhism in Australia.”