The Nashville Buddhist Festival returns to First Church Unity this October 4, 2008, after its huge success last year, with all of its original participant groups and possibly some new ones! The Festival continues its mission to provide an entertaining and educational event for the purposes of (1) fostering understanding and communication between Buddhists in the Nashville area, and (2) introducing newcomers and the curious to the width and depth of Buddhist practice available in the area. We are still in early planning stages, and no speakers or other events can be announced, but stay tuned and join the Yahoo group for the latest information. Buddhism was founded around 600 B.C.E. by Siddhartha Gautama, the historical Buddha, and gradually spread from India throughout Asia throughout its 2500 + year history, and has in this century found a new home in the West. Buddhism as a religion, in its many forms available now in the is country, offers peace in a time of chaos and warfare between religions. It offers its adherents a sense of belonging in the universe without the need for worship of a deity. Buddhism as a practice, however, is available to members of all religions and philosophies, and we encourage the attendance and participation of the merely curious and those looking for something more. Buddhism is typically classified into two major divisions, Theravada, represented here by the Nashville Insight Meditation Group and the Vipassana tradition, and Mahayana, which means "Greater Vehicle" and is represented here by the Nashville Zen Center, which practices Zen Buddhism, one of Mayahana's major schools. Our other participants include the Shambhala group, a somewhat secularized version of Tibetan Buddhism (which includes elements of Mahayana and a third major path, or yana, called Vajrayana) founded by the popular Chogyam Trungpa. Also, the Nashville Mindfulness Center is founded by and based on the teaching of Thich Nhat Hahn, the popular Vietnamese Zen teacher, yet extends itself beyond Zen and Buddhism to reach out to other belief systems, and One Dharma Nashville exists to express the unity and compatibility of Buddha's teachings, in practice. As should be obvious from all this, Buddhism in Nashville is diverse yet compatible. All of these traditions have united together to do their best to offer you the best ever Nashville Buddhist festival. SO COME ENJOY THE DHARMA! This festival is free and is especially for newcomers and the curious. We welcome donations, which can be tax-deductible (see this link for details). TIME AND PLACE The event will take place at First Church Unity, 5125 Franklin Road.  Hours to be announced.