The Bright Earth Buddhist Order was formalised in 2022 and was initially made up of seven ministers who were previously members of the Amida Order. We are mostly based in the UK – we have a temple in Malvern, the Bright Earth temple, and we also offer practice online. Bright Earth ministers are involved in interfaith work, prison chaplaincy, offering Buddhist practice, leading study groups and more. We also have an active ministry training programme. Inspired by Shinran, we are neither monks nor lay-people.
Here are our current ministers:
Satya Robyn (she/her) works as a psychotherapist and a writer as well as leading events at Bright Earth. Her latest book is ‘Coming Home: Refuge in Pure Land Buddhism’. She has been involved in eco-activism since 2019. She has had articles published in Tricycle magazine (here) and writes a regular newsletter called ‘Love, Satya’. As well as being a minister with Bright Earth, Satya was inducted as a Bright Dawn lay-minister in 2023. Satya is one of the founders of Bright Earth Temple.
Kaspa Thompson (they/them) was ordained in 2007, and is one of the founders of Bright Earth Buddhist Temple. They work as a psychotherapist and supervisor using Internal Family Systems and write at Substack at Just As You Are. As well as being a Bright Earth Minister, in 2023 Kaspa was inducted as a lay-minister in the Bright Dawn community in 2023.
Ananda is a longtime practitioner who has practiced intensively in multiple traditions seeking both direct experience of the sacred and ways to live this realization into the world. Lately, Ananda has been working for the last 15 or so years helping the local community alleviate the suffering that arises as a result of poverty, illness, and homelessness. In 2025 Ananda was inducted as Bright Earth Minister.
Dayamay (he/him) is both a temple steward and property manager of the temple. He has been practising with the sangha since 2012. He facilitates school, college and other visits to the temple for educational purposes and runs Buddhist practice at the temple. He is also a Buddhist Chaplain who aspires to bring compassion and wisdom into difficult places. He is interested in Shinran’s teachings, and a broad range of spiritual teachers.
Khemashalini (she/her) lives in Malvern and has a heart connection with the hills and with the Earth. She has been teaching at the Bright Earth temple since 2017. She enjoys organising and taking part in yatras – long sacred walks through the landscape. Until recently she worked in the NHS with a speciality in infection control.
Ravavani (she/they) lives at the Temple with her dog Aine and has been involved in the Bright Earth sangha for around 4 years with involvement in Buddhism and other Eastern religions since she was 15. They were ordained in April 2025. They hold Buddhist practise and Book groups at the Temple, work as a Holistic Psychotherapist and also hold Chanting and Devotional Singing sessions. They are particularly interested in creative expression, embodiment, our relationship with the natural world and attending to spiritual yearning.