Percentage of Buddhists in Kentucky: <1% (according to a 2014 Pew Research Center study)
Number of Buddhist centers: 21
Oldest center: Lexington Shambhala Center (1975), a local chapter of Shambhala International
Newest center: The BuddhaLand in USA (2017), which offers Buddhist groups from all traditions free access to build on its 200-acre plot with the goal of creating a diverse community of Buddhist sanghas
Number of informal sitting groups (that we were able to find): 8
Breakdown of centers by tradition:
Zen: 7
Theravada and Insight: 5
Vajrayana/Tibetan Buddhism: 4
Nonsectarian: 2
Nichiren/Soka Gakkai: 2
Pure Land: 1
One and only time the Dalai Lama has visited: 2013
What a retreat might cost you: $657.60 for a week-long retreat at Furnace Mountain Zen Center (scholarships are available)
Estimated number of ordained Buddhist monks and nuns: 18 (14 monks, 4 nuns)
Number of Tricycle subscribers in Kentucky: 93
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Data from the Pew Research Center, BuddhaNet’s World Buddhist Directory, The Pluralism Project at Harvard University, and correspondence with centers.
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