DharmaWheels started in 2002. Our events are unusual. We offer a rolling community traveling to spiritual destinations. It’s an experience you won’t find anywhere else. A journey like you’ve never experienced. Layers of spiritual appreciation that begin in winter, develop in spring, fortify in summer, and completes in autumn.
DharmaWheels is founded on the principles of generosity, community, and friendship. We explore spiritual themes through organized bicycle rides culminating in a yearly, two-day bicycle pilgrimage to monasteries north of San Francisco. Our rolling retreats strive for zero-waste results. We are open to all with no fees. We are fueled solely by the generosity of participants and sponsors. No religious affiliation required.
Participants offer food, supplies, service, monetary donations, and spiritual friendship for our journeys. There are no additional fees. You can divide time riding and volunteering. We welcome all religions and non-religions.
DharmaWheels Foundation, Inc.
Dharmawheels Foundation, Inc., is the official sponsor of the Buddhist Bicycle Pilgrimage. We are a nonprofit 501 (c) (3), tax-exempt corporation registered in the State of California, Federal Identification Number 75-1664779.
Mission
- To provide education in Buddhist teachings through lectures, seminars, and meetings.
- To provide places of meditation practice for the general community.
- To provide public service through sponsorship of pilgrimages to Buddhist oriented sites with focus on using the bicycle as a mode of transportation to these sites.
- To donate surplus funds from activities to one or more of the non-profit Buddhist hosts of the pilgrimage.
The First Buddhist Bicycle Pilgrimage (BBP)
The first Buddhist Bicycle Pilgrimage (BBP) took place in September 2002 — and was perhaps the first-ever such event in the Buddhist world!
Opening Ceremony 2002 BBP
Organized by enthusiastic cyclist and Buddhist practitioner Dennis Crean, the BBP started out as a simple desire to ride his bike with a few friends from the San Francisco Bay Area to Abhayagiri Monastery in Mendocino County. As he began to talk about his plan, he was encouraged to turn it into a “pilgrimage” and to invite other cycling meditators. Thus, the BBP was born, and within a few short months Dennis’s “few friends” turned into a cycling sangha of 80 riders and 40 volunteers.
Dennis organized the 2002 pilgrimage under the auspices of Abhayagiri Monastery, which encouraged the Buddhist practice of dana, or generosity, as an underlying principle for the event. Inspired by this age-old practice, it was decided to charge no fee and to institute no fundraising obligations for the event. The ride’s many participants and supporters responded enthusiastically, donating over $6,000 in appreciation for the spiritual teachings they received over the course of the pilgrimage. After covering the costs of the event, nearly $2,000 was donated to Abhayagiri Monastery.