My reflection about Life and Ch'an

Here is my sharing for this year's learning. This is the 3rd time I went back to Taiwan Fo Guang Shan. This year event is 2014 International Youth Seminar on Life and Chan where 1200 participants from 40 universities all over the world are selected to attend this seminar. I learned a lot each time I went back, I always feel recharged and feels great back home. According to Venerables, life and ch'an are inseparable. Before I come to this seminar, I ever wondered what is "Ch'an"? Some venerable's realisation, Ch'an is simplicity, natural, way of life. It is as simple as walking, dwelling, sitting, lying down, eating, all these activities are living in the present moment.

It is the alignment of our body, speech and mind, all in one. One of the Venerables mentioned that we are all disintegrated, such that when we are thinking about object A, our heart is thinking about object B and our mouth is speaking on object C. Hence, it is totally disintegrated and it affects us in the long run, clarity is lost. By living in the present moment, having the right mindfulness, we are very clear with what we do. Hence, we are focus and clarity is gained. All these come with daily practise and it helps to balance our body, speech and mind.

I like Venerable Master Hsing Yun's 5 Harmony. He encouraged everyone to maintain harmony within self, their homes, respect others, create harmony within society and to propagate world peace. I personally think that it is achievable and it always starts from ourselves. Dr. Ang also shared, "Life is like a series of exams as our wisdom increases, we will be able to overcome these life challenges." I totally agreed with her and through learning the Dharma, I benefited a lot, it is easier for me to overcome my own challenges, not only that I am able to make peace with myself and spreading happiness to the people around me.

I love the daily morning meditation class. It is simple and easy to follow, just need to focus on the breathing and free our mind.

Overall, there are many great learning points but I will choose these 3 as main key points
1) Breathing is a form of cultivation and it is a way of being
2) Clearly understood and focus on what we do
3) Cherish all conditions around us, be it people, space and time

Although there are small hipcups in this retreat but they are negligible. We are all imperfect, how can we expect everything to be perfect? It is simply amazing when I see all FGS Venerables and organisers put all their hearts into the event, everyone of us played a part in making the event a success, that is the moment where I felt we are one. what more can I say but to fill my heart with gratitude.