Fo Guang Club Members Enjoy the “Chan” Way of Life via One Day Meditation Retreat
Fo Guang Club members from the University of Auckland with a diverse background from India, China, Malaysia, Thailand and Indonesia etc. gathered at Fo Guang Shan Buddhist Temple North Island, New Zealand on 1st September for a meditation retreat. The team led by the guiding venerable of Young Adult Division, Venerable Zhixi, which consists of Thomas, Edwin, Annjo, Sinjun, Kayley and Sakya, had been working on the preparation of this activity long ago. The organising team spent significant effort in drafting out the agenda and did physical arrangement of venue, with the aim to help the participants to make the most out of the meditation retreat.
First and foremost, Venerable Zhixi led the participants to do a walking meditation in the courtyard, Lumbini garden and bamboo garden. Subsequently, breathing technique was taught during the sitting meditation in the meditation hall and below the Cherry blossom trees. Sitting meditation was done to re-coordinate their hearts and souls and to cultivate the right thoughts even if there was some background noise. In the afternoon, the participants were trained to master communication skills, teamwork and concentration skills during the leadership training session. Venerable Zhixi explained the Four Noble Path of Buddhism and she gave examples to elaborate on the meaning of suffering, types of suffering, causes of suffering and ways to cease suffering. Venerable Zhixi also introduced the Eight Noble Pathways to end suffering and she encouraged the youths to choose the middle path in their daily lives.
Saurabh, who is originated from India, claimed that he has visited temple quite a few times in the Waterdrop Vegetarian Café, but he never joined any other activities like this before in the temple. He expressed his gratitude to his friend for recommending this event as he realised the importance of meditation in his life after attending the meditation retreat. He will visit the temple frequently in the future to enjoy the tranquillity and at the same time, to spread positive energy to people around him.