The question begs, “Do we really know what matters?” In Pure Land Buddhism, as in Buddhism in general, this is a vital question. It was a question which confronted me at the beginning of my journey into Buddhism.

My first teacher in Buddhism was a rugged old monk from Mt Putuo in China.  I had just come through a relationship break up and was searching for answers and relief from my suffering. I recall asking the question in an almost demanding type of tone. “But what do I do?” to which the answer came: “Do what really matters”. Now, that only added further to my confusion as I did not know what really mattered. I thought I did. What mattered was my peace of mind, my happiness, my career, my income. What really mattered, I thought, at the time was earning enough money to get myself back to Australia and resume my career. These thoughts spinning through my head were quickly intercepted by the follow up question as if my teacher knew that I did not know the answer. “But do you really know what matters?” My mind drew a blank.

You see, we think we know what matters based upon our desires and cravings. The world that matters to us is our own world full of ignorance. Now in Buddhism, ignorance has less to do about intelligence or education but more to do about knowledge of a wider and higher world and the skills to live in it. It was not long ago in the history of our world that people believed that if we travelled too far we would fall off the edge of the world. People believed that if we went too far into unchartered country there would be dragons and all types of monsters. Of course, we smile, because we now have the scientific knowledge of our planet and its environment and we have skills to live within it. However, Buddhism brings us to a whole new terrain and unchartered waters that challenges our ignorance.

So often when we pursue the things that we think really matter we find ourselves like dogs chasing their tails as we end up suffering again and again. We end up often making the same mistakes over and over again then blaming ourselves in the process for our perceived stupidity. We need to be a little more compassionate on ourselves at this point. We would not expect a grade three student to be able to solve algebra equations with limited maths skills. In the same way we cannot solve the problems of life and suffering with our limited life skills. Buddhism teaches us a new set of skills to live life skilfully and thus dissolving ignorance.

I could have walked away from the old monk from Mt Putuo thinking he was a fool. Instead he helped me see life from a far different angle. In fact if it had not been for the breaking up of the romantic attachment I was craving at the time I would never had been in the set of circumstances that lead me to meeting this monk in the first place and the subsequent journey into Buddhism which was to change my life.

In Pure Land Buddhism we have a process called Inner Meditation or Naikan as it is called in Japanese Pure Land Buddhism (Jodo Shinshu). In this very powerful meditative process we examine our entire life based upon only three questions. (1) What have I received from person X? (2) What have I given to person X? (3) What troubles and difficulties have I caused person X? In essence these three questions lead us to what really matters in life.

The first two questions address the gift of life, of giving and receiving. The third question upon which we spend two thirds of our time in meditation hones in on what blocks us from the gift of life. Life is a gift to be discovered. The Buddha discovered that gift under the Bodhi tree. It is no mere coincidence that the Buddha after acetic practises that left him weak and emaciated met a young girl offering the gift of milk curds. We often overlook this part of the story of Buddhism. The Buddha was offered a gift which sustained him and changed him. There is a gift for us too which will sustain and change us. The awakened life is seeing the gift in life. This is what is really important. Life is a gift to be unwrapped and shared. It is in the unwrapping of this gift that we also discover our own giftedness. The gift of life connects us to all of life in all its beauty and abundance. This is Pure Land. This is not some pie-in-the-sky ideal; it is the only way to live life. What is the alternative?

The Naikan process also trains us to see the obstacle to life in our own attachments, anger, frustrations and greed and in the harm we cause others.  When we are aware of this we are more attuned and awakened to a path that only causes continued suffering.

In our practise we learn what really matters in life and can then orient our lives and values accordingly. When we acquire the skills to live the gift of life we also become the gift of life to all sentient beings. This is being awakened. This is living life to its fullest and ending the cycle of suffering. And that is what really matters.

There have been many books written on the subject and many great Buddhist Masters have written and spoken on the topic, I will not try to emulate them. These words are my simple observations and understanding and I pass on whatever may be helpful.

The word for suffering as it is understood in Buddhism comes from the Pali word dukkha. As it is a word coming from a different time and cultural tradition it is not easy to translate and often open to different translations and interpretations. In Buddhism there are three types of Dukkha. (1) Suffering or pain which includes both physical as well as mental and emotional pain and suffering (2) the Dukkha of impermanence and change. Nothing remains. All changes. Things wither and decay. (3) The suffering of Conditioned States. Everything is dependent on everything else. This is a very subtle concept but briefly it means that as our perceptions change so do our experience and thus can cause pain and suffering.

May translators have avoided the “S” word Suffering and preferred to translate it as dissatisfaction or irritation. My tendency is to think that this is just nodding to what is fashionable rather than confronting reality. It is a bit like avoiding the word “death” and calling it “passing away” or some other euphemism. There is an embedded a subtle avoidance of the truth. No one likes to be confronted with the ugly and gross side of life. However, if we are to advance in our practise we must take the bull by the horns and stand firm in front of the ugly so that we may pass through to the other side.

We are a society addicted to Happiness. While there is absolutely nothing wrong with feeling happy and experiencing the pleasant emotions, if, on the other hand we hang on to it we become addicted and blinded. We have become conditioned to think that there is nothing beyond being happy. Happiness, however, is purely the temporary withdrawal of suffering – not its absence. Suffering continues to lurk in the background like flies ready to pounce on cow dung.

When I was a young boy at school there was a much stronger lad who liked to tease me. He tricked me one day into thinking that we could have some fun on a see-saw. Now, I never did like see-saws because I was afraid of heights at this point in my life. Nonetheless he offered to give me some sweets if I got on the see-saw with him. It was a horror ride! He would slam the see-saw down with all his strength catapulting me into the air leaving me hanging on for my life. Then I would come hurtling down again for a few seconds reprieve before being shot up gain in dread and fear. This seemed to go on for an eternity. Finally I figured out that the only way out of this reprieve-suffering-cycle was to get the timing right and jump off the see-saw. I did, and my teaser came slamming back down.

Our addiction to “things” and happiness are a bit like the see-saw. There is a temporary feeling of delight followed again by the nagging sense of emptiness and the desire to fill the void with more things. In our consumer world the commercial enterprises thrive on this psychology and our addiction.

From an early age we are taught to “be happy”, to find happiness and to live happily ever after. This reasoning and happiness training is pounded into us through our education so that it rests in our bones. Then along comes a Buddhist like me and tell you that you are being led up the garden path and then tells you some truths about suffering. No wonder you are turned off! We have become so conditioned that many of us are unable any longer to see beyond the grasping to an awakened life of joy.

The Buddha was not out to make life a misery for us. He found an anti-dote to misery, a Middle Way, which with practice brings abiding joy and peace.  All that it takes is the courage to jump off the see-saw.

There is nothing “wrong” with having nice things. This is not the issue. The issue is that are we able to see them clearly for what they are – impermanent and ultimately the source of non-happiness. We must let go and not be tempted by the illusionary sweets on offer from the consumer world. The illusion comes with a price tag. A high price.

I don’t think I ever did go near a see-saw again. Even now when I walk through a park I observe them at a distance as they stand as a reminder to me that life can be like this too. It takes courage as a young child to jump off a see-saw. It takes courage as an adult to jump off the see-saw of life. When you do you will be awakened to a new and more fulfilling life. This is what our Dharma practice has promised us.

Namo Amituofo

Magic in the temple stay

When visiting a Chinese Buddhist temple or taking part in a Chinese temple stay, if you are alert and tuned in you can experience what is termed in Chinese as “ling” a type of magic or presence.  It is very hard to describe but many who have spent some time in a Chinese temple stay will know what I am talking about.

“Ling” is a charged energy created by often centuries of prayerful and sincere chanting and meditation of the monks and nuns.

Guang Jue Temple near the small town of Zaoxi in Zhejiang province in China is one such place. You can catch a bus from Shanghai South bus station to Lin’an then a smaller local bus to Zaoxi town. Alighting at Zaoxi town you stroll through a sleepy little rural town past groups of townsfolk playing Mahjong in shop fronts and shop keepers dozing off during the afternoon siesta on reclining camp chairs out front of their shop. The narrow street makes its way past the local school over a bridge and before long you find yourself walking past fields of corn with meandering streams with ducks lined up on floating bamboo poles. The country road exudes a scent from Lady Moon trees lining both sides of the road and mature provides its backdrop of breathtaking mountain scenery. The road has a poetic Chinese name: Cloud Mountain Road. After two kilometres you come across a stone sign with Guang Jue Temple engraved upon it in Chinese, of course.

The first time I walked this road it seemed that my walking pace slowed down almost as if my legs and mind joined in some clandestine scheme to slow down my whole being in preparation for my stay at the Qing dynasty monastery. As I turned into the lane that made its way past bamboo and rice fields I could make out the outline of the monastery building amid bamboo groves.

It was a sunny autumn day and hosts of large blue winged butterflies danced across the yellow pumpkin flowers growing outside the monastery gate. Only the sound of cicadas and small sparrows could be heard amidst a deepening silence.

A Chinese temple plays with the senses. The colours of flowers and paintwork of the ancient temple, the scent of old rosewood furniture and incense is there to intrigue you. I felt a little dizzy. It seemed surreal. Time had stood still. I found myself standing in another era in a deep sense of Pure Land peace. My reverie was soon interrupted by the greeting and welcoming smile of the Abbott, Zheng Rong.

All Chinese Buddhist Temples have a history. Guang Jue Temple has its own history which gives form and shape to its “magic”.  During the Qing dynasty it housed over two hundred monks and nuns. Now only five remain. During the Sino-Japanese war in 1942 the temple took a direct hit from bombs dropped randomly from low flying aircraft making their way to Hangzhou to pound the city. Locals tell me that all monks and nuns fled and there were no casualties. All left except one nun.  Her name was Jue Ming.

We often hear of the great feats of meditation of the renowned Masters of Chinese Buddhism or read their erudite commentaries about sutras or their methods of achieving enlightenment.  We seldom read about forgotten monks, nuns or even lay people who devoted whole chunks of their life to the practise often under harsh conditions. Jue Ming refused to leave the ruins feeling that she had to reverse the tide of Karma that brought the very destruction on the temple. For almost fifty five years Jue Ming performed the Pure Land Buddhist practise of chanting the name of Amitabha Buddha continually day and night as well as the chanting of mantras and sutras. Locals cannot explain why she remained undetected for so long – perhaps they considered her a fool. It was not until the present Abbott commissioned by his temple in Hangzhou to go in search of this reported hermit nun that she was found and brought back to her community.

One morning at an earlier temple stay I found myself drawn to the memorial garden marking the spot where Jue Ming prayed and chanted each day and where her ashes are now interred. It was a very cold autumn morning shrouded in the mountain mists. I sat on a small stone seat. It was so very cold I wanted to change my mind and go back to my room. As quickly as this thought entered my mind I felt a warm flow of air about me. I meditated in peaceful bliss for over an hour without feeling any cold. What was this warm air? Where did it come from?

Even the most skeptical admit to experiencing a very “warm” or “good” or “serene” feeling. Most people who come here on their Temple Stay feel a deep change taking place. Guang Jue is a Chinese Temple with “ling”. More than that, it has a lesson to teach each one of us if we will allow it. Magic remains only magic if all it does is take your breath away. It becomes awakening when is gives you a new breath of life.

Naikan, from the Japanese words Nai = inner and Kan= looking was developed in Japan by Yoshimoto Ishin (1916-1988). It has its roots deep in Japanese Pure Land Buddhist (Jodo Shinshu) practice but quickly developed into a powerful and respected psychotherapy in Japan and China. For centuries Buddhist monks in China and Japan have practised inner reflection before repentance rituals.

The practise of self-reflection is practised in many of the great spiritual traditions of the world and it is perhaps now that owing to the increased interest in Eastern practises and Buddhism that we are shedding the hardened skin of the aversion to looking in the mirror of our souls and finding such to have great healing benefits.

Naikan Meditation evolves around three strategic questions which focus in at our behaviour or conduct rather than thoughts or feelings. Naikan avoids analysis and endless inner debate and manipulation of the facts and keeps rigidly to “what is”.

1. What have I received from this person?
2. What have I given to this person?
3. What problems or difficulties have I caused this person?

They are strategic questions as the hone in on what essentially are the important elements of life, namely the gifts of life and the obstructions to the gifts of life. True abundance is found in life’s gifts and within our own gifts and the greatest enemy to the gift of life is the ego – our own self-cherishing nature.

It is natural for all of us to seek happiness and abundance. However much of our happiness is shallow and short lived as is our sought after abundance. Abundance based purely on material possessions will only be impermanent. Abundance based on our gifts to life and from life is truly satisfying. If we are willing to trace our present dissatisfactions or sufferings we will most often find these to have their roots in actions or thinking. Naikan is a meditation which is able to reframe our thought processes to produce outcomes which bring us deeper insight and happiness. Naikan teaches us to see life from a different angle.

Classical Naikan meditation retreats normally go over seven days. However, the T’ai Shen Centre in Sydney has designed Naikan meditation retreats which last four days – a long week end – making it more convenient for those whose time is limited. However when we come to think about its we have spent a life time getting to the point we are now at so what is the issue about spending only 4 – 7 days reframing a life so that we live a happier and more positively productive life in the future?

Our recent Naikan Meditation Retreat in Melbourne began with participants all looking as though they were about to begin a grueling marathon. “I don’t think I am able to go through with it. . .my life issues are too great” was the call of deep reservation from one lady. However, hour by hour, the gentle Naikan guides are with you guiding you and encouraging you.  You see, Naikan is not a therapy in which you are served the answers to life’s problems. Only you have the answers to your own problems. The Naikan Guide is only there to guide you to those answers and a way forward.  It is a gentle therapy, a quiet therapy.

The hours ticked by and the retreat comes to and end.  Faces looked softened. Each participant was surrounded by a gentle and warm glow. It is evident; it is palpable. The same lady who days earlier felt the weight of the task ahead of her remarked: “I can do it now. I can face life now.” “Naikan do it!” she added. We all laughed at her humour and hugged her.

Naikan in Japanese

What is really important in our life? This is a question that Naikan practitioners are faced with on a daily basis.  It is a question that confronts those doing an intensive Naikan retreat.

It is confronting because our self-cherishing nature desperately wants us to believe that so many other things are important – why the boss is giving us a hard time, the husband who leave his dirty clothes on the floor, the mother-in-law’s opinions that make us angry – all of these and much more often clog up the mental pathways of our day obscuring that which is able to bring a deeper inner happiness.

Naikan teaches us to hold on to what is really important thus freeing us to be in the present moment and see the beauty of the day.  It does this by teaching us to focus on three very strategic questions:

What have I received from a particular person or event?

What have I given to a particular person or event?

What troubles and difficulties have I caused?

The first question “What have I received from a particular person or event?”

invites us to see the gift and interconnectedness of life.  Life is a precious gift in which we make manifest and share our own giftedness to the world.  This is a valuable key towards inner happiness.

Our life depends upon so many people. The coffee you appreciated this morning was a gift from so many.  The coffee beans had to be picked, processed, packaged and transported. The jar was made by a network of others. A store owner provided the store in which the coffee is sold, the check out person served us. We needed water to add to the coffee.  There are so many people involved in providing and maintaining the city water grid. We needed a fragile environment to cause rain for the water.  Do you take sugar and milk in your coffee? Sugar requires farmers to plant and harvest the sugar cane. Cows provide the milk. On and on it goes the complex web of interdependence and connection.

In Naikan Meditation we take time to reflect on those who injure or insult us. In one retreat a participant told me that his boss was very difficult to get along with and could find nothing that the boss had given him. However, soon he was able to reflect that the boss provided him with work which he needed.  Naikan meditation trains us to observe the gift in each day.

The second question of Naikan: “What have I given to that person or event?” helps us to develop a compassionate heart. It is still a question that focuses on the gift of life but now reversed. Gifts are about both receiving and giving. The second question in Naikan is about giving. Naikan meditation invites us to sift our minds and hearts deeply as to those things we give others – not just material things but also time, attention, knowledge and many other non-tangible things. We begin to learn that we can give in so many creative ways.

The second Naikan question helps us to go into each day with a mind of giving.  What do you give to other drivers on the road when you drive to work? What do you give to your work colleagues and boss? There is so much happiness in giving and generates the compassionate heart.

In Buddhism there is the concept of Dana (giving). Giving freely without concern or interest of self creates great Karmic merit.  The giving heart is a healthy heart.  The giving heart is a heart free from troubles. The giving heart is an abundant heart.  When you give from your own inner gift you create energy of abundance and well-being. This is Naikan.

During a Naikan retreat participants retrain their minds to see life from a different angle carefully sifting the sands of their life for the Dana – the gifts of life.

The third question is by far the hardest. In Naikan meditation it is the one which confronts us the most. It is the one we want to avoid. Now the self-cherishing part of us starts to kick a tantrum. It is also the question upon which we must spend 60% of our time.  It is the most important question. What difficulties and troubles have I caused this person or event?

We are so used to examining and talking about what problems others have caused us.  We are used to seeing ourselves as the victims of others, the world or our environment. The self-cherishing part of us desperately wants us to feel hurt. It tricks us into thinking that feeling this way we will find deep inner happiness, comfort and nurture. However, we will never find deep happiness by blaming others for our problems.  Most often this attitude promotes anger and the natural consequence of unchecked anger is a never ending cycle of misery and suffering. Naikan, on the other hand, teaches us to take responsibility for our lives. One of the biggest obstructions to happiness and well-being is the self-cherishing part of us. Naikan meditation gradually erodes the self-cherishing nature leaving us with the gift of life.

What problems and difficulties others have caused us personally do not matter. They are not important. The Buddha has made it clear that the problems we face are of our own making.  All things emanate from our mind.  We have sown the seeds of our own torment and we reap the results.  When we truly understand and accept this we are able to break down the barriers of delusion and see life in all its beauty.

What is really important is that we no longer sow the seeds of negative karma. By firmly and resolutely answering the third Naikan question in relation to our entire life  we begin to root out the karmic obstructions, gain personal integrity and as a result sow seeds of positive karma.  We are thus masters of our own destiny. Further by concentrating on this third question we train our minds to be ever watchful of planting seeds of destructive karma.  This is important.  This is Naikan.

During a Naikan Meditation Retreat participants gradually learn what is really important in life as the key to a deeper happiness.  Naikan is not only a Pure Land Buddhist practice but a highly valuable psychological process for dealing with our life problems. Our problems arise because we cannot see the gift and joy of life.  Learning to live the gift and joy of life is important.  This is Naikan.

Buddha

Many people are turning to Buddhism as a path to happiness. The Buddha has given us a path to supreme and abiding happiness in a well tried and tested method used by countless folk down through the last two millenniums. However, it seems that even many Buddhists are also living lives in quiet desperation almost like closet alcoholics who keep their bottle of misery in a brown paper bag except the brown paper bag is the façade of superficial contentment. The answer is not necessarily in more meditation, more retreats or more chanting because even these can be a way of avoiding confronting the root cause of all our unhappiness.  After all, a good meditation, a quiet and relaxing retreat, uplifting chanting can bring calm and peace. . .for a while.

It was once said of the ancient Japanese Samurai that the battle was not fought or won on the battle field against the perceived enemy but rather in the Zen Do where battle was done with the real enemy lurking in the shadows of the mind. The Self.

This is the last of the attachments, well, it is the one we often want to deal with last!  In the Four Noble Truths the Buddha shows us that our suffering, discontent or dissatisfaction are a result of attachment.  The greatest of all these attachments is the attachment to the Self Cherishing part of us. It is no coincidence that as one enters a Chinese Buddhist Temple the first Hall contains the statue of what is popularly known as the “laughing Buddha” the Maitreya Bodhisattva  symbolizing happiness and contentment. He is often flanked by fierce looking Dharma protectors wielding swords and spears – not the peaceful visage one would expect of a Buddhist temple. The symbols speak loudly. The Maitreya Bodhisattva speaks of happiness which is attainable through the Dharma and the swords that cut through delusion to the truth. It can also remind us that our battle begins with the ego, the cherishing self that will obscure our journey.

I am not immune from the shadow lurking ego.  Not long ago I awoke to a beautiful day with sunshine and a blue sky. I thought to myself: “I am so happy this is a beautiful day.” Happy for whom? And if it were not a beautiful day? Would I feel sad? My ego had tricked me. Rather than embracing the gift of the day the ego wanted to get in on the act. Without the self cherishing part the day is beautiful because it simply is. And that is real happiness.

We often find the pursuit of happiness so difficult because the self-cherishing part has for so long deluded us that we can no longer recognize true happiness.

Why are the fierce looking Dharma protectors in the “first” hall and not in the other halls? It is because this is the first thing we must do battle with – our self-cherishing part.  However so often we want to start our journey in the higher temple halls. The first hall seems a bitter pill to swallow.

So how do we start dealing with this ego? The Buddha has given us many expedients. Tonglen Meditation and Naikan are two such methods. Tonglen helps us develop a mind of selfless compassion and Naikan cracks the hard shell of the ego through introspection.  Naikan forces us to look at life from a different angle and not from the usual perspective of the ego.  Most often we look at life through the eyes of ego, what has given us happiness and contentment or what has brought us misery and dissatisfaction. Naikan helps us to look at reality not the assumed reality of the ego.  Like an optometrist who prescribes a pair of glasses to correct our vision so that we may see clearly, Naikan through its three strategic questions, retrains us to see life from the angle of life’s gift and our obstruction to the gift of life.

Whatever method you use the real battle needs to be done in your own mind. Your external “enemies” are only reflections of your self, your self-cherishing self. Abiding happiness only comes through dealing with this inner enemy. The Maitreya Bodhisattva welcomes us with his happy smile and promise of enlightenment. We can be assured that this type of happiness will not leave us with a hangover but brings peace and life to all sentient beings.

A temple stay at Guang Jue Temple in Zaoxi China leaves an indelible mark on those who come to stay there a while due to its rich history of faith and survival.

It was 1953. The Qing Dynasty temple at its zenith days had over 200 monks and nuns in devotion to the Amitabha Buddha.  Many devotees would come as far away as Shanghai to make devotions to the Buddhas there.  But there was a dark cloud now looming over the area of Hangzhou. The Japanese forces had once before penetrated into the region. Now as a result of strong and often brutal Chinese resistance the Japanese air power was to make another strike at Hangzhou.

Chinese Buddhism had flowered over the centuries but China was now to enter a darker period.  The monks and nuns at Guang Jue temple were far away enough from the fighting in the East. After all, Zaoxi was an insignificant little village amid the mountains. However, that day in 1953 was to change there lives. Suddenly there was the load roar of aircraft flying in formation approaching from the West and in an instant there were load explosions as bombs were dropped randomly as the Japanese aircraft approached Hangzhou. The temple had been hit.

No one really knows how many were wounded. There are few details left and locals seem reluctant to rehash history. There are suggestions that all survived but scattered in fear of another raid. Only one nun remained.  Two of the temples were completely destroyed. All buildings were badly damaged. One small temple remained with gaping holes in the side.

Those staying at a temple stay in this tranquil Chinese Buddhist temple enter the main gates greeted by the Maitreya  Buddha in the first hall. Immediately the guest is reminded of the past as this is the last remaining hall to be reconstructed.  This is where the sole nun lived, slept, prayed and chanted in solitude until some forty years later she was joined by some local people to who came to support her.

In a temple stay here you meet the Venerable Master Zheng Rong, the monk who came from Hangzhou ten years ago to find the nun who survived and was commissioned to bring her back to a Sangha (a community of monks and nuns). Master Zheng Rong describes the day he arrived. The bamboo forest had become overgrown and there was only a barely distinguishable track through the forest to the ruins. When he entered the devastated monastery he took sight of the nun sitting on some rubble, head bowed reciting the Buddha name with her rosary beads. He was instantly moved to tears at the sight of such faith and devotion.

Is there anger and resentment of the deeds of the past? “No”, replies Master Zheng Rong. “We must build the future in the present moment. We cannot build a peaceful and harmonious future from anger or hatred but only from compassion.  What happened was a result of our own negative Karma, our own impure deeds. It reminds us that we can reshape our destiny.” A broad and gentle grin beams across his face like sun coming out from behind clouds on a winter’s day.

The history of Guang Jue Temple is one forged in the faith of one nun who remained to re-chart the course of destiny. Her fingers and rosary beads worn thin with the intense daily chanting and meditation have born fruit. Guests on a temple stay do not find libraries of sutras. Instead they find what is at the heart of Pure Land Buddhism – faith and compassion. Guests staying at this old Chinese temple are changed by the power of the parable it presents, by its peace and its whispering call to compassion.

Many of us have done things in our past we have regretted, things born from the darkness of our lives from which the Karma like a bacteria hatches and flourishes. As a result we may have emotionally or physically damaged lives As humans we are capable of great destruction and we are as equally capable of great compassion and great achievements.

“How can I learn the way of Pure Land Buddhism?” I asked the Master one morning. Master Zheng Rong chuckled with a grin coming across his face again: “Compassion IS the way.  There is no other way.” he replied.

3 Day Retreat of Meditation, Chanting, Workshops, Cultural Exchange and developing ways forward to bring compassion and peace in our communities.

The Venerable Master Zheng Rong and Retreat Facilitator Malcolm Hunt invite you to come together to join us at Guang Jue Monastery China.

April 16^th, 17^th and 18^th 2011

I believe the key to peace and both personal and regional happiness is through compassion. We can all achieve this.  We do not need to be religious people.  We just need to develop goodness. It is that easy.

Buddhism and its message of peace and compassion spread form India through to China then to all corners of South East Asia and beyond.  Together we hold the key to building a better world and regional peace, harmony and prosperity.

Guang Jue Monastery suffered almost complete destruction as a result of war.  It was through the faith and compassion of one nun and the Venerable Zheng Rong that the temple rises from the ashes to be a powerful parable of peace, good-will, social inclusion and humanity.

For further Information contact: Malcolm Hunt, Retreat Facilitator at: admin@taishendo.com



Two of the greatest tragedies which face us on a global proportion as we turn into this next millennium are poverty and human mass slaughter.

The poverty of which I speak is not the material poverty which we are so used to hearing about. It is another kind of poverty, far, far worse and more destructive to the fabric of society than economic poverty. This is the poverty of isolation and loneliness.

It is a kind of poverty which is extremely insidious and continues to increase and underscore our family life and social order. The symptoms of this social sickness are many – broken relationships and divorce, crime, emotional and physical violence, war between communities, mental illness, and addictions; it is a poverty which strips millions of self-esteem. A person is left dry of any value or worth and is rendered powerless.

The tragedy is that although we live in densely populated cities and chat over countless cups of tea and coffee, the sense of isolation is ever increasing within our communities, within our work places, within our schools and even within our churches, mosques, synagogues and temples.

The second great tragedy is that we have witnessed more human carnage this last century in war and murder than in any other time of world history. This is due in part to the greater destructive potential of modern weapons.  In early days of world history one spear may have killed one person in war. Now one missile has the capability of destroying a whole nation.

It thoroughly astounds me that with all our sophisticated technology the world has not advanced very far at all in terms of peace and the sanctity of human life. We are able to send a space probe to the outermost limits of our universe, but we are thoroughly unable (or unwilling) to work toward a peaceful society.

I would boldly suggest that the reason for this is that we are building societies with the predisposition to instant self-gratification.  We seek personal power and material possessions and we want it right now. War is a multi million-dollar business and it grants personal empowerment – for the winners that is. Peace on the other hand requires community effort and its fruits though plentiful, even financially, are not seen immediately. You can’t make a quick buck on peace.

Our love affair with technology has enhanced our need for instant self-gratification. The Internet enables us to connect instantly with others at the opposite end of the globe. We can have cyber-relationships, even cyber-sex. The iPod has fast become the ‘mePod’ as millions of people absorb themselves within their invisible cone of silence. Here is the real danger. We are drawn into the illusion of being part of a ‘global community’. This is nothing more than a fraud. Hugh Mackay, psychologist and social commentator, observes in his book Why Don’t People Listen? :”When the emphasis is on information transfer rather than relationships, the life of the (global) village becomes meaningless: shared data is no substitute for the sense of shared identity and mutual obligation which come from shared experience.” People are beginning now to isolate themselves from real community. The result will be an ever-increasing sense of isolation.

Listening is a communication experience which has within it the power to break the grip of isolation and to plant and nurture a new community. Listening shared from the level of the human heart. No other communication technology is able to do this.

Several years ago I began to remark how deep listening can affect individuals and be the catalyst for positive change both personally and as a community. As a society we have forgotten how to listen. This has been gravely injurious to our corporate journey as a society as well as to our personal growth and well-being. We have lost our prophetic foundations, as when we don’t listen we miss vital information. Listening and vision go hand in hand. When we don’t listen we don’t see the problem ahead – we fail to see the big picture. We move blindly into the future.

I have observed what ‘real’ Listening can do.  I have seen it heal people, I have seen it change people – dramatically, and I have seen it close sales deals worth millions of dollars where no other ‘strategy’ had worked. It is powerful beyond all measure.

In speaking to many people about their recovery from difficult circumstances or emotional illness, I have heard people talk about that thing which really made the difference to them – the turning point, if you like – was that some one took the time to really listen to them.  This intrigued me as this phrase kept coming up time and time again: “really listened”.  What was it in this act of “really listening’ which was able to turn a person’s life around?

But we don’t have time any more. We have systems to attend to, reports to write, deadlines to meet, meetings to go to. Furthermore the things we listen to are mainly information shuffling as this is what our technology has taught us to do.  Emails are quick and precise. Text messaging is even briefer couched in texting language for rapid application. We are fast becoming shallow beings forgetting how to plummet the depth of our souls. Information has become our God.

I will never forget the lonely woman patient in ward 3B of a psychiatric hospital I was working in,  when she turned to me at the end of our conversation: “I don’t care what you know. I just want to know that you care. You listened to me. That is enough and that is all.”