DDM Held Thousand-People Chan Event in San Francisco on October 20th, 2013
Let’s promote Chan practice and uplift the character of humanity¬! Following the spirit of the late Venerable Master Sheng Yen, the DDM Chan Meditation Center in Sunnyvale, San Francisco held a Chan Practice for a thousand participants on October 20, 2013. Previously, this event was held in Taiwan in both 2012 and 2013 with over ten thousand participants. The event, “Chan 2013 Live!” was held in San Francisco and welcomed people of all different races and religious faiths from all over the country to gather together and experience Dharma Drum’s Eight-Form Moving Meditation in a large group setting. The event encouraged relaxation of the body and mind, promoted peace of mind and showed participants how to merge Chan with their daily lives, in the hope of bringing peace and stability to the surrounding environment.
This exciting event for promoting Chinese Chan Practice was held at Foothill College, a community college set amidst a beautiful landscape located in San Francisco. On the day, the Abbot President, Venerable Guo Dong was also present, to offer care, teachings, and blessings for the attendees. In addition, there was a Chan Festival where participants experienced various ways of practicing Chan meditation and understood how to apply Chan to their daily life, and the role of Chan in modern society.
The Bay Area of San Francisco is renowned as a leading region of the world in technology. Therefore, it is no surprise that the inhabitants lead a high-pressure and fast-paced life due to the atmosphere of innovation and efficiency. As a result, Chan meditation which can relieve and stabilize body and mind would be beneficial for the local residents. So, in order to share the essence of Chan Dharma with more people, DDM Chan Meditation Center in San Francisco has been actively recruiting volunteers to train instructors for Eight-Form Moving Meditation. Numerous workshops for joint practice of Eight-Form Moving Meditation have been held before the upcoming Chan event. Additionally, since July, DDM Chan Meditation Center in Sunnyvale has promoted Eight-form Moving Meditation in different communities and parks and hosted a number of events teaching people to experience Chan.
Besides these promotional activities, DDM Chan Meditation Center in Sunnyvale has created a special website for the Chan mega-event, introducing the vision of DDM and conveying information on the event. Also, the event has been advertised through mass media such as radio stations, newspapers and the Internet. The San Francisco branch has also been involved in interview programs on Sing Tao Chinese Radio Station where DDM’s Venerables explained the meaning of Chan, Chan and modern life, ways to relieve stress and the application of the concepts of Chan for daily life.
Shih Hsiao-Ying, a trainee of Eight-form Moving Meditation, said that she not only learned how to relieve herself of stress, but also learned how to apply Eight-form Moving Meditation to all aspects of her daily life through actions and behavior. After continually watching the DVD of Eight-form Moving Meditation and practicing what the demonstration teaches, she now unconsciously is able to relax every part of her body which indeed affects her daily life. For example, she said whenever her shoulder feels pain due to doing much housework, she will try to use Chan concepts to alleviate the pain. By consistent practicing the Eight-form Moving Meditation, both her mind and body are at ease. She believes she has become a more compassionate person, sees things with all different perspectives and has more empathy for others.
(Translated by Tom Hsieh/Edited by DDM Australia Editing Team)