​Director General of ITA Manharsinh Laxmanbhai Yadav Visited DDM to Deepen the Taiwan-India Exchanges in Religious Education

Accompanied by their secretary, Director General of India Taipei Association (ITA), Mr. Manharsinh Laxmanbhai Yadav, his wife, and Deputy General of ITA, Ms. Aparna Ganesan, made a special visit to Dharma Drum Mountain (DDM) World Center for Buddhist Education and the university campus of Dharma Drum Institute of Liberal Arts (DILA) at 10 a. m. on April 23^rd. They met DDM Abbot President, Venerable Guo Huei (果暉法師), and President of DILA, Mr. Chen Ting-ming (陳定銘), to exchange opinions on the development of religions in Taiwan and the outlook of Buddhist education. Their visit was completed at 4:00 p.m. with group photos taken at the Ocean Seal Samādhi, a site of interest in the DILA campus.

Setting foot in a Buddhist temple in Taiwan for the first time, Director General Yadav and his wife were cordially greeted by the representatives of the DDM Sangha and the DILA's faculty and staff with a guided tour led by the Abbot President himself. They felt close and joyful when seeing the map outlining the spread of Buddhism in India in the Founding History Memorial Hall. In addition, they also expressed that the image of Avalokiteśvara holding a vase pouring purifying water in the Wish-Fulfilling Guanyin Hall brings the power of peace and purity to people.


In response to Director General Yadav's questions about when Buddhism was introduced to Taiwan, the differences between Chinese Chan and Japanese Zen, and how to make Buddhist prostrations, the Abbot President answered in English and introduced the life of DDM founder, Master Sheng Yen, explaining that the mission of DDM is to promote Chinese Chan Buddhism with Spiritual Environmental Protection as the core, and to purify the world through the Three Types of Education. Director General Yadav also spent quite a while in the well-stocked Library & Information Center to browse and read the Heart Sutra in Sanskrit as well as the other Buddhist scriptures.

Faculty members of DILA, including President Chen Ting-ming (陳定銘); Dr. Teng Wei-jen (鄧偉仁), Dean of Department of Buddhist Studies; and Dr. Matthew Orsborn, Head of the Division of International Affairs, introduced the development of modern Buddhist education in Taiwan and the concepts of liberal arts education at DILA to the delegation. Director General Yadav shared that there will soon be an Institute of Buddhist studies in India that integrates religion, science, and humanities. He looked forward to deepening the exchange of religious education between Taiwan and India, and welcomed young Buddhist scholars to visit India.


Mrs. Yadav shared that she felt calm during her visit at DDM since the teachings of the Buddha could be felt through the environment here, and the delicious vegetarian meal was also enjoyable. Director General Yadav was delighted by the hanging scroll of "Spiritual Environmental Protection" presented by the Abbot President. He hung the prayer card "May everyone have peace and prosperity" on the Prayer Tree in the Founding History Memorial Hall, wishing for a world of blessings.






Original text written in Chinese by Zhang Yao-zhong (張曜鐘)
Photos provided by Fu Li-xian (傅莉嫻), Fan, Lee (李東陽)
Translation: Siang-ling Li
Editing: Keith Brown, YKL