DDM Vancouver Centre Devotees Completes Intensive Seven-day Chan Meditation Retreat

Amidst the eager anticipation of overseas devotees, Ven. Guo Yi, the Managing Director of DDM Public Buddhist Education Center and Director of Nung Chan Monastery, was once again invited to North America to spread Buddhist teachings. After a four-year hiatus, she made her first stop at the DDM Vancouver Centre, where she shared the application of Buddhism in all aspects of life in an in-depth and easy-to-understand manner. Through both lectures made on special topics and a Seven-day Chan Meditation Retreat, Ven. Guo Yi guided the practitioners to learn to transform their experiences of suffering into opportunities for self-cultivation.
 
During the Intensive Seven-day Chan Meditation Retreat from March 17 to 24, Ven. Guo Yi imparted teachings that were easy to understand and applicable to daily life. She led over 30 participants to return to a state of clarity, relaxation, peace, and stability in their body and mind through practices of walking, standing, sitting, and reclining. Ven. Guo Yi's guidance allowed the participants to gain numerous benefits in the application of Chan Buddhism in their daily lives, and they all expressed sincere gratitude from their hearts.
 
During the retreat, Ven. Guo Yi also encouraged the participants to face the challenges of their practices directly by "embracing their leg pain". In addition to practicing Chan yoga and learning stretching techniques to relax their body and mind from the common discomfort one may feel during sitting meditations, Ven. Guo Yi also reminded the participants that the key to self-cultivation lies in experiencing and accepting suffering, emptiness, and impermanence. By gradually freeing their minds from the effects of leg pain, the participants can feel at ease and feel grounded in the present moment.
 
Following the success of the 2019 lecture "The Development and Evolution of Chan Buddhism," which received enthusiastic responses from the North American audiences, Ven. Guo Yi delivered a series of talks called "The Reality and Transcendence of Learning Buddhism" from March 14 to 16, just prior to leading the Seven-day Chan Meditation retreat. Drawing extensively from the Agama Sutra of Early Buddhism, Ven. Guo Yi quoted Buddhist scriptures and stories, along with illustrations, to reconstruct the dialogues between the Buddha and his disciples. Ven. Guo Yi offered a complete set of roadmaps which extended beyond life itself. Furthermore, nearly 220 people attended the lectures over the course of 3 days. Ven. Guo Yi expounded in details the fact that the Buddha did not only answer questions from sentient beings, but also guided us in understanding that the essence of Buddhism lies in learning to transcend life by understanding the principles of suffering, emptiness, impermanence, and non-self, and by finding peace and happiness in the present life and beyond.
 
Ven. Chang Wu, Managing Director of DDM European and American Branch Monastery Administration and Director of Vancouver Centre, praised the devotees for their enthusiasm and determination in learning Buddhism. She hopes that, through these two courses, everyone can acquire the method to learning and applying the teachings of Buddhism in their daily lives as well as gain a practical understanding of believing that everyone has the potential to become a Buddha.

On March 26 (Sunday) from 1 pm to 3 pm North American Pacific Time, Managing Director Ven. Guo Yi was invited to visit DDM Seattle Chapter to deliver a Dharma talk on "The Buddha's Teachings on Financial Management in the Agama Sutra" using a practical and everyday approach.
 
Text：Ya-ying Lin (林雅櫻), Jian-shen Lin (林建深), Min Qiu (邱敏)
Photo：DDM Vancouver Centre
Translated by: Ariel Shen (沈純湘)
Edited by: James Hsu, Keith Brown