​Dharma Drum Vancouver Centre Held Half-Day Retreat at Year's End

On the morning of December 31^st, over forty meditation practitioners gathered at Dharma Drum Vancouver Centre for a half-day retreat, commemorating the year's end through group meditation.

Venerable Chang Wu, the Director of Dharma Drum Vancouver Centre, opened the retreat by sharing the story behind its inception. The planned year-end four-day retreat led by teacher David Listen had to be canceled due to unforeseen reasons. Sensing the attendees' disappointment, Venerable Chang Wu organized this half-day retreat for December 31^st, welcoming those who had registered for the four-day event, the meditation group's volunteers, and anyone with a passion for Chan practice.

Venerable Chang Wu prompted the practitioners to ponder their initial reactions to the four-day retreat's cancellation. Thoughts like, "Why did this happen? I managed to make time!" or "What's up with the teacher? Isn't there another teacher available?" may have surfaced one after another, followed by a cascade of negative emotions like regret, frustration, discontent, and anger. The Venerable pointed out that this was an excellent opportunity for introspection. How do we react when things do not go as planned? Since there must be intricate causes behind every circumstance, can we accept the present conditions as what they are? Meditation, as the Venerable explained, enhances our awareness, thereby allowing us to observe our thoughts more clearly. As we become more adept at calming and observing the mind, we become less affected by internal and external influences, thus maintaining mental peace and clarity. Following the discussion, the Venerable led a full session of eight-form moving meditation, an hour of seated meditation, and a post-meditation massage. Within a swiftly passing two hours, participants found relaxation in body and mind, while immersed in the joy of Dharma.

Henry, a university student from Eastern Canada who returned to Vancouver for the holidays, shared his fondness of year-end Chan retreats at the Centre since high school. Although initially disappointed about the four-day retreat cancellation, he embraced the extra time with his long-missed family. Henry, along with his mother, younger sister, and two university friends, participated in the half-day retreat. They joyfully helped clean the kitchen and the dining hall after lunch.

Fay, another attendee, spoke about her previous experience with the year-end five-day retreat as well as her admiration for teacher David Listen's style, which prompted her early registration for this year