Los Angeles Center Holds College Student Winter Workshop, Guiding Students in Inner Self-Exploration

From January 4^th to January 5^th, 2024, Dharma Drum Mountain (DDM) Los Angeles Center held a two-day College Student Winter Workshop. Attended by thirty students and two members of Dharma Drum for Young People, the two-day event was led by Ven. Chang Ji from Dharma Drum Retreat Center (DDRC) in New York who was accompanied by Ven. Chang Tong, the Director of the Los Angeles Center, throughout the workshop. During the two-day monastic life experience – including morning and evening services, working meditation, dining, sitting meditation, and rest periods signaled by the wooden board – the participants attempted to incorporate the basic concepts and practices of Buddhist Chan meditation that they learned from the courses into their daily activities.

Through her guidance and questions, Ven. Chang Ji led the participants to gradually explore their inner selves during the event. In the courses designed by Ven. Chang Ji, the participants sometimes contemplated on who the "self" truly is, a concept that they might not have fully recognized, and sometimes engaged in the active discussion and sharing sessions with the Venerable and their peers.

The Chan meditation courses, on the other hand, were instructed by Ven. Chang Shen. After sitting and walking meditation, a student shared, "My thoughts keep popping up. I told myself to stop thinking, but I just can't help it." Another participant remarked, "I rarely have the opportunity to eat so mindfully without mobile phones and computers. Only when I mindfully savor the food in my mouth do I realize how tasty it is." During the outdoor walking meditation session, the participants took each step slowly, wholeheartedly feeling the relaxation of the body, and the contact between both the feet and the ground.


In addition to the courses led by the Venerables, Dennis Wang, a CEO of a company, was invited as the Guest Speaker for the Winter Workshop to share the influence of Buddhism on his life and his journey of starting a business. Students about to enter the workforce were eager for his experience, and kept proposing questions. Some were curious about his busy schedule as a CEO, while others were interested about his experience of living in a monastery for 40 days. The two-hour time was obviously insufficient for them because as Dennis was about to leave, the students still seized every second to ask questions.

On the last day of the event, Ven. Chang Tong indicated that it is difficult to engage the youth in Buddhism, especially in the Western world. She hopes that greater youth involvement can rejuvenate and globalize the transmission of Buddhism. The Los Angeles Center has planned the July Summer Workshop to be held at DDRC in New York during summer vacation, welcoming more students to attend. For event details and the latest information, please visit the official website of the Los Angeles Center: https://www.ddmbala.org/en/







Text and photos: Dharma Drum Mountain Los Angeles Center
Translation: Siang-ling Li
Editing: Keith Brown, 可馨