Priscilla Wong
April 17, 2024

On 31 March, the Sunday “Community of Practices” Check-In to commemorate the one-year anniversary of Venerable Master Hsing Yun’s passing with a 2-month series has concluded. Community members shared their personal and inspiring tributes to Venerable Master Hsing Yun.

Venerable Juewei commenced the sessions, sharing the Venerable Master’s example of leading with courage to undertake innovative initiatives which were initially met with great resistance.  However, his persistence and fortitude have resulted in the Fo Guang Shan we know today. Venerable reflected on how she draws strength from her teacher’s example - and asked each of us to consider how we too can take courageous action to make a positive impact on the world.

Ina Denton (from the USA) and Cecile Manikan (from the Philippines) followed by sharing the joy of their personal interactions with the Venerable Master and also being the recipients of the kindness and generosity from his monastic students throughout the world. Under this genuine care, Ina undertook a personal journey from skeptic to humble student to dharma teacher, while Cecile marvelled at the art of nobility which all of us can be encouraged to practice and perfect.

Lipeng Lim and Joey Yeo gave examples of how the Venerable Master’s actions and words guide us in both daily life, and when faced with life’s challenges. Joey was moved by a simple bookmark calling on him to safeguard the mind and encouraged us all to reflect on how we can be mindful of our every thought. Lipeng spoke of her admiration of the Venerable Master’s befriending of illness. Instead of resistance, anger and denial, we can see through his example the possibility to transform our experience to gratitude and acceptance.

Stacey Weng gave different experiences of how the Master had touched their lives beyond form. photo／The Life News Agency

Finally, our friends Xiaomeng Tian, Liam Carver and Stacey Weng gave different experiences of how the Master had touched their lives beyond form. Xiaomeng, despite never having met the Venerable Master, came to find a spiritual home in the study groups, educational institutes and communities of Fo Guang Shan. Stacey too, was delighted by the wonder and joy created by the artistic ventures nurtured by the Venerable Master - particularly in the Buddha’s Birthday Festivals (BBF) and Buddha’s Birthday Education Project (BBEP) which so many friends from around the world have contributed to. And Liam shared an internal journey of discovery. He confessed his initial disappointment at the dharma name Upholding Affinities given to him by the Venerable Master - a man he had only seen from afar, before gradually coming to appreciate how perfect the name and precious the gift were. Liam offered this final note of tribute to the Venerable Master which the community echoed: “You really were a star among the stars I could only aspire to”

The Sunday Check In community now moves to our next series welcoming the authors of the 2023 book Cultivating Compassion who will present their chapters each week over the upcoming months.  The link is as follows: https://www.peterlang.com/document/1340151

To learn more, hear the Venerable Master Hsing Yun Tribute sessions, and to register for the Sunday Check In sessions, see the link: https://community.thebbep.org/2024-sunday-check-in/