Fo Guang Shan Temple of Toronto
March 7, 2024

Fo Guang Shan Temple of Toronto was honoured to invite Mr. James Chao, the General Representative of Devotees of Fo Guang Shan Monastery, and BLIA Lay Dharma Lecturer to give a Dharma talk last Sunday, February 25th. His talk “Relevance of Buddhism in Today’s World” attracted more than 200 online and in-person participants.

Thanks to Mr. Chao's diligent research and preparation, Abbess Venerable Chueh Fan of FGS Temple Toronto expressed gratitude and warmly welcomed him to Toronto. Mr. Chao also prepared a valuable edition of the Diamond Sutra for distribution among the attendees.

Mr. Chao first explained how he came to learn Buddhism through his mother. In the last 50 years, he had read and recited the Diamond Sutra. He suggested using the “listen, contemplate, cultivate” method to discover and explore one’s inherent Buddha nature. Try asking yourself practical questions such as “Am I happy?”, “Is there meaning in my life?”, “What are my expectations of the future?” Through these reflections, one can start to incorporate the Buddha Dharma into daily life.

He told the audience to observe before responding, “Where there is Dharma, there is a way”.  Listen and read the Buddha’s teachings such as the “Heart Sutra” and “The Eight Realizations of the Great Beings”. He also quoted the various chapters of the Diamond Sutra: Chapter 1: Convocation of the Assembly, Chapter 2: Venerable Subhuti’s request, Chapter 3: Subdue one’s heart to cause all beings to enter nirvana, Chapter 4: Conduct without dwelling, practice generosity without attachment, Chapter 5: All with marks are empty and false. There is a step-by-step approach to learning the Dharma, starting from the Three Dharma Seals and Four Noble Truths.

Bodhisattvas, having understood emptiness and lack of inherent existence, realize there are no self and no beings. James emphasized that the Diamond sutra is a great protective tool, and understanding it brings blessings while seeing through it illuminates truth and clarity. Buddhism is more than a religion. It is a journey to seek the truth. Knowing one’s mind is to know one’s potential to be a Buddha. A single-pointed mind can solve all problems. Hence it is so important to guard one’s mind and to practice according to the Noble Eightfold Path.

James also introduced the sequence for personal cultivation: using the model If A, not A, thus its name is A; the three prajna, the three wisdom and the three turning of the Dharma Wheel. From the 23 chapters of the Diamond Sutra, we learn how to reduce the “self”.  If living in a world of desires is an addition, then following Buddha's Dharma to purify our minds is a subtraction. Attachment to views and opinions means that we have an addiction. Seeing things as they are, brings ease and freedom. Being generous does not reduce our wealth.

In the Sutra, “A Composite” refers to the interaction of our six roots and six sense objects. As our knowledge grows, our worldview also changes. Finally, the Lay Dharma Lecturer used the last four verses of the Diamond Sutra to remind all to cultivate a mind of non-moving and non-attachment to forms.

There were many enthusiastic interactions during the Q&A session. His final message to the audience was encouraging them to practice the four foundations of mindfulness frequently as a way to bring peace and calm. After the group picture, many praised James for his eloquent talk. Participants said they benefited from his insights which helped them to further understand the Dharma. After the talk, James also spent some time with youths speaking with them to understand their background and their journey in the path of learning the Buddha Dharma. He encouraged them to start from the basics such as the Four Noble Truths, the Noble Eightfold Path, the Ten Good Deeds, and the Twelve Links of Dependent Origination. Armed with this knowledge, a strong foundation is built that would help youths to find meaning in their life.