Experience sharing
Rediscovering the Joy of Meditation: A Transformative Experience of Wisdom and Stability
In 2017, I stumbled into my first meditation session unprepared, drawn more by curiosity than expectation. Little did I know that this serendipitous encounter with a silent 5-day Theravada Buddhism meditation retreat would profoundly shift my perspective. Immersed in introspection, I confronted the fundamental question, "Who am I?" as I navigated the intricacies of self-awareness and the impermanence of existence. Fast forward to a recent meditation class at Dharma Drum Mount...
Personal Reflections about the 49-day Retreat by Grant Sheen
I just graduated from Stanford University. This was the first time in my life that I stayed in the monastery as a volunteer. I came to the DDM headquarters chan hall to support the 49-day retreat. Here are some of my reflections: Sharing Today I did a lot of volunteer work and participated in the final sharing. I just stood in front of everyone and shared, haha! It was pretty cool. I shared 3 learnings I had from the perspective of someone who grew up in the West. First, letting...
DDM Sydney 28/7/2024 Half-Day Outdoor Meditation Personal Recount
I attended the outdoor meditation session organised by DDM Sydney on 28/07/2024 at Macquarie University. It was a very windy day but everybody was in good spirits. We did walking meditation, eight-form moving meditation, slow walking meditation, sitting meditation followed by group discussion and sharing at the end. It was a comprehensive meditation session to practise on a variety of meditation forms and I found it was very enjoyable to meditate within a group setting. It was just what...
2024 July 27 One-day Retreat - Personal Review by Maaike
The one-day-retreat at Dharma Drum Mountain was an experience that will stay with me for a long time, one I won't forget! One that will travel with me, and possibly even has changed me a little I think! I felt so very welcome, from the first moment on. The DDM people / monks / helpers were incredibly friendly and supportive. The atmosphere was so warmhearted, calming and nurturing. The program was very well organised, everything was very orderly, prepared, structured. Yet, nothing felt...
Review of May 18 – 27 2024 Retreat Led by Venerable Guo Goang
By Martin Applebaum 5/30/24 Photo by Yin Ting About 30 wonderful and committed people gathered together for nine days at tail-end of May 2024 for a silent Chan retreat at the Gateless Meditation Center in Augusta, West Virginia. The retreat center is the embodiment of the amazing vision and dedication of Su Hwa Liang Tan, who brought it to life with the help of so many. The retreat was led by the inspiring and insightful Venerable Guo Goang, with the joyous and capable assistance of...
Do Not Empower Wandering Thoughts by Seeing Them as Your Enemies
As a working professional with a 9-5, Monday to Friday schedule, I always want to find a way to continue my meditation and deepen my practice. I signed up for the one-day retreat at Dharma Drum Vancouver Centre scheduled for May 26th, 2024, as soon as I saw the information posted on the website. On the day of the retreat, before stepping into the center, I was pretty nervous. It had been a while since my last retreat. Negative thoughts such as, "I'm not practicing every day; how c...
2024 April 27 One-Day Retreat - Personal Recount by Zac
On April 27, 2024, I had the opportunity to attend my first one-day retreat in Taipei at the Dharma Drum Mountain Degui Academy. Prior to the retreat I had for over a year been a solo practitioner, practicing Shamatha "mindfulness" meditation for about 15 minutes every day. After coming to Taipei, I began to take an interest in the Chan meditation method and some of the online teachings from the Dharma Drum Mountain's webpage. After three months in Taiwan, I finally mustered up ...
2024 April 27 One-Day Retreat by members of NTU Indonesia Buddhist Society
Letticia Winata It's a very good event! It helps me to calm myself and distance myself from the daily hecticness. Hengky This my first time experience attending an retreat like this. The variety of meditation techniques introduced me to new perspectives. Because I always avoided meditation thinking meditation was something only people who can do something with 100% focus. Michelle Being a monkey-minded individual, my brain is usually all over the place. It jumps...
Reflections on 4/27 The English One-day Retreat by Brenda Chiang
When I learned about this event, I was feeling mentally exhausted due to some things happening at the same time, and I really wanted to take an immersion experience. So I registered immediately. So on the day, I eagerly stepped into Degui Academy. That day, we practiced eight-form moving meditation, sitting meditation in four stages, Yoga exercise, eating meditation, and walking meditation. By the end, Venerable Guo Chii gave a Dharma talk and held the sharing and Q&A time. I felt this...
Personal reflection of April 27 2024 IMG one-day retreat
On April 27, 2024, I joined a one-day retreat held by DDM IMG at Degui Academy. The retreat began with the Eight-form Moving Meditation, which was quite helpful for the subsequent sitting session. After sitting, we practiced strecthing yoga. Unlike typical warm-up exercises and yoga, the focus for moving meditation and the yoga here is to use the "method." By applying the method, the alternation of motion and stillness really helped me become increasingly aware of the changes in m...