The Encounter
“We should all make this vow: ‘We don’t want the Dharma to come to an end. Wherever we go, we want the Proper Dharma to exist there.’” —Venerable Master Hsuan Hua
Who was Venerable Master Hsuan Hua? What role did he have in the world of Buddhism, society, politics, and effecting change? This section offers re-discovered archives—lectures, letters, journals, and multimedia files—of his life and work. You’ll also find stories and reflections of his legacy from those who lived with, learned from, and transformed through their encounters with Master Hua.
How does a verse communicate all of its meanings to us? With midterm break just beginning, I'll be spending the week contemplating and reciting Guan Yin's name. In some sense I feel that for every session I have to reorient myself to practice, and of course, exactly what this means is different every time. Luckily, my recent classes have been providing a lot of food for thought. [...]
The act of seeking, at this subtle level, is directly related to one of the twelve links in the Buddha’s teaching on dependent origination. The tenth link is called bhava in Sanskrit. In English, it is translated as becoming or continuation. The way in which seeking is related to this link is through its involvement in moving the mind’s attention away from the present and into the future. When we seek, we are always seeking after something in the future, because of the fact that in the present we feel discontent. [...]
Back in 2003, I first came across the original BTTS (Buddhist Text Translation Society) version of the Shurangama Sutra, which was available online. That sutra and its commentary had a profound effect on my view of the Dharma. In Master Hsuan Hua’s commentary, there were a few of his teachings that influenced me the most [...]
Just like that, we’re off to a new academic year at DRBU! During Orientation last week, keynote speaker Dharma Master Heng Chih invited participants to ponder the following verse by the Venerable Master. 不生煩惱莫疑心 總要管己少管人 多認不是莫爭理 安然清淨智慧生 — 宣化上人 By putting afflictions and doubts to rest, By watching ourselves more and others less, By admitting [...]
In reading essays on Master Hua’s life, I came across this quote: “The Master was always open, direct, and totally honest with everyone in every situation. He treated everyone equally, from the President of the United States to little children.” It makes me reflect: Am I honest? Do I say what I mean? Well, I [...]
September 29, 1977 Feelings that can’t be described, only felt: the steam-fire energy sometimes crescendos past my control. If I can turn it (like a stampede of cattle) and slowly and quietly gather it in, “everything is okay.” It passes. This is called “Waiting out the fire.” If I can’t, all hell breaks loose. Very [...]
While reading some of Master Hua’s reflections, I came across this story: There is a story about when the students from mainland China first came to Taiwan. Because they were fleeing for their lives, none of the students, except maybe one or two, remembered to bring their diplomas. When they applied for college in Taiwan, [...]
I was going through some old materials in the archive when I came across a reproduction of this letter: The letter was written by Hassan Ahmed Kamel in 1979, then chief of cabinet of the late President Muhammad Anwar El Sadat of Egypt, and it was addressed to the late Ch’an Master Hsuan Hua, the [...]