Tai Chi & Meditation Saturday Service
On Saturday 21 June seventeen people attended the Tai Chi & Meditation Saturday Service. Half were new and half were regular members.
The Service began with the regular programme of Tai Chi and mindful walking and was followed by standing meditation with open eyes, in the Main Shrine. Participants contemplated the many Buddha images on the side walls and, in small groups, looked closely at first one, then other nearby Buddha images, noticing subtle differences between them. The purpose of this exercise was to have participants learn to draw in their focus, first on one image and then make observations, comparisons and look wider and deeper.
During sitting meditation in the Meditation Hall we were encouraged to accept whatever conditions there were at that time. Gradually, the more we meditate, the more we learn to eliminate distractions. Meditation offers us a valuable opportunity to gain clarity, as we can clear our minds from distraction and in the stillness, the muddy waters of our lives have a chance to settle. As turmoil subsides, the mud sinks to the bottom and crystal clear water rises to the top, offering us the chance to see and understand with greater clarity.
Venerable Miaoyu asked everyone the question, “How do we obtain calmness and peacefulness?” According to Venerable Master Hsing Yun’s discourse, the three following methods are suggested: 1. Eliminating our ignorance and defilements; 2. Not comparing or judging good and bad and not being attached to either gain or loss;
3. Not having an impure mind, not wasting time in gossip, nor making judgments about right and wrong.
