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"Practicing unconditional compassion is to treat all people whether they have karmic affinity with us or not, with the same compassionate mind." |
On June 13, from 9:30 am to 3:00 pm, Buddha Gate Monastery will offer the "Infinite Life Retreat" for seniors aged 55 and over. We invite you to leave the noise of the world behind and come to join us in a day of inward seeing, a day of mindfulness, a day to recognize the impermanence of the world and experience the joy of realizing the Infinite Life of the Mind. (details and application) |
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On Sunday, July 4, from 6pm to 8:30pm, Buddha Gate Monastery will host our annual vegetarian potluck in celebration of Independence Day. Join us and feast on a large variety of vegetarian dishes and be entertained by live performances. Afterward, we will make candlelight offerings to the Buddha, symbolizing the shattering of our ignorance and illuminating our inner wisdom. As the sun starts to set, we will make our pilgrimage climb up the hill to the Guan Yin statue and enjoy the panoramic view of the Bay Area fireworks. The climb represents the traditional practice of a mountain pilgrimage. Bring friends and your favorite vegetarian dish. Please call 925-934-2411 to register in advance so we can plan for enough seating. |
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From August 4 to August 7, BGM will again host the full day Bodhi Seed Summer Camp for children ages 5 to 13. The program is free and space is limited. (details, application and the volunteer form.) |
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Every day through August 22, Buddha Gate Monastery invites all Dharma friends and disciples to join us in the daily recitation of the Sutra of the Medicine Buddha Lapis Lazuli Radiance Tathagata and help us observe the Sangha Summer Retreat. (View article and schedule in English or Chinese) |
On April 17, the Bodhi Seeds students celebrated their last class with a day of competitive sports geared to cultivate their spirit of cooperation and camaraderie. They learned the essence of teamwork through activities such as tug-of-war, basketball shoot, ping-pong, long jump, limbo, and rice bag relays. (view photos)
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Communities learned about Buddha Gate Monastery at Berkeley Earth Day on April 24, and San Ramon Art and Wind Festival on May 30, and 31. Abbess Jian Sheng, Master Jian Li, and practitioners shared information with fair attendees about the meditation classes, programs, and Bodhi Seeds Summer Camp offered at the monastery. At the San Ramon Festival, practioners spoke with our visitors in French, Mandarin, Spanish, and Vietnamese. This enabled a diversity of visitors to discover the Dharma. (view Berkeley Photos and San Ramon Photos.)
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On May 22, Buddha Gate Monastery celebrated Buddha’s birthday with the traditional Buddha Bathing Ceremony. Members of the Buddha Gate community, family, friends, and guests participated in this annual cleansing ceremony. By bathing a statue of the baby Buddha, we had an opportunity to inwardly cleanse away our anger, greed, and ignorance, and focus on our pure (Buddha) nature. (view photos) |
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 Buddha’s Awakened,
show us the right path.
So, happy, happy birthday Buddha
Celebrate our life.
我 今 灌 沐 諸 如 來
wǒ jīn guàn mù zhū rú lái
We are now bathing all Buddhas
淨 智 莊 嚴 功 德 聚
jìng zhì zhuāng yán gōng dé jù
Pure and grand, complete in wisdom and virtues
五 濁 眾 生 令 離 垢
wǔ zhuó zhòng shēng lìng lí gòu
May sentient beings be cleansed of the five impurities
同 證 如 來 淨 法 身
tóng zhèng rú lái jìng fǎ shēn
All attaining Tathagata’s pure Dharmakaya.
Click song and verse. |
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 Shakyamuni Buddha was a spiritual teacher from ancient India. He was born a prince named Siddhartha Gautama. “Shakya” refers to the clan of his origin and means “compassion”; “muni” means “wisdom.” Therefore, Shakyamuni Buddha is the “Awakened one with perfect compassion and wisdom”. (More about his life and teachings.)
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 The Buddha mind is a great compassionate mind. The spirit of Buddhism is compassion and equality. If we wish to attain a mind of compassion and equality, first, we must not kill; second, we must save lives; third, we must practice vegetarianism. If we can accomplish all three, our compassionate mind will manifest.
Practicing Buddhism is to learn from the Buddha, learn from the Buddha’s purity of body, speech, and mind. “Learning from the Buddha’s body” is to emulate the Buddha’s actions. All actions in our daily lives should be proper and meet the highest standards. “Learning from the Buddha’s speech” is to be proper in our speech—no bad-mouthing, back-biting, lying, or frivolous talk. “Learning from the Buddha’s mind” is to constantly examine and reflect on our thoughts so that they are of the highest perfection in truth, virtue, and beauty. Thus, we can attain the Buddha’s compassion, wisdom, samadhi, and even his miraculous powers and wondrous functions. (Read more)
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Everyone feels angry at times. However, left unchecked, this strong emotion can build and tip you out of control even over something minor. You can avoid this strong response by maintaining a calm mind.
First, know when you are angry; being annoyed is often anger’s first cousin. Second, when you are angry, try one of these suggestions to defuse it: (read more) |
 Lee An-Bo Kwok (Chuan Fong), Vice President of the Dharma Support Association, was born in Cholon, Vietnam. She escaped the war in 1978 and as a refugee was sent to a camp in Malaysia. When released in 1979, she moved to Perth, Australia. She and her husband have lived in San Jose since 1983. She has been attending and volunteering at Buddha Gate for over nine years and has developed a disciplined and devoted practice of Buddhism. Read more about her journey.
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 An Arhat is someone who understands the Four Noble Truths, follows the Noble Eightfold Path, has realized the emptiness of the false-ego, and has extinguished the poisons of greed, anger, and ignorance, thereby transcending the cycle of rebirth. The Arhat has extinguished all evils, is immaculate and noble, worthy of offerings from human and heavenly beings, and abides in absolute, eternal bliss.
The Arhat Sugata is known as “The Dragon Tamer.” The “Dragon” here is interpreted as vicious desire and anger. Due to ingrained delusion, our mind is often not very tame or well behaved. With this un-tame “Monkey Mind,” we cause our own suffering and the suffering of those around us. When we tame and discipline this mind with right views and compassion, we are relieved from suffering. “Deep awareness of the suffering of another coupled with the wish to relieve it” is Compassion. |
 Pledge to be vegetarian at least one day a week and make a positive change for your health, the environment, and the humane treatments of animals. By refraining from eating any living creatures at least one day a week, every week, you will lower your risk of heart disease and cancer, save the lives of animals, and reduce your contribution to global warming. For more information, find us on Facebook at http://groups.to/goveggie. Also, try some the delicious vegetarian online recipes at Buddha Gate Monastery.
Be kind to your body. Be kind to the animals. Be kind to our planet! |
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