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The Buddha’s teaching seeks to instill right understanding
and to eradicate bad habits. A teacher’s primary duties are
to teach the Dharma, to facilitate each student’s development
of meditation technique and to help students to resolve doubts. As
well, the teacher will help students to develop proficiency in
language, logic, medicine and other arts. The Buddhist teachings
emphasize the importance of supra mundane education but do not neglect
the significance of mundane education. In this respect, these teachings
are similar to those of Confucius, who valued both philosophy and the
practices of daily life. Therefore, our main
purpose is “to practice the
Buddha’s teaching and to uphold the spirit of the
Buddha-dharma” in
order to perpetuate the right dharma.
The teachings of Gotama, the
Buddha, come to us through his disciples and those who came after Him.
How, then, do we maintain the continuity of the Enlightened Teaching?
The only way to do this is to rely upon the Sangha of the Enlightened
One, that is, those disciples who have adhered assiduously to the
Dharma. Therefore, “to concentrate on education for
the Sangha and to realize the six unities of spirit” is crucial not only for the well being of
the present Sangha, but also for ‘the continuation of the
right dharma’.
It is recorded that the Buddha had ten aims in formulating the training
rules in the code of Discipline, including maintaining “(i)
the excellence of the community” and “(x) the
establishment of the true dharma.” The
Sarvastivadin School
quotes from the Suttanta: “My (the
Buddha’s) true
Dharma is not to rely upon walls and pillars, but upon the followers
who practice the right dharma.”
In Abhidhammakosa,
it is stated that the preservation
and the continuation of the right dharma depend both upon the
‘Holders of the Teaching’ of the Three Canons
[Sutta (the Doctrine), Vinaya (the Code of Discipline), Abhidhamma
(the Philosophical
Psychology of Buddhism)] and also
on the ‘Attainers of the Dharma’, who have perfect
practice in Sila (Morality), Samadhi (Concentration) and Pannya (Wisdom). The
‘Holders of the Teaching’ and the
‘Attainers of the Dharma’ are like pillars
upholding the teachings of the Buddha.
A successful Buddhist Monastery is a place for education, for arousing
faith and correcting bad behavior, for practicing Dharma and for giving
without expectation of return. A Buddhist monastery fails when it
attempts to promulgate Buddhism with an external display of
magnificence or grandeur. From the perspective of ‘the
continuation of the right Dharma’, the Three Trainings of
Sila, Samadhi and Pannya should be firmly established in practice and
then combined with an understanding of Philosophy, Psychology, Arts,
etc. Only through such a combination can the continuation of the right
Dharma be achieved.
The management and structures of Buddhist organizations in Malaysia
vary. Some organizations follow the traditional or orthodox system,
while others try to adapt to new changes and demands. Some, like the
Santavana Forest Hermitage in Sabah, try to combine traditional as well
as local cultures. The Santavana Forest Hermitage emphasizes Dharma
education for the Sangha as well as for the laity. Under the leadership
of the Sangha, the “Dharma Patrons Committee” and
“the Management Committee”collaborate to propagate
the teachings of the Buddha, regardless of the diversity of Buddhist
schools. The Sangha and these committees are working together
“to enhance the co-operation between the
Sangha and the laity, and to support the Triple Gems in accordance with
the Dharma.
¡°In
late 1998, Mr. and Mrs. Ng Kim Cheng donated funds and the present
site of the hermitage. Further assistance from local and overseas
devotees provided for the expansion and addition of cottages, the
dharma-hall, the library and other buildings. In these new
facilities we have successfully organized Dharma education for the
Sangha, the general public, and the patrons, as well as other
educational activities.
The past few years have required a great deal of work and effort, as
the difficulty of establishing the hermitage was made greater by our
inexperience. Looking into the future, it seems clear that the hard
work will continue. However, these challenges will not distract us
from the¡®the continuation of the right dharma¡¯. We will adhere to
the traditional method of gradual teaching, which begins with
Pariyatti (studying the doctrines), continues with Patipatti
(practicing the three trainings [Sila, Samadhi and Pannya])
and
culminates in Pativedha (the attainment).
Our journey may
be difficult, but let us work together with perseverance for the
liberation from suffering, for the propagation of Buddhism, for the
well-being of mankind and to teach Buddhism as an active,
contemporary way of living in order to purify society and mankind. ¡±
Thank you!
By Bhikkhu Kai Yin
The Abbot of Santavana Forest Hermitage
2004 July 07 |
