The trip back from Houston

On Sunday after the ceremony we made a side trip to Chung Tai Chan Monastery USA on the return trip from Houston. This is a property of about 500 acres located near Shepherd Texas. The property is a mix of pine forest and open meadows bordering the Trinity river. We had been told that among the wildlife that there were alligators. I did not doubt the presence of alligators, but I did not expect to see any. We saw three in the short time we were there. After a great lunch served in the small Zen hall we continued on our way back to OKC. The long drive was a wonderful opportunity for some good conversation. One topic that came up was what brought each of use to Buddha Mind. After some thought, I realised that in a way, ex-president George Bush was responsible in starting a chain of events that led me to Buddha Mind Monastery. That statement probably deserves a little explanation. In 2007, then president Bush was the speaker at the graduation ceremony at Oklahoma State University in Stillwater. That day I joined in the anti Bush demonstration outside the stadium. At that demonstration I learned about the Oklahoma City Peace House. The Peace House sponsors an annual peace festival in November. At the 2007 peace festival I picked up a flier from the Buddha Mind table and signed up for their beginning meditation class. That led to me becoming a Buddhist. Bush gets blamed for a lot of things, I don't think there are too many people that can claim Bush caused them to become a Buddhist.

Houston

The trip to the Chung Tai Zen Center of Houston this weekend was excellent. More than twenty five people from Buddha Mind went down to Houston. I carpooled down on Friday with three other guys. We arrived at Houston at rush hour and the traffic was as bad as expected. The Zen center is an oasis of calm located in a busy northeast Houston Asian business district. On Saturday morning several hundred attended the Dharma talk given by Venerable Master Jian Deng, abbot of Chung Tai Monastery in Taiwan. Before the Dharma talk, a representative from the office of one of the Texas Congressman  presented an American flag that had flown over the capital in Washington to Master Jian Deng. He was also presented with various proclamations from a Texas state representative, a Houston city council member, and a representative from the Taiwan government. The Dharma talk was given in Chinese. Radio headsets were available for a simultaneous English translation. The title of the talk was Zen and Pure Land. 

Saturday afternoon was the main event of the weekend; Transmission of the Three Refuges and Five Precepts by Master Jian Deng. Over two hundred people participated in the ceremony. One part of the Five Precepts ceremony that had many nervous was putting on the ceremonial brown robe. The putting on and taking off of the brown robe is a bit complicated. At that part of the ceremony there were several monks and nuns helping any participants that were having difficulty.

Receiving the Five Precepts is an important ceremony in Buddhism. I feel fortunate having the opportunity to participate in this ceremony and very moved by the experience.

Five Precepts Ceremony

Exciting plans for this weekend. The Venerable Master Jian Deng, abbot of Chung Tai Monastery in Taiwan is conducting the Three Refuges and Five Precepts Transmission ceremony at the Chung Tai Zen Center of Houston. There are quite a few people from Buddha Mind that are going down to Houston for the Ceremony. I am car pooling with three other guys from the monastery. We are leaving Friday morning, staying Friday and Saturday nights at the Zen center dormitory, and returning on Sunday.