Day 12 began with our second lecture session of the trip. Once again we meditated for 5 minutes at the beginning of the session, which I thought was a helpful practice session for when we meditated later at Foguangshan. I, personally, find it really hard to sit still, even just for 5 minutes, but I am beginning to understand and appreciate the art of mediation more as we spend more time doing it and learning about it. This class session was more educational than the last one. We had the opportunity to hear from both professors about both religion and business in Taiwan in a more in-depth manner. We also read two articles on Economics and Buddhism. They brought up an interesting concept of “Buddhist economics” which I really enjoyed learning about. It seems to be a more holistic approach to consumerism, investing, and general economic aspects that prioritizes the well-being of everyone and the environment instead of simply financial gain. One of the articles brought up an interesting point about knowing what you are investing in an. The author discussed how an individual could simply invest in the business they think will bring about the most profit, yet their money may be used a way that causes harm to the general public or the environment which, in the end, is not a business worth investing in. On the other hand, the same individual could choose to invest in a slightly less profitably company that will use the money to do good or to benefit the general public. This is a point that I will continue to remember as I grow older and begin to invest in the stock market. In addition to learning about buddhist economics, we also got a helpful overview of buddhism and some insight into religion in Taiwan. It was interesting to see how there has not been much change in religion in Taiwan over the past 10 years. I feel like this is a reflection of both the strength and faith Taiwanese individuals have in their specific religions that have been passed down generation to generation, as well as, a reflection of how many Taiwanese individuals combine elements of multiple religions.
After class, a small group of us ventured around to a local “all you can eat” hot pot restaurant in which we quickly attempted to eat as much as we could in the time that we had, but we still got laughed at by the owner because she didn’t believe that we were full. I can definitely say this place was a lot better than the hot pot I had in the past!
Our next stop was to Foguangshan, an international buddhist organization and monastery that practices humanistic buddhism. During our lecture we got a brief overview the largest religious run enterprises, and Foguangshan is one of these. During our trip we unfortunately were not able to see the actual monastery itself just the museum and a temple-like space where individuals came to worship, however I still thought this was a very unique experience. The first thing I saw when I entered the welcome building was a Starbucks among many other shops and restaurants. I wasn’t shocked as we were informed that the space would contain retail, however it still struck me as kind of strange and made the space feel less like that of a religious place. I never really assumed a monastery would have a museum, let alone a Starbucks however this did not stop me and Kyla from getting coffee there. All of the activities that we participated in while at Fo Guang Shan were really cool and educational. I really enjoyed being able to do calligraphy and learning about the life of the Buddha as well as Buddhism as a whole. I really enjoyed learning about how Buddhism spread from its birthplace of India to surrounding countries and eventually the rest of the world. We learned that it spread in two different ways. One way was through the Silk Road. Trade along the Silk Road facilitated the movement of people and goods, as well as religion, which brought Buddhism all over Asia. The second way was through people, one specific example that I remember was King Asoka of the Mauryan empire heavily promoted Buddhism sending missionaries around and facilitating its spread to Sri Lanka, Central Asia, and Southeast Asia.
At the end of our visit we had the privilege of talking to Venerable Miao Guang, who was a translator for Hsing Yun. She gave some interesting insight into what life is like as a Nun or Monk at the monastery. I found it particularly interesting that the majority of Nuns and Monks have cell phones and enjoyed hearing about her journey to becoming a Nun. I am looking forward to our visit to Dharma Drum Mountain as I am still quite curious about the life that Monks and Nuns live.
We ended the night with a trip to the Love River to see the Dragon Boat Festival which was a super fun and unique experience as well. I did not know that Dragon Boat racing was such a large event in Taiwan until recently, and I thought that it was interesting to learn the sad history behind the event.