r/Buddhism

Unlimited Lights Academy’s (中華無盡燈文化學會) Celestial Platform's 4th retreat, open to those living abroad who want to step into a living Buddhist practice community in Taiwan. Local and international participants practice together in a bilingual Mandarin and English environment that balances study, daily discipline, and collaborative leadership.

Guided by experienced practitioner-teachers, the retreat grows through each person's participation and efforts. Not a "Buddhist experience program" to be consumed, we learn to engage day to day through self reflection and service to others. We hope each person can cultivate real life skills and wisdom that will transfer to their life afterwards.

Roots of Meditation:
4th Tiantai Buddhism Intensive
Winter 2027, Jan 3 - 25, 2027

We begin in Dongshi at Shizhi Nianfo Vihara (Great Strength Arriving, Buddha Recitation Hall). The first week introduces the foundations of East Asian Buddhist practice, including monastery etiquette, daily rhythms, cultural life, and calming and insight meditation. The second week is a silent meditation intensive focused on personal application. The final week takes place at Unlimited Lights Academy in central Taipei with text study, lectures, and small group discussion.

Cost?
All teachings are offered freely in accordance with Buddhist tradition. Lodging and cultural activities are sponsored by the vihara and academy, and every person supporting throughout is a volunteer. We do ask $250 USD as fully refundable deposit. If finances are a barrier, please contact us. We want the retreat to be accessible. Participants cover their own travel and personal expenses.

Past retreats have included monastery visits, temple tours, hiking, calligraphy, flower arranging, and everyday cultural activities that allow participants to experience Buddhist culture as lived practice.

Who joins?
The group is intentionally balanced between Taiwanese members and international participants, usually about half and half. Ages range from 18 to 80 with varied experience. Living and practicing together builds real friendships across cultures and generations. Everyone helps with daily life, cares for the space and time together, and contributes to the retreat. You do not need to be a Buddhist to join, only willing to participate sincerely. Learning happens through living together, and enables the deepening of respect for self and others, a core value of Buddhist monastic settings. It is in this closeness we can practice our personal and collective accountability.

Optional pre/post retreat support~
We provide access to materials, videos, and reading as well as an online discussion group for folks who are planning on coming. While not mandatory, you can use these resources to prepare and be familiar with the content. After the retreat, community members are available to discuss and support you if you wish. You can also continue joining our weekly online classes or asking questions as they arise. Some participants also stay before or after as volunteers, helping on the farm or at the academy and continue to explore Taiwan.

The application deadline is December 15. Participation is limited to 12 people to preserve the atmosphere of a working monastic community. We schedule a short video call with applicants and can connect you with past participants if you wish.

Apply!
Application with schedule and more details

Other Links
Unlimited Lights Academy (CH/ENG)
Celestial Platform Vihara (ENG)
2025 & 2024 Retreats

"For most people in the West, samādhi is their weakest faculty. Generally speaking, those people need samādhi more because they live in a very restless and noisy social environment.

"One of the advantages of gaining a basis in samādhi is a profound change in our social values. The calm and concentration of samādhi will clearly show up the false values of the society around us, and point out what the essential values should be. This change in perspective also highlights the negative side of many things that we tend to cherish and value. It is as though our whole outlook experiences a shift of emphasis."

Uncommon Wisdom, p. 137

This is the first book I’m reading. I’m going to be honest, it was suggested by ChatGPT. The reviews seemed good, great at least a start. For the past week, the only content I’ve been consuming is about Buddhism, mainly beginner videos and stories about the Buddha. I am very new and won’t act like I know even the majority of most of the beginner subjects. That’s why I am here. I am here to learn. I come from an atheistic family (they think it’s great I’m getting into Buddhism. They don’t mind/care too much). I’m in America, and until I looked more into Buddhism, I thought for sure there was nothing after death. When I did basic research on the sects, I said “surely I’m a secularist”, but the more I read and research about karma, bodhisattvas, and I am so fascinated already. I’m very into the morals and ethics that the Buddha teaches. That’s my main interest, as well as meditation, which I’d love to get into soon. Wondering if anyone has any opinions on this book, what might be a good step for me to take next, and/or what sect sounds like a good fit for me. Thanks!!!

Dipa Ma’s Metta (Loving-kindness) Practice

First stage

>The first stage is to love yourself, to be a best friend to yourself. Begin by extending loving-kindness to yourself. You can use the following words and mental images to guide you in generating and directing your feelings of loving-kindness.

>Let me be free of enemies.

>Let me be free of dangers.

>Let me be free of mental anxieties.

>Let me pass my time with good body and happy mind.

>“Enemies” means both outward enemies and also being an enemy to yourself. Enemies can exist in the realm of our feelings, from the slightest irritation to the full force of hatred and ill-will toward self or others. While saying these phrases silently, hold an image of yourself steadily and clearly. If you can’t visualize yourself, try to remember how you look in the mirror. If this is difficult, try actually looking in a mirror or at a recent photo of yourself until you can see yourself clearly in your mind’s eye.

>Repeat the phrases in order. If your mind wanders and you forget what phrase you’re on, start from the beginning, “Let me be free of enemies.” Bringing the mind back to the phrases again and again will deepen your concentration. It is important to drop into the meaning and feeling beneath the words, letting the words be your guide, keeping you on track and anchored in the practice. Hold the feeling of well-being for yourself in your heart and mind, along with the mental image, and continue to repeat the phrases silently to yourself for as much time as your session permits. When it is done deeply, when you feel that you truly love yourself, when you can hold the image of yourself clearly and steadily, then if you wish, you may go on to the next stage, which is to extend loving-kindness to a good friend.

Second stage

>Using the same phrases as before, direct the loving-kindness to a good friend or teacher who has been kind to you. As you did while sending loving-kindness to yourself, now hold the image of this friend clearly and steadily in your mind, and extend loving-kindness towards him or her.

>May you be free of enemies.

>May you be free of dangers.

>May you be free of mental anxieties.

>May you pass your time with good body and happy mind.

>When you find that you love your friend as yourself, or when you find that you can hold the image of the friend clearly and steadily along with the phrases, then if you wish, you may go on to the next stage.

Third stage

>The next category of beings to send loving-kindness to are called “the sufferers” - any beings or groups of beings who are suffering. Whereas before you held a stable, one-pointed image of one person, now begin to expand your focus to encompass a larger number of beings. Begin by holding in mind one whole group of beings who are suffering. Extend your loving-kindness to these beings the same way you did before with yourself and your friend.

>May you be free of enemies.

>May you be free of dangers.

>May you be free of mental anxieties.

>May you pass your time with good body and happy mind.

>If spontaneous images arise of other groups of suffering people, such as people in hospitals or in wars, then it’s fine to direct your loving-kindness to them, meditating in a dynamic way with the flow of changing images. Continue reciting the phrases while gradually focusing more and more on the feelings of loving-kindness behind the words. From the foundation of truly and deeply loving yourself, see how self-love is the foundation and the fuel for loving others. In loving yourself, you love your friend as yourself. Then you love the sufferers like your friend, which is like yourself. With continued practice, all groups will merge into one.

Fourth stage

>In the fourth stage, loving-kindness and equanimity blend together. The practice is to hold a vast sense of all living beings in one’s mind and to send metta to them all equally - friends, people who suffer, people for whom your feelings are neutral, those with whom you have difficulty, all beings everywhere.

>May all beings be free of enemies.

>May all beings be free of dangers.

>May all beings be free of mental anxieties.

>May all beings pass their time with good body and happy mind.

>To do this, allow your mind to become loving-kindness. Do this by attending primarily to the feeling of loving-kindness: the words and phrases you’ve used up to this point have simply been pointers to the feeling. Allow your mind to become loving-kindness, and rest in that with equanimity, not favoring where it goes.

Fifth stage

>The crowning stage of metta meditation is to combine all the stages and focus for a while on each of the stages in one meditation session. Practiced in this way, the meditation becomes like a symphony of loving-kindness in which you start with yourself, and open, open, open, until you finally come to rest in equanimity.

Metta practice (compiled from Dipa Ma tape recordings, and recounted teachings from Michelle Levey who learned/studied metta from Dipa Ma). You can choose to devote an entire meditation session to loving-kindness practice, or you may decide to begin or end with it. Eventually, the five distinct stages may be combined in one session, but at the beginning, it is best to focus on one at a time.

The tradition found in Khmer, Tai-Lüe, and Tai-Yuan Buddhism.

The term tung refers to a type of flag that comes in various shapes. Specifically, the Tung Lek Tung Tong is a set of small, centipede-shaped flags crafted from iron and brass or copper; in some localities, they are also found made of zinc, wood, or paper. In Lanna funeral rites, a close observation reveals Tung Lek and Tung Tong placed alongside the monk's alms bowl atop the coffin—flags that certainly possess a specific origin. This type of flag is documented in palm-leaf manuscripts in accordance with Lanna Buddhist beliefs—most notably in the scripture titled Anisong Than Tung Lek Tung Tong (The Merits of Offering Tung Lek Tung Tong). The content can be summarized as follows:

In the distant past, the Lord Buddha—the current Gautama Buddha—accumulated the perfections required for Buddhahood (Bodhisambhara) over a period spanning four asankhyeyas (incalculable aeons) and one hundred thousand maha-kalpas (great aeons). There were eleven major lifetimes leading up to the attainment of Supreme Enlightenment. In each of these eleven lives, He cultivated a specific Perfection (Pāramī) using a distinct material object as the subject of meditation (Kammaṭṭhāna), as follows: Prince Temiya: Cultivated the Perfection of Renunciation (Nekkhamma-pāramī); used earth as the meditation object. Prince Mahājanaka: Cultivated the Perfection of Energy (Viriya-pāramī); used sand as the meditation object. Prince Suvaṇṇasāma: Cultivated the Perfection of Loving-kindness (Mettā-pāramī); used wood as the meditation object. Prince Nemirāja: Cultivated the Perfection of Determination (Adhiṭṭhāna-pāramī); used lead (jūen) as the meditation object. Prince Mahosadha: Cultivated the Perfection of Wisdom (Paññā-pāramī); used tin (hīak) as the meditation object. Prince Bhūridatta: Cultivated the Perfection of Virtue (Sīla-pāramī); used iron as the meditation object. Prince Candakumāra: Cultivated the Perfection of Patience (Khanti-pāramī); used brass or copper (tōng) as the meditation object. Prince Nārada: Cultivated the Perfection of Equanimity (Upekkhā-pāramī); used unhusked rice as the meditation object. Prince Vidhūrapaṇḍita practiced the Perfection of Truthfulness (Sacca-pāramī), using husked rice as the object of meditation. Prince Vessantara practiced the Perfection of Generosity (Dāna-pāramī), using a silver sheet as the object of meditation. Prince Siddhattha practiced the Perfection of Exertion (Vīriya-pāramī), using gold as the object of meditation. For this reason, a Pali chant recounting the eleven incarnations of the Buddha—known as the "Pali Chants of the Buddha's Incarnations" (Pālī Chāt Phra Chao)—was composed.

Subsequently, a set of eleven ceremonial banners (tung) was created, each made from one of the materials that served as the meditation objects: earth, sand, wood, lead, hiak wood, iron, brass, unhusked rice, husked rice, silver, and gold. While these banners were originally crafted from the actual materials themselves, later versions were sometimes made from wooden planks or zinc sheets; however, the total number of eleven remained constant. As it was cumbersome to list the names of all the banners at once, they came to be collectively known by the shorthand name "Tung Lek Tung Tong" (Iron and Brass Banners). Regarding the "Pali Chants of the Buddha's Incarnations," it is said that anyone who regularly recites and meditates upon them will be reborn in the Tāvatiṃsa Heaven upon death. Regardless of the realm of rebirth, they will be liberated from all sins, perils, and dangers. Furthermore, those who commission and offer the Tung Lek Tung Tong banners as an act of charity will reap immense merit, such as liberation from various karmic consequences and the fulfillment of their wishes. As for the deceased—even those who have passed away under ordinary circumstances...

In cases of "unnatural" death—such as dying during childbirth, dying in one's sleep, being killed by a wild animal, being struck by lightning, falling from a tree, or perishing in accidents involving vehicles, spears, or swords—relatives often fear the deceased might not find a path to rebirth. To remedy this, they should offer Tung Lek Tung Tong (ceremonial banners made of metal and brass) along with a monk's alms bowl, placing them at the head of the corpse or atop the coffin within one to three days. Alternatively, these offerings can be made after the burial or cremation has taken place. If the deceased is believed to have incurred heavy karmic burdens, one should also offer 108 mounds each of unhusked rice and milled rice, accompanied by Chor (triangular flags), Tung, Si Sai (candle wicks) equal in length to the deceased's height, Tung Kha King (banners matching the deceased's height), popped rice, and flowers. Additionally, scriptures concerning the afterlife—such as Maha Mun Nibbana, Malai Prod Lok (The Legend of Phra Malai), Kammavaca, or texts detailing the merits of Tung Lek Tung Tong—should be offered. Performing these rituals is believed to liberate the deceased's soul from various karmic retributions.

Sanan Thammathi Office of Arts and Culture Chiang Mai University

Here is the chanting mentioned (it is untranslated and I am actively searching for the original text in order to translate it):

https://youtu.be/6WVwpAyUnDM?is=Kq\_HkF7TvBch0EkV

Zillion dollar question; when was the first Buddhist Canon presumably written down? I know there was a Council of the sort, then 2-3 traditions taking shape. So, mostly we have the Pali Canon ( Tipitaka) plus other exant Canons in Classical Chinese and other languages with some passages preserved in the ( presumably) original Pali. Historically some say Buddha Gautam did not speak Pali, a somewhat artificial language, but various languages from Sanskrit to Magadhi. Besides, his words were written down for the first time centuries after his preaching. That would make Buddhism different from other Religions like Christianity ( ancient but fragmentary gospel papyrs from first century CE are extant), Islam (in Sanaa very old copies of the Koran were found) or Sikhism ( very old copies of Adi Granth belonging to the last human Gurus). Yet, these Religions are all more recent than Buddhism and in the first 2 cases developed in dry climates where papyrs and papers can be preserved far longer. Also Buddhism is no "Religion of the Book" in the sense : I read some Pali Canon passages by myself, decide what I like, practice for one week before lunch and get Nibbana before gasoline prices go up another time. Spiritual guidance would be always advised , except one is interested more like a scholar or out of healthy curiosity. Anyway the question remains; can Gautam Buddha's "original" words still be found somewhere?

P.S. I remember a Tibetan Lama , presented like a scholar, remaining a bit confused by a similar question by a lady somewhere in Northern Italy or Southern France. Maybe because the Lama had a bad translator or maybe because in Tibetan Buddhism they do not care too much , they have also " treasure sutra" being revealed here and there....

I’m not Buddhist myself but I find every religion and beliefs very interesting and if this is not something non Buddhist should have or should be returned to where it was found (a lake) I’d like to do that.

>If you want your Dharma practice to be genuine, make sure that first of all the topics of the hard to achieve freedoms and riches, death and impermanence, consequences of actions, and the defects of samsara do not become mere words and ideas, but reflect upon them from the core of your heart. So that once you are familiarized, your mind has turned away from the entirety of samsara’s luxuries and—as a matter of course—you will only be interested in the sublime Dharma, so that nothing else matters. Once you feel this way, you have already covered half of Dharma practice.

Shechen Gyaltsab Gyurme Pema Namgyal (1871–1926)