INEB article in Hongshi magazine
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An article I wrote about the INEB Conference forHongshi magazine(?????) has now been published. I will post the article below in Chinese with English translation. I also wrote several posts about theconference andstudy tour in September.
Also on 24-25 November there will be an International Conference on Religious Culture and Gender Ethics at Hsuan Chuang University (????) in Xinzhu. The conference is being organised by Hongshi Cultural Foundation and Hsuan Chuang University. The conference includes speakers from Taiwan and abroad representing all the major religious traditions. I will be a volunteer at the conference and it is sure to be another great experience.
INEB????? (INEB Conference in Taiwan)
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This year in May I went to Bangkok and visited Ajarn Sulak. He informed me that the next INEB (International Network of Engaged Buddhists) Conference would be held in Taiwan. I said I was willing to help. When I came back to Taiwan I got in touch with Dr Yo and started to help with the conference planning.
????????????????????????????????????????????????????Phra Paisan????????????????????????
At the end of July I went to Buddhist Hongshi College with Dr Yo and met Ven. Chao Hwei for the first time. She showed me a copy of the Hongshi magazine. In the magazine I saw a photo and article by the Thai monk, Phra Paisan. I was very happy because I greatly respect him and think his ideas are very interesting.
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The time preparing for the conference was very busy; there were so many things to do. When the time of the conference finally came and the INEB members arrived at Hongshi College the preparations had reached their end. I was so happy to meet some old friends and see all the members, men and women, young and old, monks and nuns, come to Taiwan for the conference.
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The opening ceremony was very special. It started with drumming, then Ven. Shing Guang and the students of Hongshi College solemnly entered the main hall and began chanting the offering of incense to the Buddha and the Heart Sutra. All the INEB members then came forward and offered flowers to the Buddha. Yeh Chu-lan, Secretary-General of the Presidential Office, then gave a speech about her personal experience of Buddhism. I found that even though she has an important political position she is still able to apply the Buddha?s teachings to her work and life.
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The two days of the conference had such a rich program. I was busy behind the scenes organizing many things, so I wasn?t able to join many activities. I was so grateful for all the help from the students of Hongshi College and the volunteers who made everything run so smoothly.
?????????Ajarn Sulak????????INEB??????????????????????INEB????????????????????????????INEB????????????
At the closing ceremony on the third day Ajarn Sulak invited Ven. Chao Hwei to become INEB?s fourth patron. I thought this was a very important occasion because previously all INEB?s patrons were bhikkhu. Ven. Chao Hwei is the first bhikkhuni to become patron. This represents a realisation of INEB?s vision of gender equality.
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??????????????????????????????????INEB ?????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????Ajarn Sulak??????????Sulak???
After the conference there was a four day study tour to Buddhist organizations in northern, central and southern Taiwan. The objective of the tour was to enable INEB members to get to know some of the Buddhist organizations in Taiwan. The schedule included visits to Buddhist temples, a university, a television station, a hospital, an educational foundation, an organic food store, a museum and a traditional tea house. My strongest impression was the strong links between Buddhism and the community and that as well as the large, well-known Buddhist organizations, there are many smaller organizations enthusiastically engaged in many different fields. For example, the Keng Tu Yuan Restaurant decided to serve organic food because of the influence of Buddhism. I have seen people in several countries using the books published by the Corporate Body of the Buddha Educational Foundation, so it was great to see their office. I found out they have published books in over 20 different languages. At the Museum of World Religions I was so happy to see Master Hsin Tao. He came out of retreat especially to meet with Ajarn Sulak.
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On the final night in Taipei Ven. Chao Hwei and Ven. Shing Guang hosted a banquet. Everybody said thanks and looked forward to the next INEB conference in two years. I must express my gratitude to Ven. Chao Hwei, the students at Hongshi College and all the volunteers for making the conference so successful. I also hope INEB and Hongshi College can continue to work together in the future.
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