Suumer 2024 Edition
Chan Dharma Community
Spring 2024 Edition
The Sangha Jewel
Ananda said to the Blessed One, “This is half of the holy life, lord: admirable friendship, admirable companionship, admirable camaraderie.” “Don’t say that, Ananda. Don’t say that. Admirable friendship, admirable companionship, admirable camaraderie is actually the whole of the holy life. When a monk has admirable people as friends, companions, and comrades, he can be expected to develop and pursue the Noble Eightfold Path.”
You’ve probably seen that quote from the Upaddha Sutra in the reminders for our Sangha Friends Group. Buddha says the company we keep is all of the holy life. In this sutra he is talking about monks. But in the Dighajanu Sutra he speaks to a man who describes himself as one of the laypeople “who enjoy sensual pleasures and living at home with our children.” The man asks, “May the Buddha please teach us the Dharma in a way that leads to our welfare and happiness in this life and in future lives.” Buddha replies that accomplishment in initiative, protection, good friendship, and balanced finances lead to happiness in this life. And then he explains:
“And what is accomplishment in good friendship? It’s when a person resides in a town or village. And in that place there are householders or their children who may be young or old, but are mature in conduct, accomplished in faith, ethics, generosity, and wisdom. He associates with them, converses and engages in discussion. And he emulates the same kind of accomplishment in faith, ethics, generosity, and wisdom. This is called accomplishment in good friendship.”
In both these sutras, Buddha explains how the people we associate with are crucial for keeping us on the right path. This is why the Sangha is one of the Three Jewels in which we take refuge when we become Buddhists. What did the founder of Dharma Drum Mountain, Master Sheng Yen, have to say about the Sangha? In his short book Why Take Refuge in the Three Jewels?, he wrote:
“The Buddhist sutras were taught by the Buddha and his disciples, and later collected and written down by members of the Sangha… After the passing of the Buddha, it is the Sangha that safeguards Buddhist monasteries, preserves collections of Dharma teachings, and maintains Buddhist culture. The Sangha also transmits Buddhist culture and teaches Dharma to the laity. When the Buddha was in the world, he was the center. After his passing, the Sangha became the center, so we must take the Sangha as our refuge, and we must take the Sangha Jewel as the object of our veneration.”
In Common Questions in the Practice of Buddhism, Master Sheng Yen wrote:
“The Sangha Jewel refers to people who are studying and practicing Dharma, helping others studying and practicing Dharma, and protecting and upholding sentient beings who study and practice Dharma… The Sangha Jewel is the teacher, the Dharma Jewel is the text, and the Buddha Jewel is the discoverer and creator of the text. Only when all Three Jewels are present can there be the complete Buddhism.”
In our most recent Dharma study class, during Rebecca Li’s first talk about Taking Refuge in the Three Jewels, she said:
“Sangha refers to the community of practitioners, teachers, and supporters of the Dharma, both monastic and lay. Without everyone practicing, teaching, and supporting the Dharma, the Dharma would not have survived to this day. So the Sangha is worthy of our respect and gratitude, and taking refuge in the Sangha is to remind ourselves that we can turn to the Sangha for support, guidance, and encouragement when we are lost or discouraged…
Practicing the Dharma is an important way to support the Dharma as well. If no one practices, meaning if nobody comes to retreats, if nobody signs up for Dharma courses, then there will be no need for Dharma centers, and the teaching and practice will be forgotten, because no one will know how to practice any more. And the Dharma will be lost. The Dharma is dynamic and alive. It’s not just words printed in books. It is through practicing that we keep the Dharma relevant. And in this way, everyone’s motivated to support the preservation of the Dharma for its continuation.
You may remember that in retreats we bow to each other in appreciation, to acknowledge the support we receive from other practitioners by their practice. Fellow practitioners encourage each other to continue and deepen their practice. And we all do that in our own way.
Over the years I have benefited a great deal from my Dharma friends. We share what we have read and questions we had about the teachings so that we could deepen our understanding and clarify our confusions that might lead us astray.
At the end of each retreat I encourage you to sit with the group so that you can benefit from the support of group practice. Besides joining a sitting group, you can also form Dharma friendships with other practitioners you’ve met in retreats or when we volunteer at Dharma centers. Over the years I have learned a great deal from other sincere Dharma practitioners that I have made friends with. By listening to their stories, I reflect on my practice, identify my blind spots and attachments and entrenched habits, and get inspired and encouraged to continue to deepen my practice. So I encourage you to do the same.
Cultivating respect and gratitude to our teachers and those before them, as well as practitioners and supporters of the Dharma through the generations, connects us to the larger Sangha that spans the last 2,500 years. When we feel that we are alone in our practice, we can tap into the support provided by this vast community of Dharma practitioners, teachers, and supporters. Whenever we pick up a Dharma book, we tap into this community. Whenever we think about our Dharma friends, our teachers, we tap into this community. This is what it means by taking refuge in the Sangha Jewel.”
Many Dharma teachers have stressed the importance of Sangha. At an address he gave in Washington, D.C., in 1993, the Dalai Lama explained why Sanghas are so important to preserve the Dharma:
“Buddhism is essentially a practical doctrine. In addressing the fundamental problem of human suffering, it does not insist on a single solution. Recognizing that human beings differ widely in their needs, dispositions and abilities, it acknowledges that the paths to peace and happiness are many. As a spiritual community, its cohesion has sprung from a unifying sense of brotherhood and sisterhood. Without any apparent centralized authority, Buddhism has endured for more than 2,500 years. It has flourished in a diversity of forms, while repeatedly renewing, through study and practice, its roots in the teachings of the Buddha.”
The Sangha is how we preserve and live the Dharma, not as an esoteric philosophy, but as a way of life. Through the example set by the Sangha, we are inspired by other people’s sincere practice. The Sangha spans thousands of years, and we are all part of this community. This ancient connection can be a great comfort and support, because we see how we are part of a deeper, wider community that transcends our individual experiences.
In his book Friends on the Path: Living Spiritual Communities, Thich Nhat Hanh wrote:
“And what is the sangha? The sangha is a community of people who agree with each other that if we do not practice right mindfulness, we will lose all the beautiful things in our soul and all around us. People in the sangha standing near us, practicing with us, support us so that we are not pulled away from the present moment. Whenever we find ourselves in a difficult situation, two or three friends in the sangha who are there for us, understanding and helping us, will get us through it. Even in our silent practice we help each other.
When we throw a rock into a river the rock will sink. But if we have a boat, the boat can carry hundreds of pounds of rocks and it will not sink. The same thing is true with our sorrow and pain. If we have a boat, we can carry our pain and sorrow, and we will not sink into the river of suffering. And what is that boat? That boat is, first of all, the energy of mindfulness that you generate by your practice. That boat is also the sangha—the community of practice consisting of brothers and sisters in the Dharma.”
Our Sangha Friends Group meets on Zoom the fourth Wednesday of every month from 8:30 to 10 pm Eastern Time. This is an informal gathering where we can discuss whatever comes up and support one another.
Chan Dharma Community
Practice Opportunities
Weekly Sitting Meditation
Monday Mornings, 7:00 to 7:25 AM ET
Thursday Evenings, 9:00 to 9:25 PM ET
Each meditation session includes light neck stretches, recitation of the Four Great Vows, and a 20-minute sitting session.
*The weekly meditation sessions are intended for Chan Dharma Community members who have practiced with Rebecca Li. All levels of experience are welcome.
If you would like to sign up to receive reminder emails about the weekly sitting, please click here.
Online Sangha Friends Gathering
4th Wednesday of every month
Join us on the fourth Wednesday of every month for an unstructured gathering where we can check in with one another, talk about whatever has come up in the past month, support one another, and stay in touch as a sangha. Each gathering will begin with 10 minutes of meditation, and then everyone will check in and share, and discuss what comes up.
Please contact us if you would like more information about the programs or to be added to the contact list for the Sangha Friends Gathering.
Stay in Touch
Chan Dharma Community Links
Rebecca Li
Talks, Retreats, and Other Opportunities
2024 Retreats & Talks:
August 9-11 (Fri-Sun, In person)
Three-Day Chan Retreat, Dharma Drum Vancouver Center
August 23-25 (Fri-Sun, In person)
Beginner’s Mind Retreat, Dharma Drum Retreat Center (DDRC), Pine Bush, NY
September 8 (Sun, 9 am to 12 pm EST, In person)
Meditation Workshop and Dharma Talk, DDMBA-NJ Chapter, Edison, NJ
October 4-9 (Fri- Wed, In person)
Western Zen Retreat (Dharma Drum Retreat Center (DDRC), Pine Bush, NY
November 10 (Sun, 9 am to 12 pm, In person)
Meditation Workshop and Dharma Talk, DDMBA-NJ Chapter, Edison, NJ
For more info about Rebecca’s teachings, please click on the button below
Books by Rebecca Li
Allow Joy into Our Hearts: Chan Practice in Uncertain Times
Available now on: Indiebound, Kobo, Barnes & Noble and Amazon
Illumination: A Guide to
the Buddhist Method of
No-Method
Published by Shambhala Publications on October 31, 2023. You can learn more about the book here.
“The world is blessing us with many opportunities to practice. We have much to be grateful for indeed.”
— Rebecca Li
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