Awaken16 - Kong Meng San Phor Kark See Monastery

A Pilgrimage to the Two
Great Mountains of Buddhism
BY | Ven. Chuan Hou
The Importance of a Pilgrimage
n Buddhism, the arising of Dharma does
I
not occur on its own, it depends on causes and
conditions ( 法 不 孤 起 , 仗 境 方 生 ). Due to the requests
of devotees, Kong Meng San Phor Kar See Monastery
organised a Pilgrimage to China for the very first
time in June last year. I was very pleased; this trip
held great significance to me as it would allow our
devotees to better understand Chinese Buddhism,
Chinese culture and Chinese history in the course
of this travel, just as the previous India Pilgrimage
imparted to the pilgrims a deeper understanding of
Buddhism in India.
When we go on such a pilgrimage, we trace the
Buddha’s steps towards attaining enlightenment.
The most important aspect when embarking on a
pilgrimage is in keeping our mind pure and clear.
We are always thinking about this and that. The
mind is forever grasping external phenomena or
objects that are by nature impermanent and unreal.
Through the pilgrimage, we receive blessings from
the Buddha or Bodhisattvas, amassing the energy
from the temple and its people. Meanwhile, we will
also develop our wisdom, and as a result, we will
be able to control our mind and concentrate singlepointedly,
when reciting the Buddha’s name or
chanting the sutras. With greater practice, we will
then know how to meditate and enter into a silent
state.
The Journey
More than 80 participants enrolled for the 8-day
Pilgrimage last June. Including Venerables and
monastery staff, a total of 96 persons travelled on
this trip. Abbot Ven. Kwang Sheng was the group
leader.
The flight from Singapore to Nanjing took about five
hours. When we arrived, we separated the group
into three teams of Pink, Yellow and Blue before
Issue 16 • January – April 2010 47
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