The Delegation of Buddhist Fellowship from Singapore Visited DDM

At the invitation of Ven. Guo Huei (果暉法師), Abbot President of Dharma Drum Mountain (DDM), the Buddhist Fellowship from Singapore made a special visit to Taiwan, in order to experience the method to stay calm, clear, and relaxed. From April 25^th to April 27^th, 2025, led by President Lim Phang Hong (林攀峰) of the Buddhist Fellowship, and its four Vice Presidents, a delegation of 30 people of the Buddhist Fellowship from Singapore headed to DDM World Center for Buddhist Education and Dharma Drum Institute of Liberal Arts (DILA), fulfilling their wish to pay a visit to the birthplace of the idea of "Protecting the Spiritual Environment." In addition, they plan to visit Nung Chan Monastery and Zhai Ming Monastery before returning to Singapore. 

The Buddhist Fellowship specially chose DILA, whose core value is "Protecting the Spiritual Environment," as the first stop of their visit and was warmly greeted by the Institute. DDM Abbot President Ven. Guo Huei, former DDM Abbot President Ven. Guo Dong (果東法師), DDM head monk Ven. Hui Min (惠敏法師), DILA President Chen Ting-ming (陳定銘), and Director Ven. Guo Jin (果鏡法師) of the Chung-Hwa Institute of Buddhist Studies all attended the lunch with the delegation. The representatives of the faculty of DILA, including Prof. Chang Chan (詹場), Head of the Discipline Clusters; Dr. Teng Wei-jen (鄧偉仁), Dean of Department of Buddhist Studies; Dr. Hung Jen-jou (洪振洲), Head of the Library and Information Center; and Dr. Matthew Orsborn, Head of the Division of International Affairs, later introduced DILA's project of digital archive of Buddhist texts and the development of DILA's campus affairs to the visitors. 


Ven. Guo Huei indicated that the Buddhist Fellowship is the largest lay Buddhist group of the Southern tradition in Singapore, and its members are all outstanding Dharma supporters who follow the guidance of their leading teacher to learn and practice Chan practice, bringing peace to people's minds. Moreover, the Buddhist Fellowship is highly regarded by the authority for its dedication to promoting unity, caring for society, and organizing worldwide Buddhist conferences. During their visit, in addition to the special exhibitions related to the 20^th anniversary of the inauguration of DDM World Center for Buddhist Education, a tour to the Chan Hall, DILA campus, and Eco-friendly Memorial Garden was arranged for the core members. Throughout their visit, Ven. Chang Jyu (常炬法師), Guiding Venerable of Dharma Drum Singapore, accompanied them, hoping to fulfill their wish to have an in-depth tour at DDM. 

In December, 2023, while attending the 12^th Global Conference on Buddhism at the invitation of the Fellowship, DDM Abbot President Ven. Guo Huei invited the Fellowship to visit DDM for further exchanges. As President Lim recalled, Ven. Guo Huei represented Chinese Buddhism at the conference alongside Dharma teachers representing Southern and Tibetan traditions. During the conference, Ven. Guo Huei shared the idea of "Protecting the Spiritual Environment," letting people in Singapore gain a better understanding of DDM. As former directors and senior volunteers of the Fellowship were among members of the delegation, President Lim also indicated that DDM's idea on sustainability and the compassion and wisdom to live sustainably in our environment were the key points for the delegation to learn. 



Original Chinese text / Chang Yao-chung (張曜鐘)
Photos / Li Jia-Chun (李佳純)
Translation / Li Siang-ling
Editing / Keith Brown, YKL