On November 13 and 14, The Benevolence and Pure Cultivation Temples in Las Vegas, Nevada conducted a special Zen Meditation Retreat for English (and Chinese) speakers that taught, demonstrated, and finally allowed all who attended to participate in their form of meditation. This Ru Lai Zheng Fa (Tathagata True Dharma) method features the Great Dharma of Zen Practice by H.H. Dorje Chang Buddha III and the traditional methods followed in ancient China that combined fast walking or moving meditation with silent sitting meditation. Although His Holiness transmitted three mantras that enhance the experience, alternatives are also provided for anyone wishing to participate who has not received them.
The first day gave us a tour of the beautiful hidden Benevolence Temple and the experience of what it took for the monastics and lay people of that temple and their companion Pure Cultivation Temple to transform their central Grand Buddha Hall into a Meditation Hall. They would normally do their meditation in a private smaller hall, but this space was created to accommodate the 43 who attended the actual retreat. The afternoon consisted of training for the experience, which we all enjoyed the following day. The second day was the actual Meditation Retreat. It consisted of ten sessions—five fast walking or moving and five sitting sessions. It also included a delicious breakfast, lunch, and evening meal in the nun’s dining hall plus snacks during the morning and afternoon sessions in the Meditation Hall. Everything was conducted in silence except for the bells, gongs, and instructions from Venerable Fa Chao, the abbot of the Pure Cultivation Temple who led the event, and an occasional crack of the cudgel to start each moving session and monitor the sitting sessions.
Link：https://www.zhaxizhuoma.org/attended-meditation-retreat-benevolence-temple-las-vegas/
Peace LiLy 