The Sangha at Chung Tai is a well-organized and self-sufficient community of Buddhist monastics founded on the principle of Sixfold Harmony as taught by the Buddha:
Guided by the Sixfold Harmony and the Grand Master’s teachings, the Sangha strives to improve the monastery, benefit all sentient beings, and live according to the Buddhadharma.
Holding the Sangha Together
The Sangha is organized into different departments, each staffed by monks and nuns. These departments are responsible for the day-to-day operation of the monastery.
Chan Master Baizhang said, “A day without working is a day without eating.” Serving in the monastic community is an integral part of Chan practice. For monastics, this working cultivation is a way to plant the fields of blessing and wisdom, accumulating the provisions they need to walk the bodhisattva path. Through their service, practitioners also learn to abide in the Chan mind, the mind of stillness, clarity, and wisdom, at every moment. In other words, they learn the Chan way of life, where “walking is Chan, sitting is Chan; in speech or silence, motion or stillness, the mind is at peace.”
The monastic units serving the Chung Tai community include: Office of Monastic Affairs, Office of Ceremonial Affairs, Office of Dharma Education, Office of Research and Development, Reception Office, Secretariat, Center for Publication and Learning, Library, Communications and Information Systems, Kitchen, Five Introspection Hall, Vestments, Laundry and Bedding, Construction Office, Design Department, Landscaping Department, Environmental Services and Protection, Security, Transportation, Auto Repair, General Affairs, Sacristy, Hardware Storeroom, Daily Supplies Storeroom and others.
Training Ground for the Sangha
The Chung Tai Buddhist Institute for Monks and the Institute for Nuns both provide undergraduate and graduate programs to train sangha members to be practitioners and teachers of the Dharma. The Institutes are central to transmitting the Dharma and Chan lineage to the next generation of monks and nuns.
Sangha Education
Buddhadharma is the ultimate truth that leads to liberation from the triple realm. But only with right view can the Sangha spread the Dharma and help sentient beings overcome their afflictions. To ensure the Dharma will be properly taught to future generations, Grand Master Weichueh established the Chung Tai Buddhist Institute in 1993. He also adopted the Three Links of Cultivation as the core principle for sangha education.
The three links are meritorious service, scripture study, and meditation. They provide a comprehensive foundation for monastics to develop right understanding, realize the mind’s true nature, and practice Buddhist teachings in daily life.
Scripture Study: Developing Right View
Scripture study is essential to developing right view. By studying the Buddhist sutras and meditation methods, monastic students gain proficiency in the fundamentals of Buddhadharma and lay the foundation for a lifetime of cultivation.
Meditation: Awakening Our Original Mind
Meditation is a crucial means to awaking the mind and realizing its true nature. Students at the institute practice meditation as part of their daily lives. The core methods taught include breath counting, middle way reality, and other forms of shamatha and vipashyana meditation. They also participate in the annual Chan-7 meditation retreat, and the Chung Tai One Stick of Incense program. The aim of meditation is to still and calm the mind, so that our true nature may manifest.
Meritorious Service: Planting Good Karmic Seeds
Students at the institute perform daily chores, Dharma services and other wholesome deeds as part of their working cultivation. They are also responsible for planning and executing Dharma ceremonies for the monastery. Performing meritorious service as a part of Buddhist practice is an opportunity to discipline the mind in action, while also cultivating merits and wisdom.
In addition, monastic students study Chinese classics, foreign languages, basic computing, calligraphy, and other secular subjects to facilitate teaching the Dharma in today’s multifaceted society.
