New temple opening near Denver!
Great Dharma Chan Monastery - Chung Tai Zen Center of Boulder Colorado (Pu Fa Temple 普法禪寺)
https://www.greatdharmachanmonastery.org/

Same family as Atlanta's Dharma Jewel Monastery - Chung Tai Chan Monastery, the Great Dharma Chan Monastery is now open in Boulder CO! Zen meditation classes in English and in Chinese!

Great Dharma Chan Monastery Lunar New Year Event 

Great Dharma Chan Monastery will have a Lunar New Year Celebration on Jan. 22nd (Sunday) from 10:00am-2:00pm. There will be a GuanYin Chanting Ceremony, Zen talk, blessing bell striking, new year lamp lighting (you can write down your wishes), and vegetarian meal. If you would like to celebrate the lunar new year the Zen way, and enjoy a delicious meal at a monastery, this is the place to be.

On January 22, Great Dharma Chan Monastery will host multiple activities to welcome the Year of the Rabbit in with peace and prosperity.
You will be able to strike the blessing bell, light a new year’s lamp (including wish writing), and enjoy a vegetarian meal. 
Please visit https://www.greatdharmachanmonastery.org for more information.


中台山美國科羅拉多州分院普法禪寺新春活動
普法禪寺大年初一（1/22）將舉辦不同的活動讓大家有機會來寺院開始吉祥平安的兔年。
大家雖然人在美國，但可以把握難得的因緣來叩吉祥鐘，用平安齋，點燈為自己和家人祈福。
以下為活動資訊。
活動及素齋費用全免，歡迎大眾隨喜布施。
普法網站：https://www.greatdharmachanmonastery.org/zh

Day of Mindfulness Retreat
Saturday October 30
Chua Quan The Am
Vietnamese Buddhist Temple in Norcross/ Lilburn
4180 Arc Way, Norcross GA 30093

All welcome. Suggested minimum donation of $25 to help cover costs of supplies and vegetarian lunch.

Activities include making your own small Buddha statue!
(Crafting Buddha images with Plaster / quick-concrete / fiberglass mold)

On July 21, 2021, we held an in-person youth summer camp day for children and teens! Activities included Dharma talks, mindful lunch, walking meditation, chanting in English, Buddhist songs, watermelon eating contest, singing and talent show with musical abilities, trampoline, playground, painting, arts and crafts, and more! And, it was completely free! Thank you to Maiha for making it possible, the Venerable monks and nuns and the many adult volunteers, especially from the Vietnamese-American community, and to donors who contributed, including Georgia Buddhist Summer Camp and AtlantaBuddhism.org. 

Don't forget, you can sign up for email reminders for the next Georgia Buddhist Summer Camp, write us at [email protected]!

Guan-Yin is a figure in Buddhism who is said to have more responses than any other figure.
We can rely on her whenever we need any assistance - prayers are efficacious when our hearts and minds are whole-heartedly compassionate.

Rev. Heng Sure sings "She Carries Me" by Jennifer Berezan and tells the story of Gwan Yin Bodhisattva at Teance on 10/28/2014 for a "Tea and Dharma" gathering, a Berkeley Buddhist Monastery community outreach event.

She Carries Me
Melody and Lyric by Jennifer Berezan

She is a boat, she is a light
High on a hill in dark of night
She is a wave, she is the deep
She is the dark where angels sleep
When all is still and peace abides
She carries me to the other side,
She carries me to the other side...
And though I walk through valleys deep
And shadows chase me in my sleep
On rocky cliffs I stand alone
I have no name, I have no home
With broken wings I reach to fly
She carries me to the other side,
She carries me to the other side...
A thousand arms, a thousand eyes
A thousand ears to hear my cries
She is the gate, she is the door
She leads me through and back once more
When day has dawned and death is nigh
She'll carry me to the other side,
She carries me to the other side...

Song here:
https://youtu.be/WitKbWX_voI
and downloadable at ​http://www.cttbusa.org/audio.asp

Faith in Buddhism:
Buddhism doesn't require faith in a god or creator (especially not one who is vengeful and murderous and demands worship). True faith in Buddhism is in the conviction in your own potential to purify your body, speech, and mind, and become enlightened.

Read this excerpt below from Venerable Master Hsing Yun:

True religious faith is built upon selfless compassion and detachment from form. Most do not realize that religious faith is based on right view, honesty, righteousness, and selfless dedication to helping others.

In fact, it matters not to the Buddhas and Bodhisattvas whether one believes in them or not. To them, they gain and lose nothing. However, it would be a true pity if a person lacks faith in themselves. Self-doubt in one's ability, knowledge, and understanding all arise from a lack of self-belief.

A person who has faith in themselves is capable of committing wholesome deeds and has the strength to help others. Moreover, they are able to discern the wholesome from unwholesome and believe in their own capability and potential. Would that not be a meaningful life?

Certainly, the levels of faith can be likened to a school system that includes primary school, secondary school, and university. Just as students complete their grade levels sequentially, faith has its own increments, beginning with a basic understanding and gradually progressing with each step. Regarding the different levels of faith, I once said, "No faith is better than wrong faith, blind faith is better than no faith, and right faith is better than blind faith.' The basis of any religion should be established upon right faith that allows us to reap immeasurable benefits. Not only should one develop right faith, one should also believe in a religion that allows one the freedom to do so. Particularly, it is best for everyone to have confidence and faith in themselves. Buddhism teaches that the most important faith is faith in oneself, to believe in one's potential to attain Buddhahood and to be a good person. As such, is it not important to have faith in oneself?

Excerpts adapted from Fo Guang Shan Monastery in Taiwan