Together We Celebrated SG’s 56th National Day
This is the sixth year that our class is coming together for the National Day celebration. Despite having it online due to the pandemic, the programme lined up was rather rich in content. Moments of laughter could be heard and the joy of sharing reinforced our faith in learning the Lamrim under the guidance of Shifu and Teacher!
We began with a relaxing shoulder and hand exercise just to loosen up the stiffness in our joints and to feel energized after about an hour of learning. Well wishes for our home country were shared after the exercise via video-demonstration by Sister Helen. To lift up the upbeat mood for National Day further, the class sang a rendition of ‘We are Singapore’, being clear all the time that our country has come a long way since Independence. Although a lot of dissenting voices are still being heard, given that no one decision fits all, we should at least be grateful for the essentials of good governance and stability, and that the prosperity of the nation stays and we continue to thrive. We have to constantly remind ourselves not to take what we have for granted!
After that, eight students from the class took turns to recite the Heart Sutra once. This, we felt, was a great way to partake in the MRD collective project which BW Monastery is currently running, though our primary objective (which we encourage everyone to continue doing it) is to be freed of all afflictions and attain emptiness like our Buddha and Bodhisattvas have in the ten directions.
The celebration also saw a number of heartfelt tributes to Shifu being offered by the classmates – Gratitude to Shifu for the arduous journey he had undertaken to bring the precious Lamrim to us and set up the Lamrim classes; sharing on the wonders Lamrim has done on our views and how our attitudes at home and at work have changed as a result of learning OMAK and the Dharma. Through the sharing, it is noticeable that we have matured in our thoughts and beliefs under the guidance of our spiritual teachers. To best summarise the feelings of blissfulness now that there are excellent teachers and teachings in our lives, the class offered an Insightful Praise titled ‘Orchid of the Valley’. The lyrics ‘The one I seek’ reminds us to rely on an excellent teacher in our spiritual pursuit.
To cap the activity for the day, Sister Pei Shan and Sister Faye showed their will power by reciting the first thirteenth verses of Buddha Ode without any visual aid. Bravos to both of them who have the courage to take up the challenge in memorising Buddha’s words of wisdom and it showed us that: “when there’s a will, there’s a way”. As part of our offering for this year’s recitation competition, the class had the privilege to preview the completed video edited by Sister Priscilla as well as her learning points. We are indeed fortunate to have her who willingly assisted with the task well knowing that the process would be time-consuming. Mega Rejoice to her great effort and all who participated in it.
As for the finale, we sincerely offered the Insightful Praise of Blissful Moments to recollect the blessings received from our Gurus, Buddhas and Bodhisattvas in our infinite lives.
It is with much delight that we are still learning Lamrim together after these few years. Like what Teacher Zhen Ru had mentioned in the recent Global Lamrim II, listening to Buddha-Dharma ought to be our daily cultivation. Having listened attentively, contemplated and used the teachings to reflect on our inner self, our afflictions will no doubt gradually diminish and we will be a much happier person. Let us strive together and walk up this Bodhi path hand-in-hand.
Reported by Tong Boon Ying (S19Z124E)
