Today is the 14th year since Master Sheng Yen left us. I got to know Master Sheng Yen first through his book 《活在当下》and later through youtube programs and many other books I could get hold of. I am really thankful to his guidance. I was very slow to know about Master Sheng Yen, but he had been invited to make speech at the meeting for the World Council of Religious Leaders at the UN headquarters in NY in 2003, and also traveled to Israel and Palestine with representative leaders from WCRL for religious peace movement. The organization of Sheng Yen Educational Trust had presented a more official full movie: 《本來面目 Master Sheng Yen》聖嚴法師紀實電影 to introduce to the public the extraordinary life of a great master. You can also download some free booklets from Chan Meditation Center.
During his long career as a monk, teacher of Buddadharma, and founder of monasteries, meditation centers, and educational institutions, Master Sheng Yen (1930-2009) was also a very prolific lecturer, scholar, and author. Over the years, his works of more than one hundred volumes had published in many languages, and benefited students and seekers of the Dharma all over the world. These works covered three broad areas: (1) scholarly works, consisting of commentaries on major Mahayana and earlier scriptures, vinaya (monastic discipline), and seminal writings by Chinese Buddhist thinkers and Chan masters; (2) writings on the practice of Chan meditation for people at beginner and advanced levels; and (3) discourses on the practice of Chan in daily life with emphasis on a humanistic perspective. Dharma Drum Mountain, an international organization founded by Master Sheng Yen with the aim to uplift the character of humanity and create a pure land on Earth, had committed to a long term goal of translating selected volumes of the complete Works of Master Sheng Yen from Chinese into English to further benefit seekers of the English world. Below is the preface from his book A Journey of Learning and Insight, in which Master Sheng Yen gave personal account of his path following the Dharma.
I am an ordinary Buddhist monk born in 1930 at a village in Jiangsu Province, Nantong County. The second year after my birth, there was a great flooding of the Yangzi River, which washed away our home and everything we owned. We were impoverished. My family then moved to the south bank of the Yangzi River. I was always weak in physique and prone to illness since childhood. I entered school at the age of nine, and left school when I was thirteen. I became a monk when I was fourteen (thirteen according to the Western way of recording age). The basic education I received was equivalent to that of a fourth grade primary school student. While the other teenagers were studying at high school and university, I was busy working as a young monk and performing ritual services. Later, I served in the military for the country. Nevertheless, since I was young, I realized the importance of knowledge and education. I would take hold of any opportunity for self-study, and read many books. Meeting the educational requirements along with my published work, I was enrolled in Rissho University in Tokyo. Within six years time, I completed both a master’s and a doctoral degree in Buddhist Literature.
From the time I realized that the sutras are used to provide knowledge and methods to purify society and the human mind, I felt lament. I thought, “The Dharma is so god, yet so few people know about it, and so many people misunderstand it.” Ordinary people treat Buddhadharma as something secular or mystical; at best they treat it as an academic study. Actually, Buddhism is a religion that applies wisdom and compassion to purify the human world.
Thus, I vowed to use contemporary ideas and language to introduce to others the true meaning of the Dharma that was forgotten, and to revive the spirit of Shakyamuni Buddha. As a result, I read a variety of books, especially Buddhist texts, which I studied and later wrote about assiduously. Since my early years, I started submitting articles for publication, the materials ranging from literature and art to theoretical, from religious to theological, from articles on secular knowledge to academic theses on specific subjects. I have written for over 50 years …….. Buddhism is a religion that emphasizes practice. Through the cultivation of one’s mental stability and calmness, one can achieve balance of the body and mind, improve one’s character, lessen self-centeredness, care for others, and purify society. As a result, the objective of my personal reading and writing was to clarify and to give guidance on the theoretical concepts and practice methods. Primarily, my works follow the guidelines of placing emphasis on upholding moral precepts, teaching Chan practice, and clarifying concepts. I am personally compelled to follow the path of placing equal weight on the three Buddhist disciplines of precepts, meditational and wisdom. Thus, I would not be limited to the scope of what ordinary people would call Precepts Master, Chan Master or Dharma Master. For myself, I would always assume the status of Dharma Master because it is best to take its meaning of “taking the Dharma as one’s master.”
Due to the depth and extensiveness of Buddhadharma, one discovers through academic research that it is truly a great treasure in the history of world culture. To enhance the educational level and academic status of Buddhists, I have undertaken endeavors in Buddhist education and Buddhist research. I have been a professor at the Institute of Buddhist Studies of Chinese Culture University and Soochow University. I was invited to teach thesis writing to students in the doctorate program at the graduate school of National Chengchi University. I have also established the Chung-Hwa International Conference on Buddhism, hosting it again every two to three years, with Buddhist Traditions and Modern Society as the permanent topic. We gather leading Buddhist scholars worldwide to do research and hold discussions in various professional fields, for the purpose of practical application in today’s society.
It is through the opportunity of holding International Conferences on Buddhism that I became associated with the famous Professor Fu Weixun at Temple University. He and his friend Pro. Sandra A. Wawrytko attended our International Conference twice, and gave us many suggestions. After the two conferences, they assisted in compiling both the Chinese and English versions of all the papers. They also helped promote the publishing of our conference papers through Dongda Publishing Corp, and the Greenwood Press, thus allowing the papers to receive attention from academic circles worldwide.
Currently, Prof. FuWeixun was invited by Zhong Huimin, the chief editor of Cheng Chung Books , to compile the books series, the Study and Thought of Contemporary Academics (Dangdai xueren xuesi licheng). I am honored that Prof. Fu selected my writings for submissions to represent the Buddhist community and for the religious community to gain identity within academic circles. It is a true honor in my life. When I submitted my manuscript, I left out the preface due to my busy schedule. Now before publishing, in light of the editor’s request, I have completed this preface after my trip to Mainland China, passing through Hong Kong, and on my way to America.
Master Sheng Yen
Rio Hotel, Hong Kong,
April 26 1993