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Preserving a Dying Art
For the past few years, a group of local wood carving
enthusiasts has been gathering at Kreta Ayer
Community Club every Thursday to hone their skills in the dying art of wood
carving and inscriptions. Under the skilful instructions of their teachers,
Mr Yong Cheong Thye and
Cheh Kai Hon, discarded wood is transformed into
beautiful wood carvings bearing delightful ancient verses.
About two years ago, an opportunity to work for a good cause
arose and they decided to pitch in by carving art pieces bearing words of
wisdom from a Buddhist scripture and donating them to a monastery.
The result was an exhibition held in Fa
Hua Monastery from 25th December 2009 to 2nd
January 2010. All proceeds from the sale of the art pieces went to the
Building Fund for the reconstruction of Fa Hua Monastery.
Helping a Monastery Rebuild
Founded during the second world war in 1942 by Venerable Ching Kai and rebuilt in1954, Fa
Hua Monastery has been propagating Dharma in the
north eastern region for over 67 years. In recent years, it has been
advised to setback its front boundary by 25 feet to give way to the
expanding road works. In addition, a further 30 feet setback is needed to
comply with the road buffer and building setback regulations, resulting in
a total setback area of 55 feet. In view of the boundary changes as well as
other issues like roof leakages, termite infestation and scarcity of space
due to an expanding congregation, its Executive Committee decided to
rebuild the monastery. However reconstruction plans were put on hold due to
the shortage of funds.
Conveying Buddha's Wisdom
Held for the first time among the Buddhist circle in Singapore,
the Heart Sutra Wood Carving and Inscription Exhibition featured words,
phrases or simply the entire text of the sutra carved in ancient Chinese
characters. According to the Chinese calligrapher Mr
Yong Cheong Thye, the Heart Sutra, translated by
Venerable Master Xuan Zang,
was chosen as the main theme because of its popularity in Mahāyāna Buddhism. The Heart Sutra is also
concise (containing only 260 Chinese characters) but contained within -
deep insights into the Buddha's wisdom.
Transcending in Life
In the preface of the exhibition souvenir magazine, Venerable
Zhen Ting, Abbot of Fa Hua
Monastery illustrates the nature of our mind based on two ancient
scriptures and explains how we can transcend.
On the nature of our mind,
"All the 12 links in the chain of Dependent Origination are
created by the mind. All the three realms are manifestations of the mind
only."
-Essay on the Meaning of Mahayana by Master Hui
Yuan
"Mind is like an artist, able to paint the worlds: the five
clusters all are born thence, there is nothing it doesn't make".
-Avatamsaka Sutra translated by
Venerable Master Buddhabhadra
There lives within us a painter who creates wholesome images of
purity as well as unwholesome images of defilement and misconception which
hinder us from perceiving truth and reality. The process of generating
defilements stems from our ignorance which repeatedly pushes us to be
reborn in the endless cycle of life and death in the six realms. In truth,
the ultimate natures of all phenomena are the same and that our mind, the
mind of the Buddhas and the minds of all other
sentient beings are in essence no different from one another. Knowing that
each of us carries a seed of enlightenment within and that by observing our
mind consciously and remaining in awareness and equanimity, there is a way
to come out of our defilements and ignorance.
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