To commemorate the 60th anniversary of Fo Guang Shan and the centennial birth anniversary of Venerable Master Hsing Yun, while offering prayers amid today’s social uncertainty, Fo Guang Shan Temple of Toronto held an Eight Precepts Retreat and Heart Sutra cultivation program on April 25. Despite heavy rain, 103 participants gathered for a day of spiritual practice and cultivation.

The retreat was presided over by Abbess Venerable Chueh Fan and featured meditation sessions, teachings on “Humanistic Buddhism and Precepts Practice,” communal work practice, self-cultivation, and evening chanting services. Participants also joined the global Heart Sutra transcription initiative through specially prepared cultivation cards, upholding pure precepts for one day and one night to cultivate wholesome causes for spiritual growth and liberation.

During the precept ceremony, Venerable Chueh Fan emphasized that “only through faith can one enter the vast ocean of the Dharma,” noting that observing precepts is foundational to Buddhist practice. Among the participants, 43 received the Bodhisattva Precepts, 31 undertook the Five Precepts, and many further embraced the Eight Precepts for the retreat.

During the silent meal practice, the Abbess explained that formal monastic dining is not merely for sustaining life, but also a cultivation of mindfulness, simplicity, and freedom from attachment. English interpretation was provided throughout the retreat to support participants from diverse cultural backgrounds.

Meditation sessions guided participants to calm the mind through mindful breathing and observe wandering thoughts without suppression. Self-cultivation periods included mantra recitation and prostration practice, deepening participants’ connection with the Buddha.

In her Dharma talk, Venerable Chueh Fan described the Eight Precepts as a compassionate practice established by the Buddha for lay practitioners to experience monastic discipline and cultivate patience, humility, tolerance, and diligence. She emphasized that the spirit of precepts lies in self-discipline, benefiting others, and practicing the “Three Acts of Goodness.” Reflecting on the example of Venerable Master Hsing Yun, she noted that his lifelong cultivation was rooted in kindness, consideration for others, and understanding causes and conditions.

The evening service concluded with the Fo Guang Samadhi Service and the recitation of Venerable Master Hsing Yun’s “Prayer for the Natural Environment,” with participants dedicating the merits toward world peace and harmony within families and society.