Progressing to repay the deep kindness of all beings

by Venerable Kwang Sheng

Come 2021 is the Monastery’s 100th year anniversary or centenary. The monastery has come a long way since it was founded in 1921 by pioneer Venerable and forefather, Venerable Zhuan Dao. Under the compassionate stewardship of my master and second abbot, Venerable Hong Choon, the monastery grew. He developed the crematorium and columbarium, organised the first Great Compassion Prayer and progressively added many amenities to the nearly 22-acre monastery site.

Bearing in mind the compassionate intent of my master to always benefit sentient beings, I set up the Buddhist College of Singapore in 2005. A monastic campus building was established with the aspiration of educating monastics who are proficient in English and Chinese languages with extensive knowledge of the Dharma. Cultured and virtuous, they will be the future generations of teachers and leaders to cater to the needs of the Buddhist community and advance the promulgation of Chinese Buddhism in the world.

Many of our graduates have gone on to take up significant roles in their own monasteries. A handful also continued to further their studies, graduating with postgraduate degrees. One of them is Venerable Dr Yan Zheng who recently completed his PhD at the University of Hong Kong’s Centre of Buddhist Studies.

To further benefit all those who visit the monastery and in consideration of the needs of our ageing population, we are also embarking on a series of elderly-friendly upgrading and refurbishment works such as installing lifts at the ancestral halls, erecting a sheltered drop-off point and constructing a proper permanent canopy outside the Hall of Great Compassion that will promote better air ventilation for a cooler environment.

The most significant of all is the eventual birth of the five-storey high Meditation Hall. This is a building purpose-built for conducting concurrent meditation retreats of different group sizes, accommodating a total of up to 600 persons at any time. It also includes a dedicated space for monastics to carry out advanced meditation practices, a library for self-study and other ancillary facilities.

With this modern facility, Singapore will have another dedicated place conducive to practising meditation. Internationally-renowned meditation teachers from different traditions will be invited to conduct classes and retreats in the building.

Through this, the monastery hopes to encourage greater interest in mental wellness amongst people of all ages, which is a key aspect of the monastery’s many contributions to society to serve and benefit the people.