圣严法师

I began to know the existence of 圣严法师 when Kinokuniya email monthly newsletter to its members on books review and updates as well as when 圣严法师 passed away in early Feb 2009. It was extensively reported in various news sources and magazines especially in the Taiwan media. He was one of the 4 most influential Buddhists in Taiwan.

The book "Footprints in the Snow: The Autobiography of a Chinese Buddhist Monk" is his first English autobiography to reach out to those who do not understand Chinese. He had already published two autobiography written in Chinese.

圣严法师 (Master Chan Sheng Yen) born in China in 1930. He had 6 siblings and he was the youngest. It was a typical farming family living in a very poor condition with limited food or no food at times. Wars and natural disasters accompanied them most of the time that forced them to keep moving from one place to another and challenged their determination to stay alive. The parent was caring and worked hard so that the children had the best possible out of the worst.

When 圣严法师 turned 13, his parent has no choice but to let him go as a monk so that he could have enough food and a better chance to be educated. Though 圣严法师 looked forward to it, his mum was very sad and badly blamed herself for it. I felt very sad when her mum spoken to him the last time on the morning that 圣严法师 was leaving the family. 圣严法师 did not blame his parent at all. Instead, he respected and appreciated them a lot for their effort to keep the family going and united.

Being a monk did not mean living peacefully and happily. They also had to work hard to earn a living and to farm in order to have food to share among the monks. Generally, he was happy. When the Communist army started to battle and push the Nationalist army to Taiwan, 圣严法师 followed the troop to Taiwan as a soldier so that he could continue to practice Buddhism. He was a soldier physically for 10 years but living as a monk for life.

When he returned as a monk, he was already 30 years old. He managed to convince a Senior to take him as one of his disciples. The Master was very strict in his teachings and gave him many challenges so that he could be a great monk. The Master believed that 圣严法师 had the potential to be one. There were many interesting experiences. For example, the Master could only gave him one-way bus fare when asking him to buy things from town. When he asked for more, the Master told him that he had to solve the insufficient himself. 圣严法师 ended up having to approach strangers for some help or persuading the driver to let him had a free ride back to the temple. The "training" was not meant to beg for money but to let him overcome the "Me" mindset in his thinking and also to learn more about appreciation along the way. For me, this is the most enjoyable part of the book.

After following the Master for 2 years, 圣严法师 decided to 闭关 (ie to retreat) in the rural mountain area to catch up with his study and practice of Buddhism due to the war and being a soldier for 10 years. He survived mainly on available wild fruits and planting his own crops. There was no clock and electricity. He lived according to the pace of Nature. Very very few people visited the place. He was in retreat for 6 years. He shared much of his personal experience and encounter as he practiced in this part of the book.

The Master encouraged him to further study on the subject of Buddhism and he spent 6 more years in Japan to obtain a PhD. He then moved on to US to teach and promote zen Buddhism. I was totally surprised that he was still a wanderer taking shelter in a public park at night even though he was quite well known then in US. He was already 50 and yet still dun have a proper place to settle down. When the Master passed away, 圣严法师 was appointed to continue the task of his Master to promote Buddhism in Taiwan. He then set his base in Taiwan and traveled around the world to establish more centers to promote the teaching and practice of Buddhism.

It is definitely a book worth reading. After reading, I really appreciate living a simple life. It also makes me realize more that I am living in abundance. Most of us are. We just conveniently forget about it, continue to work and to ask for more.

How much more do we want ? Pondering........