Woodenfish Humanistic Buddhist Monastic Life Program 2018

Dates: July 1st to July 28th, 2018

Applications for the 2018 Program are now open! Please help us by sharing with your students.

For more information: http://www.woodenfish.org/hbmlp2018

The objective of the program is to promote the understanding of Chinese Buddhism by exposing participants to the daily life, practice and theory of Buddhism within a traditional Buddhist monastic setting.

The Woodenfish HBMLP provides international graduate and undergraduate students interested in the study of religion, Buddhism and Chinese culture with a first-hand experience with the lifestyle, training, and rituals of contemporary Chinese Buddhist monastics. Moreover, it includes academic lectures and discussions in order to provide the participants with historical and doctrinal background for understanding the Chinese Buddhist experience.

Key elements:

• Offering participants a chance to personally experience Buddhism as it is practiced in modern day China.
• Training in monastic customs and practices such as sitting meditation, ethics, and liturgy.
• Introductory courses in various aspects of Buddhism (Early Buddhism, Mahayana and Chinese Buddhism), such as history, philosophy, etiquette, rituals, Humanistic Buddhism, etc.
• Cultural workshops with experienced Chinese artists. In previous years we have offered workshops in Chinese classical music, tea ceremony, kongfu, calligraphy, and other Chinese traditional arts.
• Communal activities within the monastery and chances to interact with monastics and lay people in the monastery.
• Daily participation in essential routine activities within a Buddhist monastery.
• Five to seven days of silent meditation.
• A cultural tour to Mt. Putuo, a sacred Buddhist mountain in Zhejiang province.
• All activities will either be conducted in English or English translation will be provided.

Rolling admission until April 30th.