With the pace of spring, the new semester of 2018 started in the Buddhist College of Minnan (BCM) From 12th to 14th of March, there were more than 500 teachers and students of the BCM who participated the Three-day Retreat of Meditation and Reciting Amitābha separately in the Nanputuo Temple, Zizhu Lin and Wanshilian Nunneries. In recent years, under the advocacy of dean-Most Ven. Ze Wu, the Three-day Retreat of Meditation and Reciting Amitābha has become one of the subject courses “running the college as a monastery and integrating with study and practice” of BCM. At the beginning of each semester, the teachers and students apply thought on their body and mind together with mindfulness and at the same time recite the name of the Amitābha Buddha  and practice meditation. Consequently, they would meet the new semester with better mental outlook.
  "If a person who meditates for a short time,  his  or her merit is greater than building innumerable Seven Jeweled Stūpas like the sand of Ganges " ,  all the practitioners of BCM under the guidance of elder masters, controlled the unwholesome thoughts, brought out their pure nature, practiced sincerely, abandoned the external conditions, and concentrated on meditation and recited the name Amitābha in the three days of Retreats. During the meditation period, Ven. Dao Guang (Hall Lord and Manager of the Meditation Hall in Nanputuo Temple) preached an essential application of meditation to the monks,  “Indeed, practice is very simple. When a person starts to learn and listens to dharma, and after that he or she will examine the doctrines, subsequently the right view is emerged and later he or she can start to practice dharma. Some people think that the Zen (Chan) Sect is a kind of difficult Dharma, and the meditation is only practiced in Meditation Hall. Actually, there is no absolute relationship between Zen and meditation, because meditation emphasizes the mind, in other words whether you understand your mind and know your nature, and whatever you see in the external performances such as walking, sitting do not have a great relation. 
  Why should we go into meditation room to practice? Ven. Dao Guang said: "Many people cannot apply this heart at the beginning, so they need a relatively convenient and quiet environment, in order to alert their hearts. If our hearts focus on Six External Bases, it does not call diligence. During practice, we observe Six External Bases to know our goal clearly. The ordinary people do not have the contemplation of mindfulness and they are easily changed by external factors (environment). ; therefore, we have to train our mind by contemplation on mindfulness . “Do not let a passing thought rise up is ‘mind’. Do not let the coming thought (luminous mind) be annihilated who is enlightened (Buddha). Thus, our hearts are always keeping with the right mindfulness, and we can base on this method to let our hearts work for ourselves. One does not only work hard in the Meditation Hall, but also in everything and everywhere. When the power of mind arrives, states of all phenomena (illusion) are extinguished, and eventually we will attain enlightenment.”

  The beginning of establishment of the Buddhist College of Minnan, established “running the college as a monastery and integrating study and practice” as a policy of college, " Cultivations of Sangha to maintain Buddhism and propagation of dharma to benefit human beings” are the principles of the college, and it always adhere to the " Integrating study and practice,  equaling research and teaching, the study of Buddhism and the secular knowledge" concept of teaching. Under the guidance of Most Ven. Ze Wu who emphasized on learning, discipline and practice, and teachers and students should participate in the courses. The Four Noble Truths of Buddhism, the Eightfold Path, Four Methods of Pacification & Six Pāramitā, and Four Immeasurable Minds can be utilized in our life, to optimize learning and practice of the quality of the students.

The Three-day Retreat of Meditation (the department of monks of BCM)

The Three-day Retreat of reciting Amitābha (the department of the nuns of BCM)