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| Lotus blooming in the Chua Phap Nguyen pond, July 26, 2012. |
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| Additionally, course information will likely be accessible via this route as well. |
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| The Great Buddha statue at Chuang Yen Monastery. Photo screengrabbed from this Return to the Center blog post. |
GENERAL SCOPE. (this summary excerpted from internally-distributed course materials)
The Dharma Training Program is a three-year curriculum of Buddhist studies that is designed to give students an in-depth understanding of Buddhism and Buddhist practice in the three major traditions--Theravada, Mahayana, and Vajrayana. The 2012-2013 Houston course will be led by the Chua Phap Nguyen Abbot, Venerable Thich Tri Hoang.
The first year of the program provides a broad overview of Buddhism. The second year focuses on Buddhist Sutras. The third year focuses on Buddhist philosophy and applications such as science, psychology, and psychotherapy.
New students may enter the program in any of the three years and, having completed all three years in any order, are awarded a certificate.
An optional fourth year (by invitation of the teacher) prepares students to become lay Dharma teachers. Those who complete the fourth year satisfactorily may be ordained in the Dharma Teacher Order.
READING LIST.
The following books will be studied by the group in the first year of the Houston course:
- Old Path White Clouds
- Heart of the Buddha's Teaching
- Tree of Enlightenment
- A Concise History of Buddhism
- Vision and Transformation
- Zen Women: Beyond Tea Ladies, Iron Maidens and Macho Masters
- The Tibetan Book of Living and Dying
- Zen Keys
- Buddhism in America
Regular Classes. The class will meet every other Saturday (with adjustments for teacher schedule, holidays, etc.) from 9:00 a.m. until noon on the following dates (with reference to the books being studied during each class).
- September 15, 2012 (Old Path White Clouds)
- September 22, 2012 (Old Path White Clouds)
- October 6, 2012 (Heart of the Buddha's Teachings)
- October 20, 2012 - Day of Mindfulness*
- November 3, 2012 (Heart of the Buddha's Teachings)
- November 17, 2012 (Tree of Enlightenment)
- December 1, 2012 (Tree of Enlightenment)
- December 15, 2012 (A Concise History of Buddhism)
- January 1, 2013 (Tuesday) - Day of Mindfulness*
- January 5, 2013 (A Concise History of Buddhism)
- January 19, 2013 (Vision and Transformation)
- February 2, 2013 (Zen Women)
- February 16, 2013 (The Tibetan Book of Living and Dying)
- March 2, 2013 - Day of Mindfulness*
- March 16, 2013 (The Tibetan Book of Living and Dying)
- April 6, 2013 (Zen Keys)
- April 13, 2013 (Buddhism in America)
The format for each Saturday class is anticipated to be as follows:
- 15-minute sitting meditation
- 1-hour summary presentation by the class participant assigned for that date
- 45-minute breakout group discussions
- 20-minute walking meditation
- 25-minute group discussion
- 15-minute sitting meditation
April 26, 27, and 28, 2013 - Retreat at Chuang Yen Monastery in New York. The cost for the retreat is anticipated to be a $150-250 donation to the monastery (to help cover food and lodging), plus airfare and ground transportation for each participant. Details on this retreat will be published separately.
COSTS.
The requested dana for this training program itself is $125, Payment is required within the first few weeks of the initial start date (September 15) but early payment is appreciated.
Note that the suggested donations for Days of Mindfulness retreats plus end-of-year 3-day New York retreat costs cited above are in addition to the course costs. Therefore, the total for engaging in all scheduled activities associated with this first-year course is anticipated to be approximately $800.
The description above is tentative and subject to future updates and refinements. This blog post may be re-edited to reflect such changes. And again, check with www.dharmatraining.org for course information as well.
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| Flowers blooming on the Chua Phap Nguyen grounds, July 26, 2012. |
