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Dharma Transmission and Sharing
The sharing focuses on the system of practice of y chi su (spiritual mentor), y chi de (spiritual younger brother), and y chi muoi (spiritual younger sister) within the Sangha, with the purpose of building brotherhood and sisterhood, transmitting the practice, and supporting each other. Each Dharma teacher describes their own way of organizing, the time for weekly meetings, forms of activities (brewing tea, eating cakes, writing sharing articles, Q&A), topics for mindfulness contemplation and walking meditation, as well as how to observe and listen to each individual in order to support the transformation of monastics. The community is encouraged to learn from one another and to inherit the spirit of “the elder guiding the younger” as in the original tradition of the early Sangha.
List of the number of y chi muoi/y chi de and some main features of the teachers’ activities:
- Sister Linh Nghiem: 7 y chi muoi, often asks about the practice needs of the younger sisters, brews Thai tea and encourages sharing of difficulties and weekly experiences
- Sister Chan Duc: 7 y chi muoi, mostly Westerners, mainly uses exercises from the Deer Park Rains Retreat, meets individually when needed and adjusts skillful means
- Sister Dinh Nghiem: 6 y chi muoi, lets the group decide their own program, often sits together, reads and writes articles for each other, builds sisterhood through written exchanges
- Sister Kinh Nghiem: 3 y chi muoi (ages 20–50), meets not on a fixed schedule but in the afternoon when free, sits together drinking tea, creates a family-like atmosphere among sisters
- Sister Dieu Nghiem: 8 (later reduced to 7) y chi muoi, communicates mainly in English, interacts 7 days a week, asks at the beginning of the season about practice goals, changes mentees so the sisters have diverse exposure
- Sister Doan Nghiem: 7 y chi muoi, declined 1 person, emphasizes honesty and authenticity, avoids formality, shares topics of mindfulness contemplation, prepares tea and cakes, and keeps the time seriously
- Brother Phap Dang (Phap Van): each y chi su has a maximum of 6 members (4 y chi de, 1 y chi su, 1 assistant), meets Wednesday evenings, sequentially reflects on monastic life, sitting meditation, walking meditation, and how to interact with sisters
- Sister (Cambodia): 2 groups, 5 novice aspirants meet Friday and Monday noon, 5 ordained members practice together with Brother Phap Don, introduce weekly topics, guide on monastic deportment, meditation cushions, and shamatha/vipashyana meditation
- The whole community: all practitioners are encouraged to become y chi for someone younger, to rely on each other like a herd of buffalo crossing a river, recognizing the strength that grows from the community of the Sangha throughout the retreat.
The Purpose of the Happy Meeting