The Than Hsiang Fund KL Branch recently organised its 2004 CNY Gathering on the 1st of February. (11 th day of Chinese New Year) Many devotees attended this auspicious event.

After giving offerings to the Buddha, the devotees wished one another auspicious greetings for the New Year. They all felt like they were part of a big happy family.

At about 9am, all proceeded to the well-decorated hall where Ven. Zhen Yuan and Ven. Zhen Xin led the chanting of Amitabha. Very soon the small hall was crowded with people. All the old folks from Wan Ching Yuen Centre had also come to take part in the event.

When every one had settled down, Ven. Wei Wu gave a dharma talk on mutual understanding and cooperation among the various religions. The venerable emphasized that a religion should not be blamed for the wrong doings of some of its followers; for example, the Islam community should not be held responsible for the act of terrorism committed by certain Muslims in America. He advised that as Buddhists, we should all work together, for by being united, we are stronger. We can overcome more problems and would be able to help one another in times of hardship. He also advised us to appreciate what we have and not simply throw away things that are still useful. Let us all heed this advice.

Following Ven. Wei Wu's dharma talk were a series of performances by volunteers and Buddhist friends alike. Among the performances which were amusing and wonderful included a koto performance, hand musical gesture performance and sign language. Besides presentations and performances exciting and interesting games were also played. The active participation of every one present filled the hall with joy and laughter.

Towards the end of the gathering, every one offered their well wishes to Ven. Wei Wu. The venerable in return distributed ang paus in the form of ‘dharma treasure' and ‘dharma verses'. The ‘dharma treasure' was a dharma talk [‘The Stages of the Buddha's Path'] recorded in cassettes and CDs in MP3 format by the Than Hsiang's Audio Visual Centre. The ‘dharma verses' were the wise sayings of Ven. Wei Wu and other sages. As Buddhism stresses on the three practices of listening, contemplating and cultivating, the Venerable hoped that after listening to his talk and pondering over his booklet, we would all practice the Buddha Dharma in our daily life, benefiting others and ourselves as well.

A sumptuous vegetarian meal marked the end of the Chinese New Year Gathering.