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To safeguard against the COVID-19 pandemic, The Nan Hua Temple will temporarily no longer be open to the public. Please accept our sincere apologies for any inconvenience caused!
Please follow the NHT website and Facebook page for the latest updates as to when the temple will re-open. Website: www.nanhua.co.za Facebook: Nan Hua Temple To safeguard against the epidemic, please adhere to the following:
1.Temple operating hours: Tuesday – Sunday 11h00 – 14h00. Sunday Dharma services will no longer be open to the public. 2.Persons entering the Temple premises will be subject to a temperature test. Body temperatures exceeding 37,5 degrees Celsius will be prohibited from entering. 3.Please make use of the hand sanitisers provided before entering. 4.The Dining Hall will be closed. The coffee shop will only provide beverages and snacks. No hot food will be served. Apologies for any inconvenience caused. Regards, Nan Hua Temple On Sunday, 12 January 2020 close to 40 participants joined the outdoor meditation at the Pretoria National Botanical Garden. Very carefree and comfortable with humans, the Guinness Fowls came along auditing the TaiChi as well as the meditation sessions led by Nan Hua Temple venerables. All of us enjoyed the peaceful natural surroundings of the trees, bird chirping and the sunshine with just the right temperature. One of the participants said that with the rising unemployment, suicide rate and concern for public safety, this outdoor meditation is absolutely what people need now to put one's mind at ease and deal with the stress in the daily lives. #theroottomindulnessPTA #theroottomindfulness The first Root to Mindfulness outdoor meditation presented by Nan Hua Temple took place on 11 January 2020 at the Walter Sisulu National Botanical Gardens. Nan Hua Temple embarked on their ‘Root to Mindfulness’ initiative in order to bring meditation practices to the general public outside their meditation centres. Everyone was very excited and at the same time worried about whether the event can be successfully carried out. To their pleasant surprise over 60 participants attended the event. Although the day was overcast with grey clouds we were lucky enough to be blessed with a morning without rain. Under the guidance of the Venerables, everyone warmed up their bodies through a series of Tai Chi movements. It was then followed by a peaceful and mind-calming meditation which allowed everyone to relax and become one with nature. Overall today has been a fruitful event for all, and we hope that this opportunity will be used as a stepping stone to develop everyone’s spiritual journey and plant a seed of mindfulness. #theroottomindfulness On the 1 January 2020, around 30 people took Refuge in the Triple Gem and Precepts. The ceremony took place in the Pu Jue shrine at FGS Nan Hua Temple situated in Bronkhorstspruit and was conducted by the Abbott of Nan Hua Temple, Venerable Master Hui Fang assisted by several Venerable Masters. Taking refuge in the Triple Gem, that is the Buddha, the Dharma and the Sangha, represents confirmation of one’s belief in Buddhist principles and dedication to Buddhist practice. It is therefore a formal indication of one’s commitment to live a principled, righteous and moral live. It also means to rely on the Buddha’s guidance to learn more about ourselves, to have confidence in our intrinsic triple gem. Taking the Five Precepts forms the basis of building faith or confidence, which is very important to take devotees into the higher teachings of the Buddha. In Buddhism, precepts or directives forms one of the three teachings (Tri-Sikkha), which are precepts or directives, concentration and wisdom. The Precepts are the foundation of the practice of the Buddha Dharma until the attainment of enlightenment, the ultimate goal of Buddhism. Observing and upholding the Five Precepts builds happiness for living beings in both the present and in the future. The Five Precepts are: 1. Abstain from killing 2. Abstain from stealing 3. Abstain from sexual misconduct 4. Abstain from reckless speech 5. Abstain from intoxicants Taking and upholding the five precepts is a life time commitment; it is not for one day and one night. FGS Nan Hua Temple congratulates these individuals for taking the first step to following the Buddhist path and way of life. On the 1 January 2020, Nan Hua Temple hosted their annual Baby Blessing Ceremony for good health, fortune and the power to overcome adversities in life to be wished upon the children. The venerables of Nan Hua Temple recited the baby blessing prayer which was dedicated to wishing them good fortune in each and every child's education and later their occupation. Venerable Hui Xing gifted each child with a bracelet. The ceremony concluded with the entire shrine chanting the Transferring Merit. Around 90 babies attended this blessed event and it was a great way to celebrate the beginning another new year. Fo Guang Shan Nan Hua Temple situated in Bronkhorstspruit celebrated Chinese New Year on Sunday, 10 February 2019, welcoming the New Lunar Year, the Year of the Pig, in true Eastern style. Festivities started with the traditional candle lighting ceremony at 9h30 in the morning followed by the official opening. The mentor of Nan Hua Temple, Venerable Yi Chun, provided some insight into what we can expect from the Year of the Pig. She also mentioned that us humans, use pigs for multiple reasons and that we should rather become vegetarian and live a pure life. “The founder of Nan Hua Temple and the founding Chairman of the Buddha’s Light International Association (BLIA), Grand Master Ysing Yun, age 94 this year, instructed me to wish you a year always well-rounded and be auspicious. May everything go well with you in the Year of the Pig. The pig represents courage, loyalty, blessing, appreciation and wealth. When we were young, we were given piggy banks where we can save our pocket money. When it filled up, we were overjoyed with the little fortune we accumulated. I sincerely hope that in this new year, we can all learn to grow and manage our wealth properly. Learn to express gratitude to others and to cherish what we already have in life. ” said Venerable Yi Chun. Vicki Jacob visited this year and reported, “This was my fourth visit to the Nan Hua Temple to celebrate the Chinese New Year and each year it gets better and better. I loved seeing so many different cultures interacting with one another in harmony. I joined the introduction to meditation class for the first time and found it immensely relaxing. Best of all was the amazing variety of food stalls, all vegetarian, which was excellent for me.” VIPs present included the Abbot of Nan Hua Temple, Venerable Hui Fang, who led the proceedings; the representative of the Taipei Liaison Office in South Africa, Mr Matthew W Chou and Mrs Grace Chou; Sino South Africa Chamber of Commerce president, Mr Robin Xu and Mrs Susan Sun; director of the BLIA World Headquarters, Mrs Sherry Chen; The Whole Africa Overseas Chinese Peaceful Reunification Promotion Association president, Mr Xin-Tsu Lee and Mrs Wenxin Xu; Senior Commissioner of Overseas Chinese Affair Commission, Mr Vincent Lin; First Secretary Taipei Liaison Office in South Africa, Mr Chia-Lun Wang; South Africa-China Shenzhen general chamber of commerce president, Mr Chan Wan Sang and Mrs Meilian Chan; Southern African Taiwanese Ha-Ga Association, Mr Nick Lo; Chairlady of Global Federation of Chinese Businesses Women Southern Africa Chapter, Mrs Pamela Yang; The African Federation of Chinese Women in Commerce and Industry, Mrs Char-Main Chung; Gauteng Taiwanese Chamber of Commerce Honourable Chairperson Mr John Chung; Buddhist Companion Relief Tzu Chi Foundation regional director of Johannesburg Chapter , Mr Fu-Lai Huang; Chinese Women Association in South Africa, Mrs Oscar Liao; Buddhist Compassion Relief Tzu-Chi Foundation senior volunteer, Ming Hui Chang; Pretoria Culture and Education Foundation, Mr Peter Chen and Buddhist Compassion Relief Tzu-Chi Foundation senior volunteer, Mr Jake Shih. An array of cultural festivities took place during the celebrations including the traditional Dragon and Lion dances, Spanish and Scottish dancing, Nan Hua Temple Performing Arts Group Drumming, martial arts and various other musical performances to the delight of young and old. A myriad of cultural food and craft stalls offered not only sustenance but a unique taste sensation with sumptuous vegetarian faire for sale. There were several other inspiring events for all to enjoy including a traditional Chinese tea ceremony and meditation. Children’s entertainment included a super slide, peddle car racing and loads of entertainment for including lantern and face painting and balloon art. We wish you a very successful Year of the Pig and hope to see you at the 2020 Chinese New Festival! The 27th of June marked the end of the annual winter youth talent camp of Nan Hua temple, yet the next day immediately began the “children's” talent camp. Under the guidance of venerable Master Jie Kai, the South African Young adult division delicately planed four days and three night of fun-filled activities and class. With 70 children from differ region of South Africa, their aim was to make the children's time at the Nan Hua temple a fruitful and memorable winter experience. The camp was filled with wondrous activities: games, sports, story telling and many more. The children are divided into two groups according to their ages. One group is 7-9 years old and the other is 10-14 years old. On the first day the children held hands in ice-breaking, warm hugs melted always the cold unknown barrier and each made many new friends. At night, was a welcoming party from the youth to the children. Dances, acts, song and games using all measures possible to welcomed the children and made them felt right at home. Under the folk art teacher Pan Hui Ling's teaching, through colorful paintbrushes and different quality materials in mere hours pushed everyone's creativity to the maximum level! Making a rich variety of works such as lanterns, gyros, paper cutting, windmills, etc. Folk sports teacher, Rong Pei Chen, took the children through basic rope skipping exercises, gyros and diabolo. The children were small, but they worked hard to complete each movement. The Edge of Temple was a time for the children to challenge themselves though games. Observation, agility, quickness, cleverest, each game was created to test and teach the children while they were having fun. During film time, YAD member Yuki Huang led the children to watch "I love happiness", an animation created by Grandmaster Hsing Yun to teach children different morals and how to face everyday problems. All of child watched with bated breath hoping to answer the question correctly. During a pray for the parents, every little one earnestly praised the “Nanwu Guanyin Bodhisattva” and offered a lamp to the parents in front of the Buddha to wish them good health and peace. On the final day of the camp, the children spent 100% of their efforts to show what they had learned in four days. Each team sent representatives to express the thoughts of their team. Besides thanking the big brother and sister for their meticulous care, the children thanked the mothers in the kitchen for preparing the rich food, making them happy to eat, and there was a large pot of warm food. As the sound of the car boomed. Volunteers who stood in front of the door on the first day are here again, but this time they did not welcome the children but bid farewell to those who had lived together for the pass few days. Everyone was red-eyed and reluctantly bid farewell and looked forward to December, to meet again. |
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