Translated By Tony Qin
Buddhism teaches that everything arises through causes and conditions. To be able to invite Venerable Guan Cheng to travel all the way to the United Kingdom to deliver a series of Dharma talks was truly a rare and precious karmic opportunity.
It all began a year earlier, when Buddhist Compassion Magazine Issue No. 657 featured the cover story “The Difficulties of Learning Buddhism Abroad.” In that article, the Milton Keynes Buddhist Association (MKBA) shared how Chinese Buddhist immigrants in the UK were trying to find their spiritual footing and continue their practice in their new environment.
At the behest of Venerable Shanru and supported by the sincere wishes of many lay practitioners, Lay Sister Sizhen brought a formal invitation letter and a copy of the magazine with her during a family visit to Hong Kong. She personally delivered them to the Precept Concentration Wisdom Lecture Hall to invite Venerable Guan Cheng to visit the UK and expound the Dharma.
Not long after, moved by the blessings of the Triple Gem, Venerable Guan Cheng replied with compassion and agreed to set aside precious time this year to lead a monastic delegation to the United Kingdom. The news brought elated joy to Buddhists across the country. MKBA immediately began contacting local Buddhist groups and dedicated lay supporters. Together, they organised volunteer teams and started arranging the venues, logistics, transportation, and publicity for the upcoming talks.
October 24, 2025 · London — Welcoming the Sangha
On October 24, 2025—exactly one year after the magazine article was published—MKBA volunteers travelled to Heathrow Airport to welcome Venerable Guan Cheng, Venerable Hongci, Venerable Shanci, and Venerable Shanru. This marked the beginning of a ten-day Dharma tour through London, Milton Keynes, and Birmingham.
A particularly touching moment was the arrival of Brother Newman, the benefactor of the London lecture. Despite a busy schedule, he flew from the United States with his family to attend both the London and Birmingham Dharma talks. He also shared reflections from his many years of Buddhist practice, bringing meaningful benefit to everyone present.
October 26, 2025 · London — Cavendish Venues
“Introspective Clarity, Compassion in Action: The Self-Benefit and Altruistic Path of Avalokiteśvara Bodhisattva”
On the day of the lecture, volunteers set out from Milton Keynes early in the morning. Once they arrived at the venue, everyone immediately took up their roles—setting up the hall, distributing Dharma gifts, and offering Great Compassion Water to each guest. Even before the talk began, almost all the Dharma items, audio players, and books by Venerable Guan Cheng had already been received by the enthusiastic attendees.
Venerable Guan Cheng opened the session with a poem written in the 1960s by Venerable Yuanhui while living at Castle Peak An Yang Hermitage:
“Wherever we go, let every place become our home;
When we meet, there is no need to ask about age.
Cherish the moment you have now,
And spring sunshine will naturally light the evening clouds.”
He used this poem to encourage the many new immigrants in the room to treasure the present moment and settle peacefully wherever they are.
He then explained the practice of Avalokiteśvara Bodhisattva’s “Perfect Penetration of the Hearing Faculty,” drawing on the sixth scroll of the Śūraṅgama Sūtra. With the help of an image of “Guanyin Meditating by the Sea,” he guided the audience through the six steps of seated meditation and spoke about cultivating a calm and steady mind. His teachings offered clear directions that would help practitioners avoid pitfalls along the path.
Venerable Guan Cheng also spoke about the proper way to pray to and connect with the Bodhisattvas, emphasising the harmony between self-effort (faith, continuity, and understanding cause and effect) and support from beyond oneself (learning to be in alignment with the Bodhisattvas). Reciting Avalokiteśvara’s name, he explained, helps nurture compassion and brings out the Bodhisattva’s vow to give joy and relieve suffering.
The Q&A session at the end was warm and lively. Many questions centred on challenges in daily practice. Venerable Guan Cheng answered each one patiently and encouraged everyone to recite the Buddha’s name throughout the day—whether walking, sitting, or working—to stay far from the Three Lower Realms. The session concluded with heartfelt gratitude and deep Dharma joy.
October 30 – November 1, 2025 · Milton Keynes — Nipponzan Myohoji Temple
Milton Keynes sits between London, Birmingham, Oxford, and Cambridge. It is home to Europe’s first Peace Pagoda, which depicts the Eight Great Events of the Buddha’s life, and the UK’s first Japanese Buddhist temple, Nipponzan Myohoji—the venue for the second Dharma talk, delivered in English.
The day before the talk, Venerable Guan Cheng, the monastic delegation, and local disciples visited the temple to meet its resident teacher, Sister Maruta. She warmly invited everyone into the main hall to pay respects to Buddha relics from Sri Lanka and a 300-year-old wooden statue of Śākyamuni Buddha. Venerable Guan Cheng led the group in chanting the Great Compassion Mantra, and afterwards he and Sister Maruta sat together on the floor to share insights on practice in a peaceful and friendly atmosphere.
On the day of the lecture, the hall quickly filled. Besides local British attendees, many Indian, Sri Lankan, and Japanese Buddhists also joined. Addressing the rising rates of mental-health struggles and suicide in the UK, Venerable Guan Cheng spoke clearly about how Buddhist teachings—especially the Eight Consciousnesses and meditation practice—can help ease emotional distress. He also led the audience in chanting the Six-Syllable Mantra of Great Illumination so everyone could personally experience the steady, calming effect of mantra recitation.
During the Q&A, many questions centred on personal or family mental-health concerns. Volunteers noticed an elderly British attendee who had appeared tense throughout the session finally relaxed after hearing the Venerable’s response. He later approached the Venerable to speak further after the lecture had harmoniously concluded.
That evening, Venerable Guan Cheng met with MKBA volunteers to review the first two events and ensure that the final lecture in Birmingham would run even more smoothly.
November 2, 2025 · Birmingham — Millennium Point
“Single-Minded Buddha-Recitation, Happiness in This Life: The Easy Path of Mahāsthāmaprāpta Bodhisattva”
Because the monastic delegation was due to return to Hong Kong immediately after the talk to prepare for the upcoming Thousand-People Chanting Ceremony of the Peacock King Sūtra, every detail of the event needed to run smoothly. Drawing from earlier experience, volunteers arrived at the venue two hours in advance to set up the stage, arrange the hall, and welcome guests so that everything was completed on schedule.
Venerable Guan Cheng opened the session by leading the audience in three homages to the Buddha. He then spoke about the karma of body, speech, and mind, followed by the Eight Sufferings of life. Using the framework of the six sense-faculties, six sense-objects, and six consciousnesses, he explained how attachment creates suffering and how purifying the six faculties allows us to move beyond birth and death and be reborn in the Western Pure Land.
He also spoke about the challenges of the “difficult path,” especially the risks of meditation without proper guidance. In this Dharma-ending age, he cautioned, misleading teachers are numerous, and improper meditation can easily cause harm. He urged the audience not to join meditation groups casually or follow unverified teachers.
The easy path, he explained, lies in sincere and unbroken recitation of Amitābha Buddha’s name, supported by Faith, Vow, and Practice. When the mind rests on the Buddha’s name—whether standing, sitting, walking, or lying down—inner confusion gradually quiets, and peace and clarity arise naturally.
At the end of the talk, the audience remained deeply engaged. Even though the event had gone an hour overtime and volunteers were concerned about the Sangha’s tight travel schedule, Venerable Guan Cheng kindly insisted on answering every question and fulfilling requests for signatures and photos. This marked the completion of the ten-day Dharma tour.
Throughout the ten-day journey, Venerable Guan Cheng repeatedly reminded the MKBA volunteer team that the conditions were ripe to develop MKBA’s potential as a charitable organisation. He encouraged the volunteers and lay practitioners to make use of their unique position in the UK to offer chanting and support to local practitioners in need, and to diligently promote Chinese Mahāyāna Buddhism through Buddhist study classes so that more disciples may have the opportunity to learn the Dharma. With his encouragement, MKBA has already begun planning the establishment of a dedicated lecture hall.
All of these conditions arose from a single article about the challenges of learning Buddhism abroad. We are deeply grateful to Venerable Guan Cheng for travelling so far to offer these three Dharma talks, which have become unforgettable memories for practitioners across the UK, allowing everyone to share in the wisdom of the Dharma and the Buddha’s compassionate blessings.
“May the merit of this work
be shared with all beings.
May we and all sentient beings
together realize the Buddha’s path.”
