Indigenous Peoples Culture Park & Buddhist Monastery

Taiwan Indigenous Peoples Culture Park

~ Visiting this culture park and seeing various dance and musical performances was one of my favorite aspects of my entire Taiwan experience. There were many noticeable similarities between their performances and those of Polynesian indigenous peoples. This is due to the fact that Taiwan's indigenous peoples belong to the Austronesian group both culturally and linguistically. 

Fó Guāng Shān 佛光山 Buddhist Monastery

~ Fó Guāng Shān aka "Buddha's Light Mountain" is Taiwan's largest Buddhist Monastery located in the Dashu District of Kaohsiung. During our stay at the monastery, we were given a tour of the serene grounds, an introduction into the Humanistic Buddhist teachings by Buddhist nuns, meditated many times throughout the day, and experienced a Buddhist formal dinner (described in the next section). 

A Buddhist Formal Dinner

~ One of the most interesting experiences of my time in Taiwan so far was eating a formal dinner at the Buddhist temple. Before we went to dinner we were briefed on the rules and etiquette. First of all there is no talking once you enter the dining hall. You bow toward the Buddha statue in the front of the dining hall and take your seat quietly. You must wait until after the chant is complete to begin eating. There is a specific place setting and way to align your two bowls and one plate of food to signify to the servers that you either don't want something on your plate or you want more of something. Our meal consisted of a bowl of sticky white rice, a bowl of bamboo soup, and a plate with tofu and green vegetables, and chopsticks of course. Even though it was a plain meal, eating in silence and relatively slowly because of the chopsticks, it was surprisingly satisfying both physically and mentally.

According to our monk guide, the purpose of eating in silence is to be mindful of what we are putting into our bodies and to be thankful for the nourishment it provides. She talked about how when we eat and chat with friends or eat while watching TV, we aren't being mindful of what we are putting into our bodies. If I applied this mindful eating, Buddhist lifestyle to my own life I would certainly lose weight!