A message from one of our dear masters in Taiwan that took care of us when we were there last April for our Siddhartha Taiwan road tour. Ven. Master Miao Guang’s message to the Siddhartha family…

Hello Ms. Dayzee,

Time certainly flies! It’s already been over a month since we met at the performances and your visit to FGU. I was saddened by not being able to see your last show at FGS and the farewell party at Pumen Temple in Taipei, but I am content enough just to have been there with the Master, sitting in the front row, and fully bathing in the beauty and profound wisdom displayed by your show. I still can’t get over how touched I was by the musical. I still listen to the soundtrack or sing it silently in my mind almost everyday, because the memories from the musical have bestowed unto me nothing but courage and faith in the path that I had chosen at the age of a young adult, a weak mind seeking solace and guidance from the faith that I had taken for granted for too long over these years.

You and the Siddhartha Caste now hold a very special spot in my heart, and will continue to do so for a long, long time; for you were the ones who embraced me and the rest of the team at our first visit to Cebu with the warmest smiles and the purest eyes that showed unconditional acceptance and trust in a group of students who dared say that they were propagating the truth (courageous but ignorant!). It is certainly a privilege to be given so much support and confidence at the very first overseas Dharma Talk that I’d ever given in my entire life. Like what the Chinese say, “a good start is already half the way to success!” I shall bring what you have given me to every place in the world that I visit, and share this joy and love with every individual who crosses paths with me.

Besides Siddhartha being the one who “founded” Buddhism as a religion, I honestly do not regard the musical as a religious one, because every word sang by the performers showed nothing but the common truth to a joyful and wise life. Regardless of who we are, where we come from, or who we follow, the Noble Eightfold Path can be practiced by anyone in an un-religious way; a longing for the truth is the right held by every individual in his/her quest for uninterrupted happiness; to vow to be more than who we are means we have opened up our hearts to the world and are willing to share others’ joys and sorrows; to light up the lamp of our heart means we will travel on the brighter paths of life and no longer be fearful of the dark; and to regard all as one means exactly what you have said in your hub, that we are celebrating all our similarities and respecting all differences. Moreover, if that unshakeable faith in Amitabha Buddha is shifted onto ourselves, we will surely be blessed with a mind strong enough to make any wishes comes true (good ones of course!).

You have continued to modestly express that you have learned a lot from us, but in my mind, it was us who had learned much more from you. I admire your ability to bring out the best quality and courage of every member of the caste, and in guiding them across times of trouble and helplessness. You were like the mother who gave them assurance, and a shoulder to rest their heads on when they were fearful and exhausted. If only I had the chance to spend some more time around you during your stay, I would have loved to “dig out” more treasures from your wisdom and life experiences. ;D

I’ve recently just came back from a tour around Singapore and Malaysia with the Master, which has indeed been a fruitful one, for I have continued to meet new people and share our thoughts and learnings. What a wonderful world! The more colors and dissimilarities the more beautiful it will become!

I think I’ve blabbed on for too long, but I’ve been wanting to write you a letter to thank you for bringing Siddhartha to Fo Guang Shan. I am sure I will soon be sitting amongst the audience of your China and European shows. Until then, may peace, wisdom and joy be with you all. Please say hello to Michelle for me. Miss you guys!

Original post here.

The hospitality we were given in Taiwan was amazing! No words can describe the love and care the people there gave us, from the arrival in Taipei airport to the accommodation in Pu Men Temple was overwhelming! Everything was given to us on a silver platter, so to speak. We were treated like celebrities!

We had four shows in Taipei, in Sun Yat Sen Memorial Hall. What an experience it was! Where do I start? First, the make-up artist… what can I say, they were real professionals!! You couldn’t find that kind of fast service in the Philippines! From the way they start applying the makeup to finishing touches were very impressive! Oh, and they don’t just apply makeup then forget about you. They stayed at the sides of the stages to retouch the makeup when you exit the stage! Now that’s professionalism!

We were treated to some sight seeing tour around Taipei afterwards. One small problem… time management. We were always late in gathering and assembling, hahahah, other than that, the tour was a total blast!! After two days of rest, we had to travel to Kaohsiung for another show there. We passed by a temple built in the center of Taiwan, I think it was called Fo Guang Shan Lucky Mountain Temple.

A little history, it was build at the center of Taiwan, a city called Taichong, so that travelers, going from south to north, can stop by the temple for an overnight stay. The temple is really large and the accommodation were not bad. Of course its not a hotel, but it was good enough for an overnight stay. On the way to Kaohsiung, we were treated to a theme park, thank god its was cloudy or we would have sweat all over.

In Kaohsiung, we stayed in Fo Guang Shan. It’s like Vatican City in Christianity. Fo Guang Shan spanned three mountains and has its own hotel, a university for the monks, cafeteria, TV station, temples, and more! We stayed in the Bamboo Inn, named after the bamboos, of course. I wont talk about the sites in Fo Guang Shan, it will take up a lot of space in the blog =p

The show was in the city proper of Kaohsiung. It took a 45min bus ride to the hall. First thing observed was that the hall was not as big as Taipei, but in the end everything went as planned.
Venerable Master Hsing Yun watched the second play on Saturday and everyone was at their best! How many times in a life time can someone meet a person who is an equivalent of the Pope! The energy in the air was so strong, when he speaks everyone was dead silent! We also had another meeting with Venerable Master Hsing Yun the following day in a conference room. Oh the joy of it all! We were given autographed pictures of him!! Well a 1-on-1 picture would have been better but this was close enough and I’m very happy. Plus a bonus, he hinted that he may find ways to bring us to Beijing! And not just any concert hall…. THE NATIONAL CENTER FOR PERFORMING ARTS!

Kaohsiung play came and went. Boy do time fly sooo quickly! Our last show was on Wednesday, in Fo Guang Shan. A special show free of charge for the monks in the monastery and other people who couldn’t go out to watch the play. We gave our best and the place was fully packed! We had the show under the evening sky and with some great divine intervention, it never rained!

Impermanence, nothing is permanent at all. This we learned from Venerable Master Hsing Yun. We soon had to leave the beautiful Fo Guang Shan and go back to Taipei for our trip back to Cebu. *SIGH =’(* We missed all the monks that gave all their love and care when we were in Fo Guang Shan. People cried when we left as we left for Taipei. Because of them, our stay was very memorable and heart warming… memories that will last a life time!

Or you can check the video on youtube here.

When my college has life ended, I thought that those days of class presentations has finally ended… Oh the irony of life! Little did I know that two years later I would soon be a part of one of the largest successful production in Cebu.

Almost a year ago, I was called to a meeting at a Chinese temple. I was part of the youth group in that temple. Not knowing what to expect, I complied to meet with the masters, aunts and uncles. Little did I know that this day would be one of those life changing event in my life. Me and some members of the BLIA youth were asked to auditioned for a play that is in production! Oh those haunting memories in school came back! With some hesitations and further persuasions from the adults, I gave it a chance. One reason was just to stop them from nagging at my ears and another reason was that I was also a bit curious. One thing led to another, and soon enough I and four other BLIA youths were included in the cast for the musical play of Siddhartha.

At first, I can’t even come to imagine me dancing, acting and singing in front of THOUSANDS of people! I can’t even do my lines properly in class plays, much more on a large stage!

Rehearsals came and went, and sooner than I thought I can now actually dance at par to some people in the cast! All those practices really came through. Plus the constant training from the director, Ms. Daisy Baad, got me to come out of my shell. Waterfront came and went, I can’t believe what I went through. It pretty much felt really good to do something I thought I would never do in front of thousands of people! I could see everyone enjoyed the play pretty much, in and outside the stage.

We were soon invited to play in Manila! Not just any place, but the world renowned CCP! At first I didn’t get why my new family (the casts) got so excited about. Yah, it’s an old stage….so what? Later did I know that not just anyone gets to present in CCP in front of a crowd! Musicians dream of the day to present in CCP, and we were presented this chance on a platter. World renowned musicians and actors had stood on the very stage we were going to present.

Everyone was very excited, since everything was already prepared and set for us to present there. You can say that we were “pampered to death” from the people in Manila. Not that we are complaining, but we were so thankful for their hospitality. Some of the cast’s dream came true as we stepped into the large stage that is the CCP.

Now, the Taiwan show is growing nearer, I have now been asked to take the role of an understudy of Channa, the servant of Siddhartha. One for major roles in the play!!! What an experience it has been for the whole year. From just a simple dancer, now I’m handling and trying to learn the role of a major cast!

As for me, the whole experience was well worth the pain and late night rehearsals. Just by playing minor roles in the play really taught me the value of teamwork and hard work. No one is less important than the other. This what really struck me most. Everyone was really important, from the tiniest role to the main cast of the show. If one is missing, the whole play is derailed or even incomplete because of that one single role, no matter what role he/she does. Life is more or less the same. We all play major roles in our everyday life; from our home, to our school, to the office. If we disappear, we not only affect the lives that are connected to us, our family, but also out friends, co-workers and others.

Having the chance to take the role of a royalty, a jester, a charioteer, and an ascetic made me think that life is more than the daily events that you come to know and do everyday. Life is a stage, and we are the main cast of our very own play that is our life. Take the opportunity, take risks, do things that you never thought you could! Reach for your dreams, be someone. Who knows? You may be also be a main cast in someone else’ play in life.

So… Taiwan, and hopefully the world, here we come!!!

Well… there it is.. I’m a complete mess and about to go over the edge and have a complete nervous breakdown…. (X__x)!!

P.S.: K, now I know how you felt a few months ago!! XD

I had the privilege and the honor to meet one of the highest ranking monks in Buddhism, Venerable Master Hsin Pei (心培和尚 Xinpei Heshang). He is the current Abbot and director of Fo Guang Shan and second in line to Venerable Master Hsing Yun.

He came to Cebu for a special show of the Siddhartha musical that was played in CCP a week before. Sadly he wasn’t able to watch the show in CCP due to schedule problems. In a way, his visit was also a part of the judgment if we will be officially brought to Taiwan to do another show of the Siddhartha musical. There were comments from him that really made sense, but overall he enjoyed the play very much.

As for the verdict…. TAIWAN HERE WE COME!!! Possible schedule is on April or May.

Pics to follow…

Now nine months after the Siddhartha project started, I’m still here, happy and glad that I stuck to what I started and never looked back. Blessings perhaps? Probably… but it was all worth it! From waterfront to the world renowned CCP (Cultural Center of the Philippine) where Lea Salonga also played! Nothing can compare the feeling when you step into the large stage in CCP! The feeling that other successful artist has stood on that stage where you are standing. The feeling that you were given a chance to perform on that stage when even other known artists were not given the opportunity to perform there.

I can’t even believe I can now dance!!! (hahahaha)

Okok, it was the most memorable trip I had to Manila. Four days of sleepless nights and aching joints. Four shows to perform and stress to add to it. But the experiences and memories will last a lifetime!! The show did have its ups and downs, but the last show was the best! Everything went right!

One last thing, we were invited to perform in TAIWAN!! Taiwan here we come!!!

Pics:

Wish us luck!

P.S. I’m a nervous wreck!! X__x

How to say ‘No’ and how to refuse others tactfully is a skillful art. When others ask us to do something that we cannot deliver, we have no choice but to refuse. However, it is hard to refuse others.

Suggestions on how to decline others when we absolutely must:

1. Do Not Decline Immediately – it can give others the impression that we are cold and have preconceived notions about them. One must give some thoughts on that person request.
2. Do Not Decline Recklessly – we could lose many opportunities to help others and to make friends.
3. Do Not Decline Angrily – we can hurt others’ feelings and make them think that we are unsympathetic.
4. Do Not Decline Callously – they may feel slighted, which in turn can create bad feelings among all.
5. Do Not Decline Cold-Heartedly – without any room to negotiate, it can embarass others and can possibly turn them into enemies.
6. Do Not Decline Arrogantly – No one wants to be close to one who is arrogant* and disrespectful to others. It is especially hard to accept when someone really needs our help and we turn this person down arrogantly.
7. Decline Tactfully – this way, they will be touched by our sincerity and truthfulness.
8. Decline with a Smile – it is important that we act friendly and with respect. This allows others to maintain their dignity and accept our refusal more easily.
9. Decline with and Alternative – suggest an alternative way that we can help them. In this way, they will be thankful for our thoughtfulness.
10. Decline with a Solution – although we may not be able to help a person when he/she asks us for help, we can offer him a solution.
11. Decline Helpfully – eventhough we may not be able to help him in this instance, we may be able to help him in some other way. This shows wisdom and compassion on our part.

——
* Arrogant

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Now I’m going back to sleep… went home almost 1am in the morning with bruised hands and cramped legs.