One fine random Saturday morning (as things usually are with my family), we decided to take a day trip down to Dengkil for dana (food offering) to the Buddhist monks and Yogis at the BMSM Pa-Auk Dhammavijaya Meditation Center, Dengkil, Selangor.
It had been more than 2 years since our last visit here - as you might well know (unless you were away on another planet), due to the global COVID-19 pandemic. Usually, as Dengkil was nearly 2 hours from our home by car (subject to traffic conditions), we usually only came here on special occasions, such as the Kathina festival which marks the end of the 3 month Vassa (monsoon season retreat), usually around October or November each year.
The Dhammavijaya Meditation Center is located a short distance off the main road, along the Langat River. There is a large area beside the meditation center allocated for parking, though during festivals it can get filled up quite fast. There is some construction going on further up the river, as there are many trucks and lorries driving past - need to take care when parking your car.
I'm happy to note that the place was well taken care of. The devotees and volunteers made sure that everything was clean and maintained. Even during "off-peak" times like these, there were as usual some yogis on site in the middle of their meditation retreat. The caretakers were mostly local volunteers and foreigners from Myanmar, who ensured at least the there was enough to eat every day. Typically, there were only two meals per day - one early in the morning and one at ~11am. No food after lunch, though no prohibition on drinks. In general, the place is always open to public who wish to bring food offerings. Though there is no actual prohibition of meat, food is usually vegetarian and fruits with seesd removed.
After the chanting and short dhamma talk, devotees would line up to take the food prepared to the monks. Don't have to worry about offering what you brought or to offer to a specific monk - it's a gesture of offering from the common pool to the Sangha (Buddhist practitioners, i.e., monks).
Once the food offering is done, and after a quick blessing, the devotees and yogis adjourn to the common mess hall for a meal - pot-luck style. So, a good practice is to bring at least enough food in proportion to the people in your group (a little extra never hurts), so everything balances out in the end.
It's good to be back here after so long, though there are many new faces - even the monks rotate from time to time. Well, in a few months, it will be time for the Kathina festival once again, so my family and I will surely be back for our (almost) annual dana.
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