In the height of August, Kongshan Monastery's forests stood lush and full, cooled by a gentle breeze. Inside the wooden Buddha Hall, the sound of chanting filled the air as more than two hundred participants sat upright with palms joined. Outside, white smoke from the smoke offering drifted slowly through the pines and morning light. Heart by heart, a gathering of sincere devotion quietly took shape in this mountain sanctuary. On August 16, 2026, Kongshan Monastery held its i

In early July of this year, the New York region was struck by severe storms. Kongshan Monastery's existing emergency generator failed upon activation, with both the transfer switch board and the main water tank damaged beyond repair. Due to the age of the equipment, replacement parts are no longer in production; after assessment by professional contractors, a full replacement is required. Kongshan Monastery is located in Upstate New York, where sudden power outages caused by

On July 5, 2026, 120 teachers from the Bliss and Wisdom Education Park in Yunlin, Taiwan, visited Kongshan Monastery in New York. For many of them, this was more than an overseas trip — it was a reunion long anticipated. The teachers had flown across the Pacific during their summer break, completed a mindfulness retreat at a meditation estate, and then made their way to this monastery in the mountain forests of the Hudson Valley to learn firsthand about Kongshan's founding st

On June 28, 2026, Kongshan Monastery held its monthly Open Day, welcoming 15 participants. Many were new friends who had first encountered the Dharma at this year's Buddha's Birthday Bathing Ceremony; others had just begun attending Buddhist study classes and hoped that this visit would give them a deeper sense of the monastery, the monastic community, and what a life of Buddhist practice actually looks like. The event began with Venerable Yuándào leading an introduction to t

On July 6, 2026, 52 educators from Taiwan visited Kongshan Monastery in New York. The group included elementary, middle, and high school teachers who had come to the United States during the summer break for a study tour. After completing a three-day mindfulness program, they made their way to this monastery nestled in the mountain forests of the Hudson Valley. The day of the visit came just after heavy rain. Two days of downpours had left parts of Kongshan Monastery still wi

On June 26, 2026, approximately 60 members of the Retired Lay Association — affiliated with the Bliss and Wisdom Foundation in Taiwan — came to visit Kongshan Monastery. In the midst of a full and busy Dharma-seeking journey through North America, this stop was more than a visit to a monastery. It felt like a gathering to return to one's original heart of learning and to gather and renew one's aspirations. Kongshan Monastery is nestled in the tranquil woodland of the Hudson V