The Haicheng Great Compassion Monastery is located in a mountain valley around Caojiapu Village, a remote village in Maoqi Town, Haicheng City, Liaoning Province. Three sides of the monastery are surrounded by mountains; and the other side,the entrance of the monastery, is opposite to an open reservoir. With about a kilometer away from the local residents in Caojiapu Village, the Haicheng Great Compassion Monstrery is a peaceful and secluded place for practicing Buddhism. Since the Great Compassion Monstrery was moved to the current location in 1993, the major parts of the temple have been completed. The buildings that have already been finished include the main hall, the Medicine Buddha Palace, the Great Compassion Palace, the Tipitaka attic,the Lecture,the Meditation Hall.the Buddha recitation hall,the Reception Hall, and the Sangha's dwellings¹. The entrance building,the Maitreya Palace,and the Shurangama Platform are currently under construction.All the buildings feature a tone of grey color; and there are no colorful paintings in most parts except that some girders and eaves are slightly coated with red sandalwood and/or yellow color. The whole temple looks simple, solemn and dignified.

The abbot, Venerable Master Miaoxiang, started to practice traveling on foot in 1995 on a trip from Odaesan Mountain² back to Liaoning Province. On that whole trip, the master traveled only on foot, ate the food begged with a bowl from the local residents, and did not touch any money. When the master was back to Liaoning, he practiced a Buddhism Retreat for three years in a shabby cottage in a remote area around Benxi City. In 2000, in response to an invitation from the local government of Haicheng City and some local disciples, the Venerable Master Miaoxiang led his Sangha to the Haicheng Great Compassion Monastery. He has been acting as the abbot of the monastery since then.

Currently, more than 20 Bhikshus and Sramaneras practice Buddhism in the Haicheng Great Compassion Monastery; and there are also more than 40 laymen in the temple who decided to leave the home-life or protect the Dharma in the monatery. The Haicheng Great Compassion has a branch of the nunnery, Daoyuan Nunnery, which is located in another remote village around the Haicheng City. About 36 nuns and more than 30 laywomen practice Buddhism in the Daoyuan Nunnery.

The Sangha-arama³ of the Haicheng Great Compassion Monastery make the following fundamental disciplines that monks living there have to obey:

1. upholding the precept of being away from the money;

2. eating only once a day and before the noon;

3. practicing “Two Moment Dhuta⁴ ” by traveling on foot once a year;

4. practicing begging for the food by using a bowl;

5. rejecting the gift or money from a visiting monk;

6. all the offerings for an individual monk being owned by the whole monastery;

7. three robes and a bowl always being with the body (also including 18 possessions of a monk); and

8. not asking for something from outside.

Remarks: The lay people who wish to practice Buddhism in the Compassion Monastery should follow the commands from the monks and work hard.

The monks sleep four hours every day: getting up at 2:00AM and going to bed at 10:00PM. Five Schools ⁵ are spreaded equally in this monastery, without the priority to any specific Schools.Based on keeping the Buddhism precepts, the monks practice Buddhism jointly. The Meditation Hall was founded in the spring of 2001, hanging the plaque of the Weiyang Sect.The routine practices include Sitting Meditation for incense⁶ five times,reciting the Shurangama Mantra ten times, studying the precepts,doing labor work and so on.There is also a Buddha recitation hall in the temple. The Sutra collections in the Tipitaka attic include the Longzang Tipitaka,the Dazheng Tipitaka, the Chinese Tipitaka,the Puhui Tipitaka, the 卍 continuation Tipitaka, and many others.The library also has a collection of thousands of the Buddhism Sutras and books.

According to vinaya, the monks recite precepts once every half a month. From April 8th to July 15th in Chinese lunar calendar,the Sangha practices the Summer Retreat⁷.Generally,the Sangha conducts seven-day-practice three times during the Summer Retreat. In each seven-day-practice, the monks recite the precepts or meditate without any sleep: the first seven-day-practice is for reciting Bhikshu Precepts;the second practice is for the Brahma's Net Bodhisattva Vows; and the last one, which is scheduled just before the ending time of the Summer Retreat, is for reciting Buddha's name.

Every year,after August 8th in Chinese lunar calendar,the monks in the Haicheng Great Compassion Monastery start to practice the Two Moment Dhuta according to the Buddhism disciplines.They travel on foot, beg for the food with bowls on the trip,and sleep in the wild lands. The Dhuta practice normally lasts about fifteen days to a month. The whole trip is approximately 300 kilometers. Over the recent years,the monks in the Haicheng Great Compassion Monastery have crossed the most areas of Liaoning Province,such as Shenyang City,Liaoyang City, Anshan City, Jinzhou City, Hulutao City, and the partial areas of Hebei Province, such as Qinhuangdao City and Shanhai Pass City.The practice of travelling on foot and begging has lasted 12 years,from 1995 to 2006.

The Haicheng Great Compassion Monastery holds only two Buddhism ceremonies each year: one is on April 8th in Chinese lunar calendar for the Buddha’s birthday celebration; and the other one is on July 15 for the Ullambana Festival. In every ceremony, about 3000-5000 followers come to the Haicheng Great Compassion Monastery from various places. The monks also transmit Three Refuges and/or Five Precepts to disciples at the two ceremonies, which is free of charge. The monks spend the most time on practicing Buddhism rather than organizing a ceremony. Hence, no other ceremonies are hold. The exception is for the ceremony to liberate the animals that were going to be eaten and then bought and sent to the temple by some kind people. This ceremony can be hold anytime, which shows that the great kindness and compassion of the Buddhism.

Remarks:

1.Sangha's dwellings:the monk's apartment.

2.Odaesan Mountain:it is also called Wutai mountain and Qingliang Mountain, which is located in the northeast of Shanxi province and is very well-known in Buddhists. Odaesan Mountain has five flat peaks, from which its name is derived. It has been traditionally regarded as one of the most sacred Buddhist sites in China. Numerous monasteries were established there(over two hundred once). Odaesan Mountain is a pilgrimage site for the monks in Korea, Japan, Vietnam, as well as China. The principal temple was built around 471-500. In Buddhism, Odaesan Mountain was believed to be an abode of Manjusri Bodhisattva.

3.The Sangha-arama: an abbreviation of sengqie lanma. Literally, it means a garden for a group of monks. It also means a place with pure and quiet atmosphere where one can conduct meditation; a Buddhist convent or monastery; and a temple.

4.Two Moment Dhuta: it is mentioned in Sutra of Brahma's Net that monks should make Dhuta practice in both Spring and Autumn. Literally, Dhuta means getting rid of the affliction. The ascetic practice of Dhuta can eliminate one's attachment to the food, the clothing and the shelter. There are twelve kinds of Dhuta practices.

5. Five Schools include Zen School, Pure Land School,Secret School, the Vinaya School, and Lecture School.

6. Sitting Meditation for one incense:each meditation is over when a burning incense is finished.

7.The Summer Retreat:it is also called Vassa, Rains Retreat, peaceful dwelling, and summer meditation retreat. The Summer Retreat is originally scheduled in the rain season, from the 16th of the fourth month to the 15th of the 7th month. During the Summer Retreat, the monks stay in the monasteries and concentrate on the Buddhism study and practice. These dates vary in later sects. However, the goal of the Summer Retreat is still to have a period of time so that the monks can remain in the monastery and focus on the Buddhism study and practice.