Just 30 minutes away from Peekskill, on 225 acres of land, sits the Chuang Yen Monastery. The Monastery, located at at 2020 Route 301 in Carmel was founded in 1964. Since its inception, the Chuang Yen Monastery has become a magical place for people of all faiths to go where one can be at peace and achieve Zen. On the vast grounds, one can enjoy the sounds of silence as they walk around Seven Jewels Lake where the Koi fish come up to greet you or visit the Great Buddha Hall where the largest Buddha in the Western Hemisphere sits and the Dalai Lama the 14th presided over the groundbreaking ceremony right after he won the Nobel Peace Prize. One can also visit the Woo Ju Memorial Library to learn and research information and services pertaining to Buddhism in a welcoming and quiet space.
On Sunday, July 28 from 2:00 – 3:30 pm, join the Woo Ju Memorial Library at the Chuang Yen Monastery for Zen and the Music of John Cage: A Talk by James Pritchett. At this free event, James Pritchett will bring to the audience an insightful discussion of the intersection of Zen Buddhism and the avant-garde compositions of John Cage.
James Pritchett was one of the first musicologists, a scholar of music who considers the relationship between music and various subjects including geography, aesthetics, politics, race theory, gender theory, and neuropsychology, to deal with John Cage’s music on its own terms—as music. John Cage was an American composer and music theorist. Cage was a pioneer of indeterminacy in music, electroacoustic music, and non-standard use of musical instruments. Critics have lauded Cage as one of the most influential composers of the 20th century. Cage’s best known work is the 1952 composition 4′33″, a piece performed in the absence of deliberate sound; musicians who present the work do nothing but be present for the duration specified by the title. The content of the composition is intended to be the sounds of the environment heard by the audience during performance.
Pritchett is the author of The music of John Cage, the only critical study of all Cage’s work. His intense research on Cage, presented the first clear documentation of Cage’s operations of the 1950s, and provided a model for the analytical study of this work. Pritchett’s research presents a complete and coherent picture of Cage the composer, provides a historical account of Cage’s musical concerns and changing style, what it was Cage did and why and how he did it. You can read more of his writing on music at The piano in my life.
“Many people associate Buddhism with the silence of meditation. Of course, that’s an essential part of Buddhism. But Buddhism also has a rich musical tradition that many people aren’t aware of,” states Steve Seaward, Librarian at the Woo Ju Memorial Library. “Buddhism has exerted an important influence on many musicians, who were either practicing Buddhists or were inspired by Buddhist principles. Aside from John Cage, examples include Philip Glass, Tan Dun, Herbie Hancock, Wayne Shorter, Leonard Cohen, and many others. We’re focusing on Cage because he integrated Zen into his work in a way no one else had before, and by doing so he revolutionized music.”
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Great Buddha Hall at the Chuang Yen Monastery. Photo Credit: Dave Mueller
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Great Buddha Hall at the Chuang Yen Monastery. Photo Credit: Dave Mueller
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The largest indoor statue of a Buddha in the Western Hemisphere inside of Great Buddha Hall at the Chuang Yen Monastery. Photo Credit: Dave Mueller
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Seven Jewels Lake at the Chuang Yen Monastery. Photo Credit: Dave Mueller
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The Chuang Yen Monastery, officially known as the Buddhist Association of the United States’ Chuang Yen Monastery, is located in Carmel, NY. It is a Buddhist temple situated on 225 acres of land, founded in 1964 by a group of devout Chinese Buddhists living in the greater New York area. Although rooted in the Chinese Buddhist tradition, BAUS does not represent any particular school of Buddhism, nor is it affiliated with any other Buddhist organization. The temple is home to the largest indoor statue of a Buddha in the Western Hemisphere and the Woo Ju Memorial Library. is opren on Sundays from 10:00 am to 3:00 pm.
Since the inception of Chuang Yen Monastery, visitors have been a melting pot of religious faiths. Weekends, especially Sundays, Buddhists and non-Buddhists alike visit Chuang Yen Monastery for programs including sitting and walking meditation, lectures, book discussion programs, and vegetarian lunch at the Dining Hall. Every year, an Interfaith Prayer service has been held on New Year’s Day to promote mutual understanding among all the religions. The Chuang Yen Monastery is open from 10:00 am to 3:00 pm daily.
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