Jul 8, 2025. Departure from Korea, Arrival in Singapore
Hello. Today is the day Sunim departs from Korea and travels to Singapore to begin his Asian lecture tour.
After completing his morning practice and meditation, Sunim headed to the Jungto Social and Cultural Center. He worked at the Peace Foundation office and then had a meeting with the JTS Secretary-General starting at 10:30 AM.
A seminar is planned for October to commemorate JTS’s 32nd anniversary, and they discussed what themes and content would be appropriate for the event. After the JTS Secretary-General presented a draft proposal, he sought Sunim’s advice.
“We’re planning to hold a seminar for JTS’s 32nd anniversary. We’ve prepared presentations in four parts: India, Philippines, North Korea, and emergency relief. Would this be appropriate?”
Sunim talked about the projects JTS has undertaken over the years.
“Yes, JTS projects can be broadly divided into four categories as you mentioned. The core of JTS’s work consists of three main areas: operating Sujata Academy in untouchable villages in India for 30 years to eradicate illiteracy, building over 70 schools in the Mindanao region of the Philippines over 20 years to bring peace, and consistently providing humanitarian aid to North Korea. The rest are emergency relief activities, among which the major achievements include: first, Syrian earthquake relief efforts; second, Pakistan flood relief efforts; third, Philippines Marabot relief efforts for Typhoon Haiyan recovery; and fourth, Rohingya refugee camp relief efforts. Additionally, we actually dispatched personnel to conduct relief activities in Afghanistan, Indonesia, Sri Lanka, Myanmar, Cambodia, and Laos, so these can be considered places where we achieved some results rather than one-time efforts. We also conducted emergency relief activities in Nepal, Haiti, and Mongolia, provided relief during the Fukushima nuclear accident in Japan, and supported the Chakma people in Bangladesh.”
“The theme of this seminar is ‘Vision and Prospects of Education in International Relief Work.’ So we’re planning to focus on education and invite organizations that are proposing alternatives for discussion.”
“Yes, among JTS’s projects, those that contain a vision for the future are the education projects and the sustainable development project currently underway in Bhutan. How about introducing the village development activities in Bhutan?”
“Since the Bhutan sustainable development project is currently ongoing, it would be good to cover it in the next seminar.”
After finishing the meeting, Sunim had lunch and packed his luggage for his overseas trip.
Starting tomorrow, the Asian lecture tour begins with Singapore. He departed from Jungto Center at 12:30 PM and headed to Incheon Airport.
After arriving at Incheon Airport, checking in luggage, and completing departure procedures, he headed to the boarding gate. He worked at the gate until after 3 PM when he boarded the plane.
The plane departed from Incheon Airport at 3:40 PM and arrived at Singapore Airport at 9 PM local time after a 6-hour and 20-minute flight.
After completing immigration procedures and exiting the airport, members of Singapore Jungto Society and Asian branch members from the Philippines and Shanghai warmly welcomed Sunim.
“How have you been?”
“Good.”
“I was planning to come tomorrow morning so you wouldn’t have to come out at night like this. But if I came tomorrow, I wouldn’t be able to broadcast the Weekly Dharma Assembly, so I came today.”
“Welcome! Sunim, was the flight comfortable? You couldn’t have dinner since they didn’t serve in-flight meals, right?”
“The seat spacing was wider than expected and quite comfortable. I packed dinner for the trip, so I had it in the flight.” 
After exchanging greetings, they immediately got in the car and headed to the accommodation. Arriving at the accommodation at 10:30 PM, Sunim chatted briefly with the members before concluding the day’s activities.
Tomorrow morning, Sunim will broadcast the Weekly Dharma Assembly online, have lunch and conversation with Singapore Jungto Society members, and in the evening, the first lecture of Venerable Pomnyun Sunim’s Asian tour will be held on the 2nd floor of the YWCA Fort Canning Centre in downtown Singapore.
Since there was no Dharma talk today, I’ll conclude by sharing a conversation between a questioner and Sunim from the online Friday Dharma Q&A held on the 4th.
How Can I Heal the Wounds from My Mother?
Your desire to see your mother can also be seen as stemming from an inner deficiency or craving. If you think of paying an appropriate cost to fulfill that desire, you won’t say ‘my mother is taking my money.’ Your father doesn’t ask for money, but your mother does, so it feels more burdensome. But if you keep wanting to see your mother and feel she’s someone you miss, you have to bear that cost. I’m not talking about ‘fulfilling your duty as a child’ from a moral perspective. It’s a matter of making a practical judgment and choice.
Your mother attending the wedding itself isn’t really an important issue. Even if you cut ties with your mother, she can still attend the wedding, right? Unless you’re worried she might take the congratulatory money too, just attending the wedding isn’t a problem. You’re emotionally fighting with your mother right now. But you don’t need to fight anymore. If you want to see your mother, visit her and pay the appropriate price. Just like you pay golf fees if you want to play golf, if you want to fulfill a desire, you have to pay the appropriate cost. If you think ‘My mother is someone who fulfills my deficiency,’ it becomes simple. Of course, there are times when you go somewhere to have fun but have to give up and come back because it’s too expensive. Even if you really like a piece of clothing, you can’t buy it if it costs 10 million won. But if it costs 100,000 won, even though it’s a bit difficult given your current circumstances, you can still save on other things and buy it. Similarly, you can pay your mother according to your means. Don’t think you’re doing it for your mother, but think of it as paying for the cost of your craving for your mother. So you can give her some pocket money whenever you visit.
In the future, when you get married and live independently, the various financial demands she makes when you live together will likely decrease. Why are you so anxious about money you’ve earned yourself? You can decide whether to give it or not. No matter how much your mother asks for money, you can just say ‘I’m sorry’ and not give it. You can give some within your means from a human relationship perspective. You can make the decision without blaming others. You can completely cut ties with your mother, or you can keep the relationship open. You can keep the relationship open without giving money, or you can give money appropriately as payment. Just like hiring someone at work and paying them a salary in return, think of it as the cost of fulfilling the ‘mother craving’ in your heart.”
“Yes, I’ve been thinking I was the only one being treated unfairly all this time. But listening to you, Sunim, I realized I can just think of it comfortably, like buying a meal for a friend when I miss my mother. It’s become so clear that I’ve even forgotten why I asked the question. My heart feels much lighter too.”
“Usually when I say things like this, some people criticize me for talking about the relationship between parents and children like a business transaction. But I’m glad your problem has been resolved and become clear. (Laughter)
Everyone must always pay a price when doing something according to their karma and conditions. You can’t keep expecting things for free. While we buy food with money and buy clothes with money, we tend not to pay the price for human relationships. We keep expecting things for free in the name of family or parents. You’re already an adult, and your mother is also an adult. If you have the perspective of ‘living while appropriately paying each other in adult relationships,’ there’s actually no reason for conflict to arise.”
“Thank you. I understand well.”
