Every year Vandana Monastery welcomes Hualien secondary and high school students, who seek the blessing of Buddha before their final exams. The ritual commonly known as Students Face the Hill, always takes place on the first day of the new year at 6 am. This year, after the early morning ritual dedicated to Guanyin, Master Dao Yi addressed the students delivering a speech:

"Learning is one of the principle teachings of Buddha. He encourages us to study and learn in order to obtain an essential quality of human life: an ability to distinguish good from evil. Every person has good habits and bad habits. The way to distinguish one from the other is through knowledge.

Today we gather to pay respects to Bounty Guanyin and ask her to give us strength for the coming year. For exams, truly are a form of battle, they are a struggle for being a righteous human being."

Vandana Monastery possesses a long tradition of cultivating spirituality through knowledge and cultural dialogue. The place itself gives Master Dao Yi’s speech even more profound meaning. We sincerely wish all the participants good luck on their way to knowledge and enlightenment. 阿彌陀佛！