Dharma Drum Youth Singapore

Realisation - One Day Organic Tour

  In the early morning, 38 participants gathered outside Outram Park MRT Station, awaiting to

set off at 8am sharp. The participants who had arrived first waited patiently in the coach while the

volunteers took attendance and gave out administrative forms. While everyone was enjoying the

organic bun breakfast provided, our tour guide, Qi Yao, told us, “Actually, there are currently no

farms in Singapore that are 100% organic.” Nobody appeared surprised by that, perhaps because

everyone recognized the fact that Singapore was a concrete jungle. “To be healthy, one must first

learn not to be too attached.” He suggested that we bring with us a sense of anticipation to go

explore how Singaporean farmers try their best to produce organic food on lands that have already

been contaminated and in the face of various limited conditions. The first stop was “Oh Chin Huat

Herbal Farm”. The owner used hydroponics to produce crops on a large scale. An experienced

young man working there brought us to a small garden and introduced to us the various types of

herbs and spices, their characteristics, specific uses and effects. Besides getting to touch, smell

and taste the herbs and spices, everyone also got to see for themselves what some of the plants

that were familiar to them looked like. The activity that received the utmost attention was the quiz

that came with prizes in the form of potted herbs, spices and ornamental plants, given out to

participants who had provided the correct answers. Before leaving, everyone also received two

packets of hydroponics vegetables as a gift. Next, after passing the luscious forested area of a

reservoir, we arrived at “Green Circle Eco Farm”. The owner, Weng Li Zhu, started by giving

everyone a talk on the crisis of mankind brought about by the extensive use of pesticides and

chemicals after the Second World War. Then, under the scorching sun, she and her husband

took us through a tour of their farmland, separately explaining to us in detail in Mandarin and

English, “The method of cultivation by nature”. The wisdom and selflessness of the organic

farmers left us with a sense of admiration for them.

On the way to lunch, Qi Yao shared with us some tips on vegetarianism. He also explained

 the various classifications of food, ranging from high-energy organic meals to toxic, acidic

food that caused illnesses, like fast food and meat. Qi Yao encouraged us to support organic

and vegetarian food for the sake of our health and the future. When the demand for

meat continually increased, more land would be used to rear animals and more subsidies

would go towards reducing the price of meat. As a result in the future, the quantity of

healthy organic and vegetarian food produced would drop and they would become more expensive.

Very soon, we arrived at an organic restaurant in Tanjong Pagar. Lunch was a unique and

colourful array of organic food that had been carefully prepared to preserve their nutritional

value. The restaurant owner also explained to us how MSG could cause harm to our nerve

system. Excessive MSG intake had resulted in many youngsters having a poor memory,

bad temperament and depression, etc.

After lunch, those of us who liked shopping for health food were treated to a pleasant surprise

 at “Organic Paradise” in Chinatown. There was a wide variety of organic daily necessities,

like soap, shampoo, dish-cleaner, etc that were biodegradable andenvironmentally-friendly!

Besides us, customers of other races and foreigners formed part of the long queue at the

cashier.

Carrying all our “booties”, we then boarded the coach happily and headed to our next destination,

“Yes Natural” in Geylang. The person in charge introduced us to Venerable Ri Chang from Taiwan

and told us how he had in the early days influenced others in the development of health food.

We got to understand the challenges faced by the developers and marketers of organic products

and how they had managed to overcome all kinds of difficulty because of their firm belief in taking

care of the people’s health.

Our 1-Day Organic Tour ended with a sumptuous dinner at LivinGreens Organic Vegan Restaurant.

I had initially thought that lunch was already the best meal in the universe, but who would have expected

dinner to be even better with their exquisite and diverse dishes. The child waiters and waitresses who

were helping to serve the food were like walking advertisements for vegetarianism, with their healthy-

looking faces and bright, intelligent eyes.

Hopefully, after this tour and hearing about the concept of holistic healthcare from Qi Yao, more

people can start paying more attention to the health of their body, mind and spirit. If nobody responds

to the warning bell sounded, can we in the near future still find plants as they appear in nature here?

Can we still get to savour food that is pure and clean and maintain our original good health?