Introduction
Associated with Buddhist Association of the United States (BAUS, founded in 1964), Chuang Yen Monastery is located on Route 301 in Carmel, NY. On both official sites, the two organizations share the same address.
The name of the monastery, Chuang Yen means “Majestically Adorned” and reflects the size of the monastery’s largest statue—Buddha Vairocana. In fact, the Buddha Varirocana statue housed at Chuang Yen Monastery is the largest of its kind in the Western hemisphere. The statue at the Great Buddha Hall measures 37-feet in height and is surrounded by 10,000 smaller buddhas all sitting in a lotus terrace semi-circle.
The “Adornment” refers to the adornment of the Buddha’s teachings. Traditionally, Buddhist Monasteries not only served as a focus for religious services and festivals, they were also community centers of learning and activities – both religious and secular. Carrying on that tradition, Chuang Yen Monastery extends an invitation to the public to view the religious services and festivals held here, and be a place to cultivate awareness to develop wisdom.
Founding story
Shen Jiazhen (Dr. C.T Shen, or Chia-Cheng Shen) couple[and his wife?] initiated the foundation of this Buddhist community. Based on an interview, Shen Jiazhen encountered a huge Buddha in a dream. He bowed to the Buddha and asked the Buddha whether he should build a temple. The Buddha in his dream responded that “I have already reserved an apartment here.” The couple subsequently donated a piece of land they owned to BAUS, on which Chuang Yen Monastery now stands. 10 years later, in 1985, construction of the monastery’s Kuan Yin Hall was completed. Chinese-American architect I.M. Pei designed the hall after the great hall style of the Tang Dynasty.
In November 1975, the Buddhist Association of the United States (BAUS) leased 125 acres of land in Putnam County from Dr. C.T. Shen (one of the co-founders of BAUS and late Vice President of BAUS) for the development of Chuang Yen Monastery. According to the temple, the lease was for ninety-nine years with an annual payment of one dollar. As suggested by the local government, Dr. Shen donated the land to BAUS in 1989. The ground-breaking ceremony for the monastery was held on May 23, 1981.
The Great Buddha Hall was completed and unveiled on May 24, 1997. Elder WuMing, Elder JingXin and the Dalai Lama attended the ceremony along with approximately 7000 believers from around the glove.
Sponsor and Founder
Shen Jiazhen (1913.12.15—2007.11.27) was a Chinese-American industrialist. He was born in Hangzhou, China. He retired as the chairman and CEO of American Steamship Company.
In 1960, Shen Jiazhen attended a lecture by Buddhist scholar Zhang Chengji (1920.8.28—1988.5.24) in New York City. Inspired by his old acquaintance, Shen Jiazhen dedicated himself to the spreading of Buddhism in America. 
In 1964, Shen met Elder Ledu in San Francesco. Together they founded the Buddhism Association of the United Sates, with Elder Ledu served as its first president. 
Elder Ledu 1923—2011.9.2) studied under Master Tanxu, a Chinese Buddhist monk and a 44th generation lineage holder of the Tiantai school. Elder Ledu is regarded in the Chinese world as the third figure bringing Chinese Buddhism to the United States in the 20th century, with the first and second respectively being Miao Feng and Hsuan Hua. The statement above is also mentioned in BAUS’ Chinese language site.
Organizational Affiliation
Chuang Yen Monastery is affiliated with the Buddhist Association of the United States. BAUS lists the Temple of Enlightenment in the Bronx together with Chuang Yen Monastery under their “Visit Us” tab. Bhikkhu Bodhi, president at BAUS on his LinkedIn site states “BAUS (founded 1964) comprises two major institutions, Chuang Yen Monastery in Carmel, NY, and the Temple of Enlightenment (Da Jue Si) in the Bronx, NYC. The abbot of both is Ven. Sak Dhammadipa.”
On the site stands Woo Ju Memorial Library, founded with a $400,000 donation from Shen Jiazhen’s wife upon her death in 1988. The library contains 100,000 books in 24 language and 200,000 microcopies of Buddhist scriptures. The library spearheaded scripture digitalization.
Ethnic composition and relationship with other communities
Based on a phone call interview with someone active in the Chinese community in Chinatown, New York City, Chuang Yen Monastery is also a tourist attraction for both Buddhists and travelers. It is among a list of destinations that the Chinatown Buddhist community visits/tours or attends circuit religious functions (attending lectures, meditation activities or religious ceremonies). Temples include Mahayana Temple Buddhist Association, Eastern States Buddhist Temple, True Buddha Temple-Chinatown, Grace Gratitude Buddhist Temple, Cheng Chio Buddhist temple.
Ethnic composition is predominantly Asian, but Chuang Yen Monastery welcomes and accepts visitors from all over the world.
Practice
The introductory video of BAUS/Chuang Yen Monastery does not specifically mention its religious affiliation. The author sees a heavy presence of meditation among the listed activities.
The monastery has an emphasis on education. Activities listed include meditation class ranging 7 to 21 days, Pali language, Vipassana meditation, group scripture study on Aṅguttara Nikāya, Amitabha’s Pure Land Retreat, Kuan Yin Retreat, Kan Huatou Meditation Retreat, and so on. Practices and activities offered here embrace practice from different groups of Buddhism.
Teaching
The teaching embraced by the organization focuses on Dharma Discourse. The following are listed: The Development of Wisdom; Constant, Bliss, Inner Self and Pure; The Noble Eightfold Path-the Way to the End of Suffering; Clear Comprehension Dharma Is a Way of Life; Pure Mind and Solemn Realm; Mindfulness: The Practice and Application—A Skill of Mental Training; Aspiring for Peace in the New Year; Sitting at the Buddha’s Feet.
Sources:
https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/new-yorks-chuang-yen-monastery
https://www.baus.org/tc/%E5%8F%83%E8%A8%AA%E7%BE%8E%E4%BD%9B/%E8%8E%8A%E5%9A%B4%E5%AF%BA
https://www.baus.org/en/baus-groups/cym/cym-intro/introducing-chuang-yen-monastery/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BhVvN8mtGNM&feature=emb_logo
https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zhang_Chengji
https://zh.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E6%B2%88%E5%AE%B6%E7%A6%8E
https://baike.baidu.com/item/%E4%B9%90%E6%B8%A1%E6%B3%95%E5%B8%88
http://chamshantemple.info/messages/news/index.php?channelId=2§ionId=188&langCd=CN&itemId=82