One-Day Practice

Good men and believing women everywhere gathered at Hoang Phap pagoda to attend One-day Practice on April 14th, 2024 (March 6th, LC).

After having breakfast, all Buddhists came to the lecture halls of Dharma Wheel Building to begin reciting the Buddha name, walking meditation and chanting precepts.

After the ritual, all practitioners listened to a Dharma talk named The boat come to the enlightenment, preached by Ven Nun Thich Nu Nhu Lan, Head of the Director Board of Cao Lanh district’s VietNam Buddhist Sangha.

In the Anguttara Sutra, volume 2, chapter Four Dharma, titled Fear:

The Buddha taught four-type fear of waves, crocodiles, whirlpools, and fierce fish for those who steer its destiny boat to escape the cycle of birth-death and reach enlightenment.

1. Fear of waves: Buddha pointed an example of indignation and anger before an unpleasant situation. Worldly life is inherently impermanent and temporary, the body of four elements is suffering, and empty, five aggregates are selfless. Let's use the wisdom of the Dharma to illuminate us so that we are not ignorant, greedy, or attached. Joyfully accept whether favorable or unfavorable conditions come, because we know clearly every thing is the karma we have created.

2. Fear of crocodiles: implies greed for food and drink. Don't be so cruel, we cruelly take the lives of living beings because of pleasure, causing injustice, creating hatred of beings from this life to next life.

3. Fear of the whirlpool: implies the fame and fortune of five sensual pleasures: fame, profit, love, eating, sleeping. We must realize that the sweetness of the five desires is like honey on the blade of a knife, extremely harmful; don't be ignorance in this world to become a slave to fame, profit, love, money, etc.

4. Fear of fierce fish implies the opposite sex. Greed and lust for the opposite sex is an invisible rope that binds us, causing us to lose our belief and sink into the sea of birth and death. We need to live mindfully, practice the contemplation method of impurity to see the impurity of the body and not become prey for wicked fish.

As disciples of Buddhism, we should be clearly aware, practice Buddha teachings, and carefully steer the boat of our life to escape the sea  of birth - death suffering.

After reciting the Buddha name in the afternoon, Buddhists practiced sitting meditation quietly.

Before leaving the temple, Buddhists received book gifts.

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