Repentance ceremony on September 14th, year of the Cat

On Oct. 28th, 2023 (Sep. 14th, LC), good men and believing women inside and outside HCMC returned to Hoang Phap pagoda to attend the periodical penitential ceremony.

Before the rite, Junior Thich Tam Hoan, monks of the pagoda gave a dharma talk named: Gradually let go, or abandon the practice.

The monk lectured on sutra number 5, chapter A log floating on a river, belonging to the Samyutta Nikaya.

The river flows towards the sea, its current leads the sea, falls towards the ocean. If a log drifts along the stream, it does not hit this riverside, or the other one, does not sink in its middle, does not float aground on an isle, is not picked up by humans, or gods; is not caught by a vortex, does not rot inside; thus, the log will float out the sea.

Likewise, a cultivator practice in Buddhism as following:

- Do not crash into this riverside (not entangled with six senses);

- Don't crash into the other riverside (don't get stuck on six objects);

- Do not sink in its middle (not happy in greed); 

- Do not float aground on the isle (don't be arrogant);

- Not being picked up by humans (not connecting too much with lay people, such sharing joy and happiness when they are happy, suffering when they are sad, being tied up in their arising tasks);

- Not being caught by Gods (people who live in a virtuous life with the wish to be born into the God realm: "Hopefully with this precepts, asceticism, and virtue, I will become a species of Gods, called being picked up by Gods";

- Not caught in the whirlpool (not caught in the five desires);

- Not rotten inside (receiving wrong precepts, following evils, impure, questionable behavior, cover-up actions, not being a monk but showing the appearance of a monk, not having virtue but showing the appearance of virtue; inner corruption, full of lust, etc, called its internal rotten.

As a result, practitioners will head towards Nirvana, lead to Nirvana, enter Nirvana.

Finally, he reminds Buddhist practitioners to try diligently to practice, eliminating all external obstacles that influence the path of practice. Dedicate yourself to studying, aiming to benefit others, encourage everyone to know Buddha Dharma, and be worthy of being a true Buddhist.

After the Dharma talk, the mass entered the penitential ritual as usual.

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