Repentant Ceremony August 30th, 2019

On Sep. 28th, 2019 (August 30th, LC), devout Buddhist from in and outside HCMC came to Hoang Phap to join the monthly repentant ceremony.

Before taking the ceremony, people all listen to a Dharma Talk shared by Ven. Thich Tam Sy, a Hoang Phap monk on the title of “Sila - Its Foundation and Final Aim”

He whose conduct’s very bad

like oak-tree choked with ivy,

so he does towards himself

what enemies would wish.

As the creeper (maluva) strangle the sal tree, so also, a really immoral person (overwhelmed by Craving) does to himself just what his enemy wishes him to do.

For a Buddhist practitioner, Sila plays a very important role no matter what kind of practice you’ve taken. In Visuddhimagga, Sila is the foundation and the integration of body speech and mind. Sila-well keeping helps develop Samadhi and Prajna. But for Sila developing we need Hiri & Ottappa ( Hiri: shame to do wrong, and Ottappa: fear to do wrong) to fulfill our noble Sila. When we are free from the rule-breaking, peace and happiness will be there, it’s called Sila liberation. Once our mind is pure, Klesa has no place to exist we are no more in the controlling of the Five Hindrances - sensual desire, ill-will, sloth and torpor, agitation and worry, and skeptical Doubt (in Pali they are Kamacchanda, Vyapada, Thina-middha, Uddhacca-kukkucca, Vicikiccha).

By this, he also says some words on the Pureland Practice. Most people use this kind of practice to clear out their mind. But in deeply practice we also can remove the five hindrances and gain wisdom, can see the arising and ceasing of feeling, body, mind, and phenomena, finally get full liberation.

Finished the talk, the ceremony started.

Photos recorded: