Tuesday, 04/21/2026
The Last Day of Huong Phap Branch 's Teenage Retreat, Cu Chi
Update: 12/06/2022
Before the love and grace of parents is wide and high, has each child really fulfilled its duty to the parents? By this retreat, he hopes the children will understand the gratitude of parents and cherish their time with parents.
The children knelt together, turned their minds to their parents, sincerely repented of their mistakes from actions and words. He reminds them, life is impermanent, so all should quit their ego (disputing or stubbornness, ...) but obey their parents, study hard, because the filial children are always successful in life.
In the afternoon, little learners listen to skills with Teacher Nguyen Thanh Nhan, Senior Advisor of ATY Education System with the topic "Gratitude for Life."
Being human in the world is a great luck, we should have a mind of gratitude; also, thanks to many causes and conditions, we are able to survive in this life, so we have to be indebted to them all. Thus, let's do something useful for people every day when we still live in life. We should appreciate and be grateful for what we are using from the land, water, air, trees; also, let's sow good seeds in our hearts, remove the negative ones to live a valuable life for self, family as well as society.
In front of the main hall in the evening, the ceremony of "Lighting the Gratitude Candle" officially took place with the witness of the Monks of Hoang Phap Pagoda, parents and all the retreat.
After offering incense to the Buddha, Junior Thich Tam Vuong read “The Meaning of Gratitude Ceremony”. The participants had a minute of silence to remember the victims of the Covid-19 pandemic and little learners watched short clips of parents' grace. On behalf of the retreat’s participants, Thanh Mai expressed feelings about losing her relatives.
In the sacred emotion, young learners offered tea in gratitude to the Sangha and offered milk to their parents. They offer garlands, wipe parent faces, wipe hands and massage shoulders for parents which helps to feel callousness of hands, hardships and pains of taking care of them.
On behalf of the monks to witness before the end of the ceremony, Junior Thich Tam Thuc, had some encouragement, advising learners when they return home to be good children, good students, and good citizens in the future. By the image of Venerable Rahula, the monk hopes young participants always carefully consider their actions and words, because it will form a person's personality. Gratitude is a practical action, not to talk; because of an unfilial person, lacking in morality, this one cannot be a grateful person.
The ceremony is the final moment to close Huong Phap Branch 's Teenage Retreat in 2022.
Some images recorded:
