Death Anniversary of the founder of the Hoang Phap Pagoda

To show the sincere gratitude and repay a debt of gratitude to the Patriarch who was credited with building and developing the pagoda, in the morning of 7/12/2014 (16/10lunar year of the Horse), the Hoang Phap Temple solemnly held a solemn ceremony to commemorate the 26th anniversary of the death of the late Venerable Master Ngo Chan Tu (1901-1988), the founder of the Hoang Phap Pagoda. A large number of monks and nuns and ten thousands of Buddhists from all over the country had gathered in the temple to attend the ceremony.

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As a matter of routine, on 16/10 lunar calendar\r\nevery year, the lay Buddhists, the monks and nuns from\r\nvarious areas came to the pagoda to offer incense to\r\nthe Patriarch. Thedays before the ceremony, the abbots of the\r\nbranches of the Hoang Phap pagoda paid a visit to the Venerable Abbot of\r\nthe main pagoda and stayed there for several days toattend the\r\nanniversary.
\r\nAt 9 am sharp, there were Prajna drums rolls and Buddhists in two\r\nlines facing each other joined palms together and bowed in respect to\r\nwelcome the honored monks who were coming to the main hall for the ceremony\r\nperformance.
\r\nAfter the introduction, in the solemn and pure atmosphere, the\r\nparticipants paused for a minute of silence to commemorate\r\nthe Venerable Masters who had devoted his\r\nlifetime to propagating Dharma and benefiting sentient beings. Next,\r\nthe Venerable Thich Tam Quan, the abbot of Dien Quang Pagoda (Bac Ninh\r\nProvince) on behalf of his disciples,made biographical statement about the\r\nlate Venerable Master Ngo Chan Tu so that everybody could understand more about\r\nthe life and career of his religion propagation.

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In order to acknowledge the debts that the lay Buddhists owe\r\nthe patriarch, the lay man whose Buddhist name is Tinh Long, the representative\r\nof all the participants, made a speech of his thoughts about the Patriarch. Next, the\r\nVenerable, the Chief of organizers awarded the prizes to 11 children aged 6\r\nto 14 who won the contest on "Learning about the life and career\r\nof the late Master Ngo Chan Tu". They were excellent\r\ncompetitors who passed 3 rounds and achieved best\r\nresults, which is also a little offering to theanniversary.

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At the end of the ceremony, Venerable Thich\r\nChan Tinh on behalf of the monks of the Hoang Phap Pagoda expressed\r\nthanks to the monks and nuns and all the lay Buddhists.Then,\r\nhe expressed his feelings about the patriarchs life as well as recalled\r\nthe memories of his Master in the past.
\r\nHe said Some people are born to bring happiness to others while\r\nsome bring misery and misfortune to others. Venerable\r\nMaster Ngo Chan Tu had made a lifelong sacrifice forthe\r\nsentient beings benefits. He left home and became a monk at a young\r\nage. Since then, he had traveled all parts of the country to\r\npropagate dharma and rescue beings. Duringhis simple and pure life he\r\nhad always been filled with the emotion of peace and joy expressed\r\nthrough his facial expressions.

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In 1968, he established Duc Anh Pagoda. Despite\r\nthe economic hard times, he had provided nourishment to more than 200 orphans and over 100 Buddhist and\r\nfacilitated their cultivation at the pagoda. After 1975, life is extremely hard,\r\nbut he was able to save money for free Dharma books distribution\r\nto people.

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He added that the Venerable Masters life is a good\r\nexample for all the lay people and home-leaving Buddhists to\r\nfollow. In accordance to natural law, death is inevitable for everyone. However, it\r\nis important that we leave something to the human\r\nworld.  A heart of compassion and kindness should\r\nbe the lighthouse which illuminates our life.

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At the anniversary some songs were performed:  "Gratitude\r\nto Master" (Author: Ha Mai Tan) by singer Duy Linh; "Disciple-Master\r\nrelationship" (Author : Huynh Nhat Dong) by singer Quach Been; -\r\n"I Missed My Master" by singer Ngoc Mai and "Lotus\r\nFragrance" (Author: Ha Xuan Hong) by singer Quang Luong .

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At the end of the ceremony, the Buddhists offered\r\nincense in memory to the late Venerable Master. Then everyone had\r\na vegetarian meal in the free religious atmosphere.

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Also, the pagoda offered the participants VCDs\r\nof  "A Gratitude To The Master."
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Here are the recorded images: 
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