Tuesday, 03/25/2025
Memories about The Pagoda
Update: 29/08/2011
The Buddhists are in a Seven-Day Buddha-Recitation Retreat\r\nat the pagoda now. Especially, in July of the lunar calendar, also known as the\r\nUllambana Festival, the pagoda is always overcrowded with Buddhists in\r\nSeven-Day Buddha-Recitation Retreats. On registration day, people came in\r\ndroves overwhelming the waiting room. Group after group of people took it in\r\nturn to enter the room. No more room is available only on the first day of\r\nregistration, while the retreat was due to two more days later.
Huge numbers of people from all parts of the country such as Bac Giang, Tyien\r\nGiang, Hai Phong, and so on continued to flock together by the pagoda in the\r\nhope of attending the retreat. Some had to make some-day journey to come here\r\nbut couldn't register successfully because of overloading. Therefore, to solve\r\nthe problem, the pagoda had to shoulder more burdens: accepting more newcomers,\r\nopening exhibition area, setting up more temporary shelters for Buddhists.\r\nThen, a great roar of applause broke out; everyone was delighted and moved and\r\nquickly settled up there. In the spirit of being unafraid of hardships, food\r\nand accommodation did not matter to them. They just wished to complete the 7-\r\nday cultivation successfully during which they could be in ceremony robe enjoying\r\nthe dharma lecture, in purification of mind and a carefree life.
It rained continually that afternoon; however, the\r\npeople in brown clothes and conical hats were still engrossed in the work of\r\nbuilding the shelters. More trucks full of food such as fruits, rice, noodles,\r\nmilk ... headed towards the pagoda. They were for the new participants.
The pagoda had no choice but closed the door in the face of these people's\r\naspiration for the retreat shown through their insistence and glint of pity.\r\nEveryone wants to cultivate here. They had their own troubles, and the pagoda\r\nhad its own troubles, too... They might not have had affinity with this\r\nretreat!
It seemed that the days and nights were longer. Around the pagoda precincts,\r\nsilent people were doing the chores. They did whatever they were assigned: some\r\nwere picking vegetables, cutting cucumber, washing the dishes while others were\r\nsweeping the pagoda grounds, re-sewing some buttons on a fellow cultivator's\r\nshirt, feeding the pigeons ... Each of them is a versatile person with a\r\ngenerous heart. The day was longer and their heart was wide open, too.
The nights seemed longer in the pagoda, too. The sound of\r\nBuddha recitation mingled with that of the Chopping vegetable with knife on\r\nboard had made a beautiful one. The longer the night was, the more enthusiastic\r\nabout their work they were so that all the participants would have the\r\ndelicious meals the next morning. Then, it might reminded them of a pure and\r\nleisure retreat generously supported by compassionate hearts with the wish that\r\neveryone would single-mindedly recite the Buddha`s name, release all\r\nafflictions to be reborn in the Pure Land.
It was a boiling hot afternoon. Some in blue neckstrap with\r\nnumbered ID cards were busy withthe big stacks of dishes, chopsticks and spoons\r\nnext to the dishwashers. They were the retreat practitioners who were taking\r\nadvantage of the opportunity to do meritorious deeds. They looked pleased with\r\nthe mundane task of dish-washing. Sometimes, it is heard that somewhere: "Let\r\nus do it. We would like you to focus on the practice and then dedicate merit to\r\nus."
Again, it was rainy. Continuous and drizzly rains usually\r\nstart in the seventh lunar month. So, there was no trade around the pagoda\r\nprecincts. Sitting still makes one cold and sad in such weather. Anyway, soon\r\nafterward, the depression ended by the sound of the speakers reminding the\r\nBuddhists to be careful while walking on the slippery roads, take care of\r\nthemselves for the good cultivation. Having heard these warnings, we were\r\nreally overcome with emotion although we had been parents for over 20 years.
Every day, after listening to the lecture in the auditorium,\r\nwe felt more ashamed of ourselves because we realized that we had maintained an\r\nattachment to the self for such a long time. Those are just the sorts of\r\ntrivial things such as respect-inspiring deportment ... Some of us wanted to\r\nsit in the main auditorium so that we could be near the lecturer or sit in the\r\nmain hall so that we could be more blessed (in our expectation); others tried\r\nto finish their meals quickly or take a cursory bath to allow time for sleep or\r\nBuddha recitation... For years, we have just wanted to find out the Buddha\r\nfigure without our own Buddhahood internal review. Fortunately, we still feel\r\nshame as it is the most amazing motivator for the better. Deep in thought, we\r\nare grateful to the Masters who find ways to remove our attachment to the self\r\nand ignorance for the purpose of preventing us from seeking various dharma\r\nsects and prompting us to hold strong belief in our own dharma sect and to be\r\ndedicated to it. Only through practicing the right Dharma, we don't lose the\r\nbodhi mind and we are no longer doubtful about the Tathagata's teachings,\r\nthereby escaping worldly sufferings regardless of the external form and\r\nliving in peace and joy in the Buddha's teachings.
Despite the continuous and drizzly rains, the monks in brown\r\nclothes were still totally absorbed in his tasks: washing the dishes, cooking,\r\ndistributing dharma lecture CDs... They work hard in both physical and\r\nspiritual manner in the hope that the pagoda might be expanded and more\r\nBuddhists will come here for the retreats to remove affliction. Every seven-day\r\nrecitation retreat, one-day peaceful retreat, the Ullumbana day, Vesak day,\r\nAmitabha Buddha's birthday, Summer retreat for students, ceremony of refuge in\r\nThe Three Jewels recall us the sweet memories about the pagodas, the monks, the\r\nflowers of compassion.
Forever, the image of the pagoda is in my heart!
A lay Buddhist from the retreat.
Translated into English by Mr. Tran Xuan Thanh, layman.