Ven. Guo Huei (果暉法師), abbot president of DDM, Ven. Hui Min (惠敏法師), DDM’s chief-seat monk, and Ven. Guo Pin (果品法師), vice abbot-president of DDM, served as the Bodhisattva Dharma teachers to transmit the Four Objects of Indestructible Faith (四不壞信法), the Three Sets of Precepts for Purity (三聚淨戒), the Ten Good Deeds (十善戒), and the Ten Inexhaustible Precepts“ (十無盡戒), to the precept recipients. They then put the Buddhist scarf over their neck that symbolizes the identification of a bodhisattva, wrapping up the 24th Lay Bodhisattva Precepts ceremony.

Praising the recipients’ merit in taking the precepts, Ven. Guo Huei wished them a “Happy Birthday,” congratulating them for having acquired a human physical body in this lifetime and the identity as a bodhisattva practitioner today, to facilitate the realization of their own Dharma-body in the future, just as past buddhas have.

By quoting the Mahā-prajñāpāramitā Sūtra as explaining the essence of the Four Great Vows, Ven. Guo Huei emphasized that for personal practices one should first focus on one single method, and vow to learn infinitive Darma methods for the sake of delivering sentient beings.

In practicing the bodhisattva path, even when one has acquired the wisdom regarding emptiness, one should understand that it represents an expedient means rather than the ultimate goal. The ultimate goal should be delivering sentient beings without having any notion of doing so, and vow to attain supreme enlightenment.

In conclusion, the venerable gave his blessing to all the precept recipients on behalf of DDM Sangha, by using the verse:

May I sever all evil.
May I cultivate all good.
May I master all Dharma methods.
May I deliver all beings.
May I attain the supreme Buddhahood.

Texts: Lin, Ya-Ying (林雅櫻)
Photos: Lee Fan (李東陽); Lin, Ya-Ying (林雅櫻)
Video: Lin, Ya-Ying (林雅櫻)
Translation: Elenda Huang (頤嵐達)
Editing: DDM Editorial Team; Chang, Chia-Cheng (張家誠)