Special Topics
Deliverance Service Benefits Both the Living and the Deceased
Every July of the lunar calendar, Chinese people will hold various deliverance services to release the dead from suffering. Most people believe that without performing the deliverance ritual, they will not be able to enjoy peace in the seventh month of the lunar calendar, which is commonly known as the "ghost month". Whether it is the Zhongyuan Festival in Taoist belief or the deliverance service organized by Buddhist temples, deliverance and salvation for the deceased has become a ...
The Seventh Lunar Month Dharma Assemblies (I): The Ullambana Assembly – Repay Our Parents' Kindness with Merit Transfer
In Chinese Buddhism, the "Ullambana Festival (Yulanpen Festival)" is a Buddhist Dharma assembly which is based on the "Buddha Speaks the Ullambana Sutra". It is held on the 15th of the seventh lunar month every year, in order to show gratitude for the kindness exerted by our parents while raising us, as well as to deliver our ancestors from suffering. "Yulanpen" is the Chinese transliteration of the Sanskrit word "Ullambana", which means filial piety, m...
Dharma Assemblies in Lunar July (II): Yogacara Ulka-mukha Dharma Service to Save Hungry Ghosts from Suffering
The Yogacara Ulka-mukha Dharma Service, or the ritual for the release of flaming mouths, is designed for giving food to beings in the hungry ghost realm in order to relieve their pain and distress of hunger. More importantly, it is meant to teach these beings the Dharma, thereby leading them to take the refuge, receive the precepts, and thus soon leave suffering behind. Origins The ritual for the release of flaming mouths can be traced back to the Dharani Sutra for Saving the Burning-Mo...
Dharma Assemblies in Lunar July (III): Practicing Repentance at Emperor Liang’s Repentance Eliminates Delusion, Karma, and Suffering
The main purpose of Emperor Liang's Repentance Dharma assembly is to universally deliver sentient beings in the Six Destinies. By worshipping the Buddha, chanting scriptures, and practicing repentance, sentient beings in the six realms of existence can reflect on their karma while chanting repentance liturgy. In addition, they can generate a sense of shameas well as confess and redeem their transgressions, in order to attain liberation from the realms of suffering. Also, in the process of...
Q1: Where will our relatives go after death? If they are already reborn, would our prayers for the deceased help them?
A: Yes, prayers for the deceased can help to increase their karmic blessings, in addition to improving their circumstances. In Buddhism, sentient beings are classified under six major categories: namely, heavenly beings, humans, asuras, hungry ghosts, animals, and hell-dwellers. They repeatedly go through the cycle of birth and death in these six destinies of transmigration, ceaselessly and indefinitely. Thus, when a person dies, there is a one-in-six chance of becoming a ghost. Regardless of...
Q2: Is it necessary to participate in Dharma assemblies if they are not performed for the deliverance of a deceased relative?
A: According to the Parinirvana Sutra, compassion takes three forms: compassion based on awareness of the suffering of sentient beings; that which is based on awareness of the true nature of phenomena; and unconditional great compassion. Compassion based on awareness of the suffering of sentient beings entails regarding all sentient beings equally with kindness, thereby treating them just like our relatives and loved ones. Therefore, in the Buddhist concept, all sentient beings within the ten...
Q3: Why does Buddhism maintain that care and concern for the deceased can be conveyed through Dharma assemblies?
A: In Buddhism, the highest blessing for the deceased is helping them hear the Buddhadharma and resolve their afflictions, thereby leaving suffering behind by moving on to a better rebirth. Buddhism believes in spiritual response. The driving force to attain spiritual response lies in utter sincerity, as such familial affection has the most effect in triggering our utmost, earnest sincerity. Many kalpas ago, Earth Treasure (Ksitigarbha) Bodhisattva had lived as a filial daughter in several in...
Q4: If we are unable to attend a Dharma assembly at a temple or monastery, can we, alternatively, perform the deliverance ritual at home for our deceased relatives or friends?
A: Since a deliverance service requires a monastic presiding over the ritual, by conducting it at home we can at most chant sutras, recite the Buddha's name, perform repentance prostration for the deceased, thereby creating and dedicating the merit to them. If we don't have a Buddha hall at home, we can first find a clean, tidy space with good lighting and ventilation to be our altar. It is best if we can also prepare a table to place the Buddha statue, together with fresh flowers ...
Q5: How do we go about dedicating the merit? Can our deceased relatives actually receive the merit that is being dedicated?
A: Normally, monastics will lead participants to chant the Verse of Merit Transfer during a merit transfer ritual at a Dharma assembly. This is done in order to dedicate the merit of chanting the sutra and the Buddha's name to others. To dedicate merit is to transfer our mental power to reach the targeted receiver through the power of the Buddhas and Bodhisattvas' vows. This is analogous to the ways that sunrays deflected by an object can illuminate a dark spot in another location,...