Filial piety in the Pali .VIETNAMESE TRANSLATE ENGLISH BY=VIETNAMESE BUDDHIST NUN=THICH CHAN TANH.

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For us Vietnamese, Vu Lan (Vu Lan Bon, Ulambana) ceremony on the full moon day of the seventh month of the lunar year each year has become a tradition as a season of filial piety for filial children, sincerely commemorating the foster grace. Parents' care - both alive and dead - and making every effort to repay that merit, through caring for the parents and by the good deeds.

In addition to the legend of Muc Lien Lien - Thanh De, in Buddhist scriptures - Nam Tong as well as Tonkin - there are many teachings of the Buddha to the disciples to help them maintain harmony in the family, to grow together in the Dharma. In the crude article on this year's Vu Lan (1995), I would like to take the liberty to present a few short passages in the Pali scriptures, about the word Hieu taught by the Buddha to his disciples. Readers can learn more through the scriptures listed at the end of the article.

Thank goodness sea

Vietnamese folk songs often compare merit to parents as Thai Son mountain, like water flowing out. In the Samyutta Samyutta, the Buddha likened his parents' merit to the sea and the sea as a thousand coincides. He explained that breastmilk has passed through many lives and many lives, so it is vast and wider than the sea:

"... Priests, the breast milk that you have been drinking, while you have been circulating for a long time, is more than water in the four seas. Why is that? For samsara is stubborn, The flow of the samsara of sentient beings coincides with the same message, so it is impossible to state the starting point. Because ignorance covers up, because craving binds all the kamma of sentient beings. "

In the Buddhist Sangha, the Buddha also likens parents to venerable fires, because parents are the ones who give life and growth to their children, as well as the fire that gives life and energy to human:

"... Behold the Brahmins, your parents are revered flames. Why is that? For from that comes life, existence. Hence parents are like tops. Sacred fire is respectable, worthy of respect, worthy of offerings, and will bring righteousness "

Because of such great merit from parents, the Buddha even said that there are two types of people that we can never repay, that is mother and father. 

"... There are two classes of people, monks, I say can not pay the full amount. That is Father and Mother. If one shoulder carry mother, the other shoulder carry father, do so for a hundred years to a hundred years. age is not enough to pay for parents. to adulthood, and to lead them into this life. "

Pay homage to the East

In the Suttanta Singalovada Suttanta, the School of Suttas, one morning when the Buddha went to meditate alms in the Royal Citadel, he saw the young Psalmist get up early, go out of the house and pay homage to the six directions: East, West, South, North, Upper, and Lower as traditionally taught by parents without understanding the meaning of that action. The Buddha said that such prostrations are not enough, but it is necessary to sincerely visualize the behavior of people around: the East is the relationship between parents and children, the West is the relationship between the wife. the husband, the south is the teacher-student relationship, the north is the friend relationship, the upper direction is the relationship between the monk and the layman, the lower direction is the relationship between the master and the maid.

Regarding the relationship between parents and children, the Buddha said:

"... There are five duties children have to do: nurture parents, fulfill all children's duties, keep the family with tradition, protect inherited property, and funerals when parents die. . "

In addition, the Buddha also explained:

"... There are five responsibilities that parents need to fulfill: stopping their children from doing evil, encouraging them to do good, teaching them to have a good career, finding a good spouse for them, and giving their inheritance. for you at the right time. "

Clearly this is a message of responsibility, a mutual responsibility between parents and children. Children have five duties to their parents, and parents also have five responsibilities to their children. When parents and children fulfill all these things, the family is happy, and the East, in this figurative sense, can be at peace. At that time, the prostration toward the East really made sense.

Growth in Dharma

The Buddha also advised children to practice together with their parents, give up the path of unwholesome, engage in the path of goodness, help each other grow in the Dharma. In the Sangha, Buddha theory:

"... Those who pay back by nurturing and offering their parents with wealth, material, money are never enough to repay their parents' gratitude. Priests, those who do not have for parents. faith encourages, guides, and allows parents to dwell in the goodness of the Dharma; for unruly parents, encourage, guide, and dwell on almsgiving; for parents according to wickedness, it is recommended. encourage, guide, and dwell on parents in righteousness; thus, they do enough and repay the full grace of mother and father. "

The Buddha explained that paying filial piety by offering material possessions is not enough, but aimed at the ultimate goal of growing together in the Dharma, towards liberation from all samsaric suffering. In order for parents to achieve ultimate peace and happiness, the son must help parents to give up evil deeds and practice good deeds, renounce craving and practice generosity, renounce ignorance. and intellectual attainment.

Benefits of Hieu Thao

It is when caring and nurturing parents, children will enjoy the merits and good results brought about by filial piety. Buddha said.

"... What kind of a man and woman, with all the possessions obtained by diligent effort, created by her own hard work, a respectful dedication and support to her parents. Such respect and care will arouse love and prayer: 'May my child live a long life! May my child be protected, and have a safe life!'. Such a filial son, loved by his parents, will surely grow and grow in the Dharma. "

In the Samyutta, the Buddha taught layman Mataposaka:

"Whoever follows the Dharma,
Nourishes mother and father.
And creates many deeds,
towards father and mother.
Thus, the holy Sage,
in this life praise,
After death is born
Enjoy the bliss of the gods"

In the Sangha, the Buddha explained that if a family has children who can nurture their parents, then that family has merit, deserves respect and respect, deserves to be seen as equal to Pham Thien. Pham Thien are the highest gods in the Sex Realm and the Realm. He said:

"... Priests, families whose children respect their parents in the house are accepted as equal to Pham Thien, accepted as equal to the family of masters. , deserving of respect and offerings.

Pham Thien is synonymous with parents. Masters are synonymous with parents. Those who deserve to offer are synonymous with parents. Why is that? Because parents help their children a lot, because parents raise their children to their adulthood, training them to bring them into life. "

It was Emperor Thich (Sakka), the king of the Three Tenths of Heaven, also thanks to the merit of supporting his parents, that in the next life he was born king.

"... In the past, when the Emperor Emperor Thich was still human, he obeyed the precepts seriously and a filial piety for his parents. Thanks to that, he was born as the king of heaven today:

Who cares for parents,
Respect for patriarchs
Say gentle words,
Give up two-edged words,
Tame greed,
Be a genuine person,
Submitting all anger.
For such a person,
the Three Tusadas of God are called noble beings
. "

Conclude

Above is just a summary of a few Buddha teachings, recorded in the sutras, about the word Hieu. The Buddha spoke a lot about the blessings of parents, talking about the responsibility of children to repay that great merit. The form of the ritual is not the main, but it is the practical actions of nurturing and making offerings to the parents. Taking care of our parents will create many blessings for ourselves - in the present and in the next life, and for the happiness of our family. The Buddha also taught that the best and most complete way of repaying gratitude is to firmly believe in the Dharma together with parents, step into the path of righteousness, abandon evil world, give up greed, follow the moral life, practice giving alms, giving up the dark ignorance path and turning towards the light of lucid wisdom to get rid of the cycle of samsara, suffering.END=NAM MO SHAKYAMUNI BUDDHA.( 3 TIMES ).GOLDEN AMITABHA MONASTERY=VIETNAMESE BUDDHIST NUN=THICH CHAN TANH.AUSTRALIA,SYDNEY.28/8/2020.