Filial piety of Tay Ninh Buddhist ancestors

Linh Son Tien Thach Pagoda - a place that preserves the filial piety of Tay Ninh Buddhist ancestors

Throughout history, Buddhism has accompanied the nation and left many examples of filial piety of ancestors in Tay Ninh province.

Looking through the biography of Venerable Dao Trung - Thien Hieu, the founder is a great Zen master, a famous monk of Buddhism in Tay Ninh and the whole South. By founding Linh Son Tien Thach pagoda on Ba Den mountain in the 18th century, he laid the initial foundation for the development of Buddhism and the Lam Te Lieu Quan (Te Thuong) lineage in Tay Ninh.

Many people have told stories about the founder Dao Trung - Thien Hieu through the story of "To Dia", besides that, he is also known as a very filial son. When he left his hometown to become a monk, his mother, because she missed her son, heard that he was practicing in the land of Thoi Hoa, she came to see him. The founder knew that she was his mother, so she accepted and gave him merit, but because she was afraid that if his mother knew that he was her son, she would have a contemptuous attitude towards the monks during the merit, the founder did not let her know that he was his son.

During the time he was at Long Hung Pagoda, the founder often told the monks to take good care of his mother when he had to be absent from the pagoda due to Buddhist matters. During the times at the pagoda, at dusk and when the community was quiet, he would quietly wash his mother's clothes...

When the old lady passed away, the patriarch announced to the public that she was his mother and arranged for her burial in the temple grounds. Currently, her grave is buried near the patriarch's tower at Long Hung pagoda (now in Ho Chi Minh City).

Arriving at Phuoc Luu ancient temple in Trang Bang, everyone still reminded each other of the filial piety of Venerable Trung Luc - Chon Huu, the founder of Phuoc Luu temple and the one who developed the temple into a center for the Buddhist community in Tay Ninh region.

The ancestral hall where the relics of Venerable Truong Luc are worshiped at Phuoc Luu Pagoda (Trang Bang)

In the past, when Phuoc Luu pagoda was still known as Ba Dong hermitage, there was an elderly nun named Tran Thi Nen, dharma name Chon Tang, alias Tien Cot, from Go Den area. She traveled the six provinces, then stopped in Trang Bang and came to the hermitage to practice and practice medicine with Ba Dong.

Her eldest son, Mai Van Luc (also known as Venerable Trung Luc), the second son, Mai Van Do, and the youngest daughter, Mai Thi Thien, all came to the temple to study and take care of their mother. Her children were the ones who contributed greatly to the development of the temple later on.

The most mentioned event was in the year of Ky Dau (1909), when nun Chon Tang fell seriously ill, Venerable Truong Luc cut his finger to use his blood as medicine to cure his mother. The filial piety of the founder is still praised today, and the relic of his finger bone is still enshrined in the ancestral hall of Phuoc Luu pagoda.

At the hour of Thin on the 3rd day of the 11th month of the year Ky Dau (1909), nun Chon Tang passed away. After taking care of his mother's funeral, Venerable Trung Luc arranged the temple's affairs, passed on the succession, and appointed his eldest son with the dharma name Pho Chieu, whose name was Tam Huu, to preside over Phuoc Luu temple. The Venerable went to Cau mountain area (formerly in Tay Ninh province, now in Ho Chi Minh City) to reclaim land, but due to malaria (also known as water blindness), he returned to Linh Son Tien Thach temple to follow the teachings of his master Thanh Tho - Phuoc Chi and his brothers to develop Linh Son Tien Thach temple and propagate Buddhism.

On November 11, Canh Tuat year (1910), Venerable Trung Luc passed away at Linh Son Tien Thach pagoda and was buried at the foot of Ba Den mountain next to Linh Son Phuoc Trung pagoda.

When mentioning the Venerable of Dien Ba Mountain, many people will immediately remember the Venerable Tam Hoa - Chanh Kham, a famous monk of Tay Ninh Buddhism. His religious name was chosen by the Executive Committee of the Vietnam Buddhist Sangha of the province as the honorific name for the 10 Great Ordination Platforms in Tay Ninh.

In the book The Torch of Zen by Phan Thuc Duy, it is said that Venerable Tam Hoa was born in An Lai village (Nhut Tao), Tan An province. He was a very filial son. During his childhood, he lived with his mother. From the age of 12, he went to catch shrimp and fish to bring home for household use, and sold the leftovers to help his mother.

At the age of 17, with a little extra money in the house, he bought a boat to go to Sac Forest (Ly Nhon) to cut firewood. At that time, the forest was still wild, with many wild animals, and few people dared to enter. Later, he took care of everything for his mother and family and decided to become a monk, going to Linh Son Tien Thach Pagoda (Ba Den Mountain) to study the Dharma. Every year, Venerable Tam Hoa asked his teacher to let him go back to his hometown to visit his mother, fulfilling his filial piety.

And there are many examples of filial piety in religion, in life, from history to the present. Filial piety is shown from the simplest things such as worshiping ancestors, grandparents, respecting, loving, being grateful and taking care of parents through family meals, being obedient, making parents laugh and happy, taking care of their health, sharing feelings and doing good deeds to make parents proud.

Buddhists always keep in mind the Buddha's teachings: "A filial heart is a Buddha's heart, filial conduct is a Buddha's conduct", because filial piety is the path of practice and the root of all morality, the foundation for attaining enlightenment./.

Phi Thanh Phat

Source: https://baolongan.vn/long-hieu-thao-cua-chu-to-phat-giao-tay-ninh-a202616.html