The Quarterly Birthday Celebration

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Reported by: Hong Mei Yue Photographer: Jian Cheng, Be Hong, Mei Jun

On June 20th Saturday night, Than Hsiang Temple held a birthday celebration for everyone whose birthday fell between April , May, and June. The venue of the celebration was the ground floor , specifically the Great Compassion Hall. At that time, everyone was eagerly awaiting the start of the event. The celebration was graced by the presence of Than Hsiang Temple’s new abbot, Venerable Zhen Sheng, along with Venerable Zhen Xin and Venerable Hui Li.

The celebration commenced with the Brahma Voice group members leading everyone in chanting the Verse in Praise of Amitabha Buddha, and circumambulating the Buddha. Following this, Venerable Zhen Sheng, the new abbot of Than Hsiang Temple, delivered a compassionate Dharma talk.

In Venerable Zhen Sheng’s Dharma talk, he conveyed a message that “life is finite, cherish the present moment”. He emphasized life is short , likening it to “time flying by,” with each birthday serving as a reminder that another year has passed. Venerable also highlighted the importance of “being grateful to parents and prioritizing filial piety.” He further mentioned that parents need their children’s companionship and care, because their selfless contributions are the only unconditional giving in the world. Thus, Venerable Zhen Sheng encouraged everyone to visit their parents often, hug them, as parents desire their children’s love, not money. For those whose parents have passed away, Venerable Zhen Sheng mentioned that, one could perform good deeds, accumulate good merits, and dedicate them to their parents as a way of repaying their kindness.

Lastly, Venerable Zhen Sheng wished all the birthday celebrants good health, long life, pure hearts, increasing wisdom, the fulfilment of all wishes, the attainment of merit and wisdom, and attaining enlightenment soon. Also, he highlighted his hope that the birthday celebration would transcend mere worldly festivity and transform into a source of spiritual cultivation, filial piety towards parents, compassion for all beings, and faith in the Triple Gem.

Next , Be Hong from the Than Hsiang Temple Youth Group, serving as emcee, gave the opening remarks and introduced her new co-emcee, Pei Fen. Be Hong expressed her gratitude, highlighting that the birthday celebration has been held for “a very long time” and that many senior devotees attended. She encouraged everyone to applaud themselves for their good fortune and blessed rewards, which enabled them to participate in the cultivation. This included those who have supported Than Hsiang Temple since its inception. She emphasized that applause is a form of encouragement and mentioned that when feeling down, one could even offer themselves a round of applause.

Coming next was the video sharing segment. Emcee, Pei Fen then shared a video about “The Story of the Elephant Mother.” She recounted a recent touching news story about a baby elephant that was hit and killed on the road. Its mother refuse to leave the baby , disregarding her own safety.

Pei Fen highlighted that the elephant mother's actions demonstrated unwavering devotion and unconditional love, transcending her own well-being and fully expressing the deep family bond. The emcee also emphasized that mother's love is the deepest emotion in the world, "as deep as the ocean and as heavy as a mountain," and a universal language among all beings. Pei Fen further cited the Buddha’s teaching that "all sentient beings possess Buddha-nature," pointing out that not only human beings experience sorrow and attachment, but animals do too. In the video, she noted that the elephant mother's unwavering vigil was not merely maternal love, but also a natural outpouring of compassion, reminding us that all sentient beings deserve respect, understanding, and compassionate regard. Pei Fen urged that if the video touched their hearts, they should transform this emotion into practical actions of gratitude, care, and protection. She concluded that we all possess a soft heart, and the strength of maternal love will guide us moving forward.

Then came the singing segment. Emcee Be Hong led the birthday celebrants and everyone in a rendition of "Han Lei De Gan En" (含泪的感恩). Emcee Pei Fen explained that this song is not just for parents and relatives, but for everyone who has offered warmth, love, affirmation, and perseverance, including those in society who silently support us. Pei Fen also mentioned that gratitude itself is a form of spiritual practice, a way of living out love. When asked how to express gratitude, she suggested that one way is to speak gently, expressing one’s thoughts and feelings in a mild manner.

Pei Fen concluded that the birthday celebration is not merely a blessing for the years passed, but also a way to light the lamp of compassion and good intentions. She wished that everyone would have a compassionate heart and good intentions in their daily lives.

Finally, Emcee Be Hong invited the birthday celebrants from April to June to come forward to receive blessings from the Sangha members. Simultaneously, the celebrants and everyone sang a Buddhist Birthday Song, made wishes, blew out candles, and cut the cake. The emcee expressed that while everyone holds personal wishes, the most important part is that we could spread our small personal aspirations, such as the hope for world peace, from deep within our hearts to the entire world.

Beyond just celebrating birthdays, Emcee Be Hong also emphasized that while we are grateful to our mothers, we should also acknowledge and appreciate our fathers’ contributions. She highlighted that May and June, with their special holidays related to both parents, are ideal months to express gratitude to both.

Before the celebration ended, a video was shown to everyone. Emcee Be Hong encouraged everyone to cherish their time with loved ones, and to spend more time accompanying and caring for their parents. She also mentioned to everyone to wisely use their time and dedicate precious moments to their relatives and elders.

Finally, the emcees once again extended their best wishes to all birthday celebrants for a "propitious day of parental suffering and difficulty," good health, and peace.

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More photos: https://www.thanhsiang.org/ch/node/6576
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