The Great Compassionate Repentance Service was held on the 28th October 2018 to celebrate the Renunciation Day of Guan Yin (Avalokitesvara) Bodhisattva. There are more than 160 participants attended the service. Everyone prayed together for repentance, self-dharma affinity, transfer merit to eradicate calamities and hardship, and gain in merit and wisdom.
Superintendent Venerable Jue Min began the service with the importance of dharma practice which is “Bodhisattva as the cause, sentient beings as the effects”.
Normally, when karmic retribution happens, then only people begin to repent. This can be prevented by being mindful of our body and mind intention not casually creating bad karma. How do we practise this? Venerable proposed four methods as follows: –
- Self-discipline with understanding of managing oneself using five precepts and ten good deeds.
- Self – repentance where repentance is like dharma water, bad karma is like salt. The calmness of the dharma water can reduce the bad karma as melting the salt with the dharma water.
- Practice kindness, always have wholesome thoughts, doing good deeds and this will prevent unwholesome acts.
- Enquire dharma, practise listening to dharma teaching to have right understanding and right views. This will grow the wisdom to determine what should and shouldn’t be
After the service, monastery bun and great compassion water is being shared with everyone to develop affinity.