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The issue
of ancestor worship is a tradition of the Vietnamese
people, but because they do not fully understand the
meaning, there are also many people who act in the wrong
way, thus unintentionally losing the sacredness and value
of the offerings worship.
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Because
there is no understanding, some people think that death is
the end, nothing is left, or if someone believes that
there is an afterlife, then that person has been
reincarnated, when offering someone to eat and how to eat.
?
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For
clarity, you can split it into two time periods. The time
of new death is up to 49 days and the second time is after
49 days onwards.
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The time
of death: According to the Buddhist concept, when a
relative, grandparent, or parent dies…. They die, which
means they leave behind the physical, material body. They
are left with only the body by the consciousness called
the consciousness body and also called the Bardo body or
Bodies of nouns. As the body's consciousness lives in the
inner world without appearance, their food and drink are
only by the Consciousness and their food is the flavor of
all things, which ordinary people call oxygen. Body
consciousness is a body in an invisible state that cannot
contain tangible things, so they cannot enjoy material
food like human eating. Therefore, the eating and drinking
of the dead is often called enjoying food, that is, eating
by realizing the flavors of the offerings that the
descendants offer and if there is no offer, how can there
be any flavor to give? ancestors, grandparents enjoy.
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The second
time is after 49 days, which is also the time to go to
reincarnation to live in the next life. During this time,
the Consciousness Body merges with the matter of the
parents' sperm and embryo, so that the Consciousness Body
becomes the physical body. When there is a physical body,
that is, the fetus, then the fetus can eat and drink the
same materials as the human diet. Or if they are reborn in
other realms, outside of the Human World, they will eat
and drink the same way as beings in those realms.
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At this
point, the question arises again:
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- Ancestors, Grandparents have been reincarnated into a
certain World long ago, so what does it mean for us to
worship?
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In this case, if you are a descendant, you still worship
because there are two meanings:
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- The First Meaning,
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You worship for the purpose of being grateful and repaying
those who gave birth to you, nurtured and taught you to be
a human being, as well as built your sect family. At the
same time, you also educate your children and
grandchildren to know your ancestral lineage, which will
later inherit the role of, making the family glorious.
Just like Buddhists celebrate Buddha's Birthday that
sacred image is deeply ingrained in the hearts of each
believer.
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- Second Meaning,
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When you donate items, you are using your spiritual energy
and devotion to turn the donated items into oxygen and
convert that oxygen into nourishing material to bring to
the person you donate through the spiritual system. At
that time, the worshiper who was in a certain realm
naturally received a lot of luck without knowing where it
came from. In this case, ordinary people call it the
blessing of their family, ancestors, grandparents, or
parents.
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To make it easier for you to understand, I give an
example. This case is similar to a broken electric light
bulb because you changed the light bulb, but you replaced
a fan. The form of a fan is not a light bulb at all. Now
you use the current of the old bulb wire, but in fact, the
natural fan is affected right away. In the same way, the
person you worship is no longer in the form of your
grandparents, parents, or relatives, but their
spirituality is still in the same spiritual line as your
ancestors. You use the power of prayer on the spiritual
line of the family, the person you worship will enjoy it
immediately.
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Thus, when ancestors and grandparents were born in certain
invisible worlds, their living and eating activities were
only by conscious food, unlike the eating and drinking of
humans. Therefore, children and grandchildren should
always make offerings to be grateful and repay their
ancestors, grandparents, parents, etc.
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According to this tradition, as a Vietnamese, every family
worships grandparents, ancestors, parents... Particularly
in Buddhism, worshiping has great meanings and values.
First of all:
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A. The meaning of offerings
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Offering, that's a commonly used Buddhist term. This word
is transliterated from the word nurture. First of all, you
need to understand two words: Nurturing and offering.
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a. Nurturing:
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That is, to provide and to nourish, that is, to supply
according to the material needs of the needy and to
nourish them when they are hungry and torn, etc.
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The provision here is alms-giving with extended love,
providing the necessary means of life to those in need
through the altruistic spirit of the wealthy.
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b.
Offering:
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It
means offering to the venerable ones with sincerity,
devotion, and remembrance of the ancestors, the saints full
of merit and virtue that the underlings are obliged to be
grateful and repay.
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B.
The difference between offering and nurturing
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a.
Nurturing:
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It means taking care of people who are currently living in
the world with available love, which human obligations
need to cover in mutual survival relationships, such as:
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- Take care of your parents, brothers, and sisters, take
care of your relatives, etc.
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As for those who have passed away, you should not use the
word nurturing, but you must use the word sacrifice to
show your sincerity to those who have passed away.
Sacrifice is bringing offerings according to the ritual
sacrifice, such as making sacrifices to ancestors,
grandparents, gods, etc.
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b- Offering:
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That means remembering those who have great graces with
you, such as parents, religious teachers, and those who
are grateful to you. You not only make offerings to those
who are still alive but also make offerings to those who
have passed away. Moreover, in Buddhism, it is also called
offering the Three Jewels (Offering to Buddha, Dharma,
Sangha), making offerings to ancestral teachers, making
offerings to the Sangha, etc.
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Most, people see the value of the Offering. They only know
how to act according to the traditional customs left by
their grandparents, but it is the duty of their
descendants to preserve that spirit. That is a very good
thing, but it is also very harmful to children who lack
faith. Because they do not understand the meaning of the
Worshiping ceremony, the successors of the Ancestors
cannot explain it specifically for the descendants to
understand and also distort the noble value of the
Cultural tradition. In this situation, if unfortunately
encounter bad guys who misrepresent, descendants are easy
to despise and lack sincerity in worshiping.
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Because they do not understand and do not see anyone
enjoying food when making offerings, some people consider
making offerings to be superstitious. Also, because they
do not understand, some people use Worshiping as an
excuse, aiming to gather friends to eat, drink and have
fun rather than to commemorate gratitude and return
gratitude.
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You human beings are currently living in the world of
appearances that are completely dependent on matter, while
beings in worlds without appearances and are built on the
foundation of Consciousness should never be dependent at
all on any material thing. Since you are living in the
world of form or matter, it is not possible to see beings
in the invisible world which is also the world of
consciousness. And also because you can't see it, it's not
strange that you don't believe that there are grandparents
or gods to enjoy the offerings.
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When I first heard that the physical world, that is, the
visible world, and the invisible world, that is, the
spiritual world, it seems that they have nothing to do
with each other, but in fact, these two worlds are very
closely related.
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As I once said, after a person dies, even though he has
given up his tangible physical body, to goes through the
intermediate state of the body and enters the invisible or
spiritual world, then depending on merit or karma, then
chooses a next incarnation, that is, from the spiritual or
invisible world, people go back to the visible or material
world through the help of their parents in the human
world, or some other realm that of the six samsara paths.
Thus this Inner World or the invisible and the other
Worlds or visible are very closely related to each other
in dependent origination. Therefore, without the invisible
or spiritual world, human rebirth would not happen. In
other words, if the invisible world does not have
substance as a foundation, this visible outer world
definitely cannot be established.
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Although you do not see the beings of the Inner Worlds in
the formless state, do not rush to assume that this world
is not present in the universe. Because even scientists,
having discovered a lot of secrets in space, but so far
have not discovered all the worlds in the universe, do not
know all the Planets present in space, know only certain
limits in this solar system of matter. Especially not
knowing at all about the metaphysical field, but according
to the Buddha said:
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- In the vast universe, there are many worlds that exist,
of course, there are also many kinds of beings currently
living in it.
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Scientists
use the word Planets in the universe, but Buddha did not
use the word Planet, he used the word world. Since these
Worlds are combined by dissimilar elements, the beings in
these Worlds are not alike in their appearance, nor are
their activities the same. This means that the activities
of beings in this world cannot live in other Worlds, and
vice versa. Indeed, what you can easily see is:
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- The world of fish or the habitat of fish is water. The
human world or human habitat is the ground and the air.
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Fish
cannot live in an environment without water, and humans
cannot live in an environment with water. Likewise, what
you are doing, living in this present world cannot know,
cannot see the activities of other worlds is also
understandable.
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The concept of the world universe, according to Buddhism,
is the vast universe has an infinite number of Worlds,
that is, Worlds are as many as grains of sand in the
Ganges, in which they have various relationships with each
other, Buddha divides them into three different groups:
Desire Realm, Form Realm, and Formless Realm
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1. Desire World:
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These are the Worlds in which sentient beings
live in shape and form. These Worlds include Human World,
Hell World, Preta World, and Animal World.
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2- Form-World:
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Considered a higher realm than the human world.
This is the lower deva realm. Beings in this realm do not
have lusts and desires, only good physical bodies.
However, because they have not been liberated from the
defilements of matter, there is still samsara of birth and
death.
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3.
The Formless World
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It is a world made only by Karma Consciousness.
In the Formless Realm, there is no physical body, and the
beings residing there lead a life free of pain, worry, or
afflictions, but this is considered unsatisfactory from
the Buddhist point of view. Because even though the lives
of beings in the Formless Realm are in the heavenly realms
or higher than in the Form Realms because they have not
yet been liberated, sentient beings in this realm are
still enjoying blessings, but at some point, it will be
over. When the blessings are exhausted, the life in this
realm also ends, these beings are still reborn in the
lower realms such as the human realm, the hungry ghost,
hell, and the animal realm...
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In order to see living beings and activities in
the form and formless realms, you must rely on the
Buddha's Eye to penetrate. It is impossible for the human
eye to know and see the activities in these Worlds. Humans
can't even see the living, eating and drinking habits of
beings in the Hells, hungry ghosts and Asuras worlds, etc.
belonging to the Desire realm, then of course you can't
see and know to be sentient beings in the form and
formless realms.
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In order for you to understand clearly ancestor worship, I
have long introduced to you that in addition to the world
where humans live, there are many other worlds or realms.
Each realm, form, activities, and ways of eating as well
as objects are also different, unlike the human realm,
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According to the Buddha, the ways of eating of beings in
the three realms are divided into nine different types of
food:
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The four
types of food of the world and the realms of the Desire
Realm are:
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Food group: Rice or round foods.
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- Touch Food: Feeling happy makes you full as if you ate:
Like listening to songs, watching plays makes your body
and mind comfortable and happy.
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- Thought food: thoughts or food with thoughts
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- Consciousness or food enjoyment: It is the spiritual
food that feeds beings in heaven, the invisible realm of
hell.
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The five types of food of the Out of Worldly or the realms
in the Realm of Form and the Realm of Formless include:
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- Meditate on Food: The power to nourish the mind of
meditation. When entering meditation, the body and mind
are light and comfortable, helping to nourish the body and
wisdom life.
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- Dharma Joy Food: Happy to hear the Dharma fill you up as
if you've just eaten,
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- Praying Food: Cultivators use their vows to feed
themselves just like eating and drinking in everyday life
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- Mindfulness of Food: Staying in mindfulness, such as
staying in Buddha's name, also makes you feel full as if
you just ate.
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- Liberation Food: It is one of the five spiritual foods
that nourish good roots
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When the ancestors were born in the invisible world, their
living and eating activities were only equal to
Consciousness or food enjoyment, which is one of the four
types of food in the world, unlike human eating. But
descendants still have to make offerings to bring the
taste of food to show respect, to offer to commemorate,
remember favors, and repay favors. According to the
Buddhist scriptures, the offerer first uses the body as
well as the main act, and then they use the spirit to
communicate. So they have to show two qualities: Offering
Body and Offering Mind.
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a- Body Offering:
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That is, the donor must sincerely offer offerings such as
food, clothing, medicine, etc. to the Three Jewels, to the
Elder Master, to his parents, to the spirits, etc.
Offering.
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b- Heart of Offering:
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That is, the donor feels that the mind is not bored, does
not regret, and is happy in the action, which is called
the Heart of Offering. Also from this meaning, in
Buddhism, there are two methods of offering: the
phenomenon of offering and the spirit of offering.
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1- Phenomena or form of offering:
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The offerings on the altar are the symbol of the sincerity
of a descendant, of a believer who gives his full faith to
the ancestors, to the Saints, and to the Buddhas. They
offer sacrifices in the hope that their ancestors,
grandparents and saints, and Buddhas will prove the
sincerity and gratitude of the underlings. If there is no
symbolic gift, it is not possible to show the sincerity of
the people below to the people who are deeply grateful to
them. Due to the appearance that can display nature.
Phenomenon and Spirit, as well as Sign and Nature, are
mutually compatible without hindrance. The Flower
Adornment Sutra has a sentence:
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- Unobstructed spirit and phenomena of the Dharma Realm
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Mean:
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- Spirit is manifested through phenomena, and phenomena
are formed through spirit.
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Phenomenon and spirit cannot be separated to form.
Although all dharmas have different appearances, they all
share the same essence. A person with a sincere heart,
even if a grain of salt is bitten in two and offered to
the superior, it is also valuable, and vice versa, if a
person has no sincerity, even if the tray is full, there
is no meaning, just like the sentence:
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- Buddha means mind, Buddha proves at heart, mind means
Buddha, heart, there is Buddha.
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2. Spirit of offering:
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The spirit of offering means showing the truth that has
been entered and offered. The Samantabhadra Sutra, the
chapter on conduct and vows to say offerings have three
meanings:
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a- Donation money:
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That is to use the fruits, money, and treasures often used
in the world to make offerings.
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b- Dharma offering:
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That is to bring the Bodhi mind to benefit yourself and
benefit everyone to make offerings.
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c- Conduct of offerings:
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That is, practice Dharma contemplation of conduct to
realize that all things in the three realms are compatible
with each other. That is, practice the method of
contemplation on the phenomenon-phenomenon without
hindrance in the Dharma-realm of the Flower Adornment
Sutra to make offerings. Dasabhumika-sutra, Book 3 says:
There are three ways of making offerings:
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1- Benefits and offerings:
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That is, using only clothes, sitting tools, beds, etc., to
make offerings.
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2- Respectfully make offerings:
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That is to show sincerity by offering incense, flowers,
garlands, etc. to make offerings.
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3- Conduct of offerings:
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That is to practice virtues, such as Faith, Precepts, etc.
to make offerings.
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Suddharmapundarika Sutra, volume 3 says: Using three
karmas to make offerings, the three karmas to make
offerings are as follows:
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- Karma body offering:
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That is, use this body sincerely to worship and respect
the Buddhas, bodhisattvas to make offerings, or ancestors.
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- Karma of Oral Offering:
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That is, using words of praise to praise the merits of the
Buddhas and Bodhisattvas to make offerings.
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Karma Intention Offering:
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That is, use a righteous mind to remember the good and
dignified appearance of the Buddhas and Bodhisattvas to
make offerings.
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With the spirit of offering I just described above, you
should follow a good example of the forefathers, saints,
grandparents, ancestors trying to prevent evil things, and
vowing to do good deeds. Keep your body and mind clean
from physical to mental, from words to deeds, to be worthy
of the title of beloved descendants of the family line,
and to set a good example in society. You can show the
noble spirit I just mentioned above to make offerings to
the Holy Ancestors, pray for the ancestors to prove and
bless, that is the meaning of the spirit. In terms of
material things, according to the spirit of Buddhism,
every time children and grandchildren make offerings to
grandparents or saints, they must meet the following
conditions:
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- You must have respect for the superiors that you
worship, that is, you do not have to worship for the
purpose of meeting friends to eat, drink and have fun.
Must be dignified and pure during the sacrifice, that is,
during the sacrifice, it is not allowed to organize
singing, dancing, and singing like an amphitheater.
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- There must be three bowls of rice, three cups of tea,
two pairs of chopsticks, three spoons and forks, along
with incense, candles, fruits, etc... That is a necessary
condition when making offerings. The rest of the food is
added or reduced depending on the circumstances of each
homeowner.
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- All children and grandchildren in the family must kneel,
be silent, and fold their hands towards the altar of
ancestors, saints, etc., to express their sincerity. At
that time, the householder on behalf of the family prays
incense and prays the name, age, day, month, and year of
death of the deceased person whom you worship. While
parents are worshiping grandparents, children and
grandchildren are not allowed to play, because joking
makes a lack of dignified and pure ceremony. In the end,
they all bowed three times.
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Ancestor
worship is the basic thing that descendants must keep in
mind in inheriting the career and inheritance of their
ancestors. You must not only remember your duty but also
be proud whenever you organize an ancestor worshiping
ceremony, and you must also respectfully read their
biographies. On the contrary, if you lack obligations and
neglect in worshiping the Ancestors who have great merits
of the family, that is a very big crime of unfilial piety.
In Buddhism, the sin of unfilial piety is one of the five
great sins, the sin of falling into the Uninterrupted
Hell. You as a Buddhist need to know the way we just
described above to prevent from committing the sin of
unfilial piety.
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In the
human world, worshiping is a very essential way for a
person of faith towards the Ancestors, towards the Sage,
and an indispensable human duty in self-improvement, as
well as building a safe society spiritually. Worshiping is
also an act of knowing gratitude and repaying gratitude to
ancestors with all forms of symbols that people remember
deeply and are indispensable. In addition, worshiping is
also a method of educating children and grandchildren in
the sense of tradition and ideals of a nation so that they
can fulfill their obligations as citizens in a country.
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As for the
ideals of Buddhists, you make offerings to express the
spiritual bridge of sympathy with the Buddhas and hope to
ask the Three Jewels to bless you and keep you safe on the
path of enlightenment and liberation.
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With the
reasons and meanings presented, worshiping is a valuable
religious symbol not only in terms of form but also useful
in terms of spirituality, and is also a necessary need for
people in the practice and moral training as a human
beings, not only necessary for you personally or for your
family in this life. This is also a useful need for the
descendants not only in this life but also a necessary
element in creating good deeds for the next life. This is
very important in terms of both form and content,
including appearance and rationality, so that everyone and
all sentient beings will soon be free from afflictions and
suffering and be happy and free.
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In short,
worshiping here is to show deep gratitude to ancestors,
and saints, and at the same time to offer precious gifts
to pray for ancestors to prove and bless. In addition,
worshiping also increases the close relationship between
ancestors, grandparents, and descendants, that is
according to the world. Regarding religion, it is a close
relationship with the source of the spiritual energy to
liberate believers through the spiritual system, as a link
between the devotee or the believer and the Buddhas and
Bodhisattvas in the ten directions. It can be said that
worship and prostration are very necessary for family
education, the concept of ancestral traditions, and ideals
of the race for children and grandchildren to fulfill
their moral obligations. Therefore, in order to foster a
healthy spiritual life, virtuous and filial people should
worship, and regularly make sacrifices and prostrations to
ancestors, sages, bodhisattvas, and buddhas in the ten
directions.
