DDM Abbot President Traveled to Hong Kong to Personally Transmitted Three Refuges and Five Precepts

On the Saturday morning of May 24, Dharma Drum Mountain (DDM) Hong Kong Center organized a Praying for Blessings and Refuge Taking Ceremony at its venue in Lai Chi Kok. DDM Abbot President Ven. Guo Huei personally bestowed the Three Refuges and Five Precepts, while the monastic members of DDM Sangha gifted each refuge taking participant with a Buddha pendant. A total of 171 followers took refuge in the Three Jewels during the ceremony, with participants ranging from 6 to 87 years of age. All of the participants received the blessings of the Three Jewels with joy.

In his Dharma Talk, Abbot President Ven. Guo Huei stated that Shakyamuni Buddha attained Buddhahood over two thousand years ago. Ever since then, Buddhadharma has been propagated in the human realm. Buddhist disciples practice in accordance with the methods taught by the Buddha, thereby learning kindness, compassion and wisdom in order to help sentient beings eradicate their vexations. Any attempt to learn Buddhadharma without taking refuge in the Three Jewels is equivalent to navigating a vessel forward without a compass in the open sea, which is bound to face danger.

The Abbot President explained that taking refuge in the Three Jewels is similar to enrolling in a school and becoming an official student. To take refuge is to give disciples of the Three Jewels an official identity; without it, achievements may be harder to attain. The primary objective of taking refuge is to follow Buddhadharma, repent of our past evil karmas, and strive to learn and practice diligently. After taking refuge, we should become orthodox Buddhist disciples, not just "in name", but also in the actual practice of Buddhadharma, through learning kindness, compassion and wisdom, and saving all sentient beings.

After all the participants have taken refuge in the Three Jewels and vowed to uphold the Five Precepts, the Abbot President gave his blessings to everyone, and proceeded to share that Dharma Drum Mountain is an organization striving to purify our society. Hence everyone must vow to benefit all sentient beings after receiving the precepts. On becoming Buddhist disciples, we should actively participate in the Dharma Center's activities such as Dharma assemblies, group practices and other curriculum etc. At the same time, we should devotedly recite the Buddha's name and ceaselessly improve ourselves, so that people around us could feel our betterment. We must first raise ourselves up through practicing Buddhadharma and improve our own character, after which we can proceed to assist others in bettering themselves and learning to apply this wisdom in resolving their own problems.
After successfully completing the Refuge Taking Ceremony, participant Gao Ming-ling (高敏玲) expressed her elation, since this was her first trip to the DDM Hong Kong Center in person. While all her previous engagements with DDM were merely through watching video feeds on YouTube, she was especially touched by the live dialogue between Ven. Chang Zhan and Ven. Chang Ling. She was so moved that she was determined to learn Buddhadharma, and hence made the effort to sign up for this Refuge Taking Ceremony. Going forward, she will actively participate in future activities organized by the Hong Kong Center.

Another Refuge Taking participant, Li Xue (