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About 法界圣凡水陆普度大斋胜会 The Great Assembly to Liberate All Beings of Water and Land www.kmspks.org

Monday, October 25, 2010

Alms Offering to the Sangha 2011

Date : 2 Jan 2011, Sunday
Time : 830 am to 10am
Venue  88 Bright Hill Temple Road
Bright Hill Temple
Kong Meng San Phor Kark See
(Tai Pei Shrine 1000th Hands Guan Yin )



Tel : 68495300







Every pious Buddhist more or less carries out the meritorious deeds of dispensing charity, observing morality and practising meditation. Out of these three, the Buddhists usually perform the charitable deeds daily.

 At every house of Buddhists, they offer food, water and flowers dedicated to the Triple Gems every morning. Moreover, with generous mindedness, they offer alms-food to the Sanghas who go round from house to house for collecting alms-food, in procession or individually.

In some towns, there are many hundreds of Sanghas going in procession for alms-food. The Buddhists heartily believe that the daily act of offering alms-food to the Sangha is the main cause for the perpetuation of the Buddha's Teaching. According to their wealth, they occasionally make other donations such as inviting the monks to their home and offering food, novitiating their sons, donating the four material requisites to the sangha. etc. In fulfilling the ten perfections, the Bodhisattha performed the perfection of charity prior to the other perfections. Therefore, Dana is the first of the Ten Perfections.

The charity is the first item of ten meritorious deeds stated in the previous charpter.

Therefore in this chapter. the notable facts concerning charity shall be exergerated.

Fwd this infomation to all who can share this merits with all

Sadhu Sadhu Sadhu



僧礼包/Packages to purchase for alms offering:

请到寺务处报名参与供僧活动及选购以上供僧礼包。您将获得收据以方便当天上午6点30分至7点30分在钟楼旁索取所选购的礼包 *所收款项将纳入新加坡佛学院

Please register and purchase the above packages from the staff at the Front Office. In return, you will obtain a receipt in which you can exchange for the package you have purchased at a booth next to Bell Tower on the actual day from 6.30am to 7.30am.

 * All proceeds of packages for alms offering will go to Buddhist College of Singapore.


1. 广种福田 (米)Cultivating Merits (rice ) $ 48

2. 智慧如海 (盐)Ocean of Wisdom (salt ) $ 48

3. 五谷丰收 (干粮)Bountiful Harvest (dried goods) $ 88

4. 福禄安康 (药材)Longevity & Good Health (medicinal herbs) $ 138

5. 丰衣足食 (用品)Abundance & Prosperity (daily necessities ) $ 228



时间/Time: 上午8点30分至10点 8.30am - 10.00am

地点/Venue: 光明山普觉禅寺大悲殿,

Kong Meng San Phor Kark See Monastery, The Hall Of Great Compassion

88 Bright Hill Road Singapore 574117
电话/Enquiries: 6849 5300 begin_of_the_skype_highlighting 6849 5300 end_of_the_skype_highlighting



注:本寺从未派人出外沿户登记或收取活动功德金,恐未周知,顺此敬告

The monastery has never sent any volunteers or staff to solicit donations publicly or from door-to-door for this event.






http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alms

In Buddhism, alms or almsgiving is the respect given by a lay Buddhist to a Buddhist monk, nun, spiritually-developed person or other sentient being. It is not charity as presumed by Western interpreters. It is closer to a symbolic connection to the spiritual and to show humbleness and respect in the presence of normal society.[note 1] The visible presence of monks and nuns is a stabilizing influence. The act of alms giving assists in connecting the human to the monk or nun and what he/she represents. As the Buddha has stated:




Householders & the homeless [monastics]


in mutual dependence


both reach the true Dhamma....

—Itivuttaka 4.7[1][note 2]


In Theravada Buddhism, monks (Pāli: bhikkhus) and nuns go on a daily almsround (or pindacara) to collect food. This is often perceived as giving the laypeople the opportunity to make merit (Pāli: puñña). Money should not be accepted by a Buddhist monk or nun, although nowadays not many monks and nuns keep to this rule (the exception being the monks and nuns of the Thai Forest Tradition and other Theravada traditions which focus on vinaya and meditation practice). In countries that follow Mahayana Buddhism, it has been impractical for monks to go on a daily almsround. In China, Korea and Japan, monasteries were situated in remote mountain areas where it could take days to reach the nearest town, thus making the daily almsround impossible. In Japan, the practice of a weekly or monthly takuhatsu took its place. In the Himalayan countries, the large number of bikshus would have made an almsround a heavy burden on families. Competition with other religions for support also made daily almsrounds difficult and even dangerous; the first monks in the Shilla dynasty of Korea were said to be beaten due to the Buddhist minority at the time.



In Buddhism, both "almsgiving" and, more generally, "giving" are called "dāna" (Pāli).[2] Such giving is one of the three elements of the path of practice as formulated by the Buddha for laypeople. This path of practice for laypeople is: dāna, sīla, bhāvanā.[3]

The exquisite paradox in Buddhism is that the more we give - and the more we give without seeking something in return - the wealthier (in the broadest sense of the word) we will become. By giving we destroy those acquisitive impulses that ultimately lead to further suffering. Generosity is also expressed towards other sentient beings as both a cause for merit and to aid the receiver of the gift. In MahayanaTradition it is accepted that although the three jewels of refuge are the basis of the greatest merit, by seeing other sentient beings as having Buddhanature and making offerings towards the aspirational Buddha to be within them is of equal benefit. Generosity towards other sentient beings is greatly emphasised in Mahayana as one of the perfections (paramita) as shown in Lama Tsong Khapa's 'The Abbreviated Points of the Graded Path' (Tibetan: lam-rim bsdus-don):



Total willingness to give is the wish-granting gem for fulfilling the hopes of wandering beings.


It is the sharpest weapon to sever the knot of stinginess.


It leads to bodhisattva conduct that enhances self-confidence and courage,


And is the basis for universal proclamation of your fame and repute.


Realizing this, the wise rely, in a healthy manner, on the outstanding path


Of (being ever-willing) to offer completely their bodies, possessions, and positive potentials.


The ever-vigilant lama has practiced like that.


If you too would seek liberation,


Please cultivate yourself in the same way.




—[4]


In Buddhism, giving of alms is the beginning of one's journey to Nirvana (Pali: nibbana).

In practice, one can give anything with or without thought for Nibbana. This would lead to faith (Pali: saddha), one key power (Pali: bala) that one should generate within oneself for the Buddha, Dhamma and Sangha.



The motives behind giving plays important role in developing spiritual qualities. The suttas record various motives for exercising generosity. The Anguttara Nikaya (A.iv,236) enumerates the following eight motives:

[5]

1.Asajja danam deti: one gives with annoyance, or as a way of offending the recipient, or with the idea of insulting him.


2.Bhaya danam deti: fear also can motivate a person to make an offering.


3.Adasi me ti danam deti: one gives in return for a favor done to oneself in the past.


4.Dassati me ti danam deti: one also may give with the hope of getting a similar favor for oneself in the future.


5.Sadhu danan ti danam deti: one gives because giving is considered good.


6.Aham pacami, ime ne pacanti, na arahami pacanto apacantanam adatun ti danam deti: "I cook, they do not cook. It is not proper for me who cooks not to give to those who do not cook." Some give urged by such altruistic motives.


7.Imam me danam dadato kalyano kittisaddo abbhuggacchati ti danam deti: some give alms to gain a good reputation.


8.Cittalankara-cittaparikkarattham danam deti: still others give alms to adorn and beautify the mind.


According to the Pali canon,  Of all gifts [alms], the gift of Dhamma is the highest.




—Dhp. XXIV v. 354)[note


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