On December 13, 2009, Thich Chuc Thanh conducted the first wedding of the Dong Hung Temple.  The marriage took place between Hung Pham and Hanh Huynh.  It was conducted in Vietnamese and translated into English.  Most of the attendees were English speaking people who had never been to a Buddhist Temple before and were so delighted with the ceremony, the vows and the loving spirit of the Monks.  The very meaningful vows to help each other on their spiritual path to become useful people of the community, and to raise their children with loving kindness and guidance to be good helpful members of society were inspirational to hear.  The couple conducted a tea ceremony to honor the parents, a song about love was offered by two members of the Tidewater Friends of Folk Music, and a delicious meal was shared afterwards.  We wish them well in their lives together and thank the Monks and Nuns of the Temple for such a beautiful, meaningful ceremony. See pictures

A ceremony of Taking Refuge was conducted on Sunday, March 7, 2010, at the Dong Hung Temple, translated into English by Thich Chuc Thanh.  Four Americans, and three Vietnamese people, including a 2 ½ yr old, were bestowed with this honor of taking Refuge of the Three Jewels, the Buddha, Dharma and Sangha, and the 5 Precepts of non killing, non stealing, non sexual misconduct, non lying, and non use of alcohol or intoxicants.  It was an honor to be accepted into the loving family and Temple members. See pictures

The Fellowship of the Inner Light is a non-denominational Judeau/Christian church in Virginia Beach. Their goal is to honor and learn from the many world’s religions, and have guest speakers on various topics.  Thich Chuc Thanh was invited to speak on Buddhism on Sunday, April 18, 2010.  His sister – Quang Nhu - from Vietnam was also able to attend.  After quieting and centering the energy by the striking of a singing bowl, he began his talk of the history of the Buddha and the life of Siddhartha before becoming enlightened.  It was followed by a question and answer period, with such questions about Karma, the difference between Zen and Tibetan Buddhism, some discussion of the five Precepts.  Many people’s favorite answer was to the question of where Chuc Thanh’s temple home was located, to which he stated right here, wherever he was.  It concluded with the chanting of the Heart Sutra in Vietnamese.  All were very grateful to Chuc Thanh for the loving kind energy he brought to the Fellowship Center.

PEACE

Bonnie – Thánh Hòa