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Summer Retreat - What Will We Leave Behind for Life
During the summer retreat at Phap Van Temple, reflecting on the sudden death of a 19-year-old child, we ask the question: “When I die, what do I leave behind?”—at every age (19, 25, 35, 60, 80). By contemplating impermanence and non-self, letting go of the idea of a permanent “self,” we transcend the fear of birth and death and realize that both life and death can become beautiful when we are deeply imbued with the Buddha’s teachings.
The poet Vu Hoang Chuong, from his passionate poems in “Tho Say” to “Rung Phong,” used poetry and the poem “Fire of Compassion,” written after the self-immolation of Thich Quang Duc (1963), as a flame of inspiration, awakening a movement for human rights not with weapons but with true love, not sowing seeds of hatred but cultivating peace.
Every moment, our body, speech, and mind are our continuation, the gift we offer to life; following the Noble Eightfold Path (right thinking, right speech, right action), we develop mindfulness and love in our body, speech, and mind to sow wholesome seeds. Before walking meditation and the picnic at Son Ha Temple, please remember:
- Do not pick plums in the New Hamlet’s orchard; only pick plums in Lower Hamlet.
- Children swimming in the pond must be accompanied by an adult; violation will require returning home within 24 hours.