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Thousands of Buddhists from across the globe honored the Holy Birthday of H.H. Dorje Chang Buddha III (Photo Credit: Michael Gao Shan)
On June 14th and 15th, at the Glendale Civic Auditorium in Glendale, Los Angeles County, the World Buddhism Association Headquarters, Holy Miracles Temple, Hua Zang Si Temple, Benevolence Temple, and Sanger Mission jointly organized a two-day Dharma Assembly.
More than one thousand Venerables, Dharma Masters, Rinpoches, and lay persons from the United States, Canada, Germany, mainland China, Japan, Singapore, Thailand, Malaysia, Taiwan, Hong Kong and other countries and regions gathered together to welcome the Holy Birthday of H.H. Dorje Chang Buddha III.
On the first day, the Dharma Assembly opened with a ceremonial team of dozens of monks holding Buddhist prayer flags and Dharma instruments in the lead. While the Dharma Masters walked slowly towards the Dharma platform, the congregation chanted “Namo Dorje Chang Buddha III,” resonating throughout the venue.
Following the ceremonial team, Venerable Mozhi, Chairman of the World Buddhism Association Headquarters, held an incense burner in his hands. Venerable Tsemang, Director of the Office of H.H. Dorje Chang Buddha III, Jiaozun Zhengda, Vice Chairman of the World Buddhism Association Headquarters, and Ruzun Ruohui, Abbess of Hua Zang SiTemple, respectfully held new releases of “Namo Dorje Chang Buddha III Complete Sutra Collection” and slowly stepped onto the Dharma platform. In the center of the Dharma platform hung a huge portrait of H.H. Dorje Chang Buddha III, holding the scepter of the Pope of Buddhism. On the Dharma platform, Venerable Tsemang placed the newly released volumes of Buddhist sutras on a Dharma table – ‘Volume IV: Fundamental Dharma Expounded in the East,’ ‘Volume V: Dharma Expounded During a Trip to Taiwan,’ and ‘Volume VI: Dharma Expounded During a Trip to the United States.’ This Dharma Assembly marked the releases of new volumes of “Namo Dorje Chang Buddha III Complete Sutra Collection” after the initial releases in 2023.
The major body of “Namo Dorje Chang Buddha III Complete Sutra Collection” are the written transcripts of audio recordings of Dharma expounded by H.H. Dorje Chang Buddha III. Over the past decades, based on the karmic conditions of sentient beings, the Pope of Buddhism H.H. Dorje Chang Buddha III taught the correct principles of Buddhism and revealed the absolute truth of the universe in a simple yet profound way. H.H. Dorje Chang Buddha III expounded Dharmas using colloquial language, thus it is very suitable for people nowadays to learn, even those with limited literacy. There have been over two thousand volumes of audio recordings of Dharma expounded by His Holiness. Over the years, tens of thousands of Dharma-listening centers have been established around the world to learnBuddhism from the audio recordings of H.H. Dorje Chang Buddha III, and many Buddhists are eagerly looking forward to the publication of the written transcripts of the Dharma teachings of H.H. Dorje Chang Buddha III.
For this purpose, the Office of H.H. Dorje Chang Buddha III organized many eminent monks, lay persons, and others to prepare and proofread the written transcripts. The “Namo Dorje Chang Buddha III Complete Sutra Collection” was thus published accordingly. As the Buddhist Sutras are passed down from generation to generation, the general public has the best treasures when they listen to the audio recordings of Dharma expounded by His Holiness. “Namo Dorje Chang Buddha III Complete Sutra Collection” will enable living beings to deeply comprehend the principles of Buddhism and eventually liberate from the cycle of reincarnation.
At the end of the first day, the Holy Gurus and eminent monks from the World Buddhism Association Headquarters stepped down from the Dharma platform and sprinkled blessed Dharma water on the participants, hoping to eliminate disasters and misfortunes and to bring good fortune and health for everyone.
Venerable Pannavati and her students attended the Dharma Assembly (Photo Credit: Kaiwen Han)
On the second day of the Dharma Assembly, representatives from Buddhist temples, monasteries, and institutions around the world made 108 offerings to Buddhas and Bodhisattvas of the ten directions on behalf of the attendees. All of the representatives held delicately prepared treasures in their hands to make the sincerest offerings to Buddhas and Bodhisattvas. Then the public respectfully chanted the “Sutra on Definitive Truth” and “The Meal Offerings to Buddhas.” The altar was filled with flowers and fruits, and the 108 offerings were placed on it. Through transferring the merits of making offerings, reciting sutras, chanting Buddha’s names and mantras, the attendees prayed for Buddhas to stay in the world eternally, the elimination of current global conflicts and confrontations, the world peace, the well-being of the people, and the harmony of society.
On this auspicious day, many organizations around the world held various activities in their regions to honor the Holy Birthday of H.H. Dorje Chang Buddha III. The H.H. Dorje Chang Buddha III Cultural and Art Museum in Covina, California, held a series of events, where the public could listen to the audio recordings of unreleased special Dharmas expounded by His Holiness. Other organizations also conducted activities, such as releasing captive living beings and poverty relieving.
The two-day Dharma Assembly in Glendale fostered unity and devotion among attendees from diverse backgrounds. With the ongoing releases of the “Namo Dorje Chang Buddha III Complete Sutra Collection,” the event inspired Buddhists around the globe to pursue enlightenment and emulate the compassion and wisdom demonstrated by H.H. Dorje Chang Buddha III.
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