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The Ullambana Tradition
The Ullambana Tradition originated from the Ullambana
Sutra, the Buddha’s teaching based on the story of Bhikku Moggllana
who achieved the Arahathood and tried to use his psychic powers to reach
his mother in the hell realm where she had to go through the life of a
hungry ghost, due to her past life of disbelieving in the Triple Gems
and of her selfishness and greed.
When Moggllana offered his mother a bowl of rice to relieve her hunger,
she immediately hid it from the other hungry ghosts. When he tried to
eat it later, it turned to charcoal.
With tears, Moggllana went back to the Buddha to ask for help. Buddha then gave the teaching on how to perform Puja on the last day of the Warsa (end of 3 months retreat in the rainy season, from the full moon in April to the full moon of July, according to the lunar calendar in the Mahayana trandition).
Before receiving the offerings, the monks pray with compassion, dedicating the merits to the filial people who make the offerings in order to pray for their parents.
If their parents were still alive they would have a peaceful and healthy life and follow the Dharma way.
If they were already passed away, they would be reborn in a good realm and be able to cullivate good practice and process on the way to enlighternment.
In the Vietnamese Buddhist Tradition, the Ullambana is also the opportunity for us to pray for peace and happiness for our teachers and friends and family and for all beings in the whole world, imagining that we all put our arms around each other to make a peaceful and happy life possible for all.