Responding to the launch of the Vietnamese Fatherland From Committee at all levels, Buddhists in Thái Bình city under leaders of the monks are always studying, living “for better secular, good religion” and implementing humanitarian and charitable work.
In recent years, the Party, State, governments at all levels and people are interested in humanitarian and charitable activities. Their cares contribute to alleviate sufferings, in fact there are difficult people who require the help of community. Responding to the launch of the Vietnamese Fatherland Front Community at all levels, Buddhists in Thái Bình city under the leader of the monks are always studying, living “good life, good religion” and implementing humanitarian and charitable work
We met Ms. Lân Phương – an active Buddhist in Tu Xuyen pagoda to learn about charitable work of Buddhists in Thái Bình city. She said: the followers are imbued with Buddhist thought: love, compassion, joy, kindness equanimity. They are willing to help people who are living in difficult circumstances; they practice economy by many ways; carry out charitable work; mobilize people to participate in movement “Nối vòng tay nhân ái” (open our arms wide in Great Circle) and help people in areas of natural disasters, the disabled, orphans… inside and outside province.
To generate funds, Buddhists call benevolent hearts. There are many initiatives on charitable work such as all families have saving boxes. These boxes are put in crowed places; movement of saving money for the poor people in Lunar New Year holiday.
Everyday Buddhists save few thousand dong. After a few months they have had savings from 500 thousand to 1 million dong. Many Buddhists actively advise their descendants in foreign countries and in other provinces, cities to regularly send money to contribute to the city’s charitable work.
In the late 2011, the Venerable Thích Thanh Định had set up saving boxes with the name “because of doing charitable work not to burn votive”. These boxes are located at the door of Buddhist temples. Before the Lunar New Year 2012, the first time the boxes were opened, the amount of money in these boxes were 30 million dong. They donated 30 million dong to help poor people on Lunar New Year holiday. The second time for opening these boxes was on July, 27th. The amount of money was used to build houses of gratitude.
A group of Buddhist believers came to Nursing Centre for mental patients who had done services in Đông Kinh commune, they presented hundreds of gifts, dozens of electric fans. They helped the Agent Orange victims to dig dozens of wells and present electric fans, clothes, blankets. What Thái Bình people have done are to alleviate patients’ sufferings. They visit leprosy patients in Văn Môn hospital and give thousand of gifts, tens of tons of rice to help patients overcome illness.
Buddhists in Thái Bình city also collect rice, wheat, books, 200 uniforms to donate the classes in the fishing village, the disables. In the Tuberculosis Hospital, the Buddhists cook soup for many poor patients and help them to overcome illness. Responding to the movement without any discrimination to HIV patients, Buddhists in Thái Bình city donates 300 gifts, 50 warm blankets, cold clothing to the children who are affected by HIV and orphans in difficulty circumstances .
When the other localities at home and abroad are in flood, Buddhists in Thái Bình city mobilize people to help them. In the flood in Central in 2010, Mrs. Lại Thị Hằng, 77 years old and Mrs. Thanh Ban donated over a ton of rice, Buddhist of temples: Thánh Long, Tứ Xuyên, Bồ Xuyên, Đa Cốc supported nearly 5 tons of rice. Mrs. Vũ Thị Minh Hiền – director of Pharmacy Centre in Thái Bình city supported 5 casks of medicine. Hà Cương and Hoàng Hà companies supported vehicles to transporting…. Through the Vietnam Father Font and the Red Cross, 30 members of a charitable groups in Thái Bình city under the leader of Venerable Thích Thanh Định brought tens of tons of cargo to support people in the areas of natural disasters in Đức Thọ and Hương Khê districts in Hà Tĩnh province.
Humanitarian work of the Buddhist monks, believers in Thái Bình city are noted by the government, the Fatherland Font Committee and the Red Cross at all levels, the Executive Board of Buddhist Association in Thái Bình city has been awarded many certificates of merit. The Executive Board of Buddhist Association reports what it has done in the central conference. The charitable work of Buddhists in Thái Bình city is significant work, we should learn and follow Buddhist believers in Thái Bình city
Ha Dung
