On the afternoon of April 20th, Lingyin Temple in Hangzhou held the second session of repentance for lay Buddhists in 2024, praying for the blessings of the Triple Gem, the elimination of karmic obstacles, and the growth of spiritual cultivation.
At 1 p.m., the lay Buddhists, dressed in Buddhist robes, gathered at the Zhizhi Hall of Lingyin Temple. Under the guidance of the Lingyin Buddhist masters, they chanted the Buddha’s name "Namo Shakyamuni Buddha" and performed the ritual alternately from the east side to the west side, sincerely repenting for past transgressions caused by greed, anger, and ignorance, seeking their eradication. They also aimed to cease the arising of new negative thoughts and actions, aspiring for purity of body and mind, the removal of obstacles, and the augmentation of blessings and wisdom, ultimately striving for liberation.
The term "repentance" is translated from the Sanskrit word “ksama”, signifying “remorse and confession”. Master Huineng, the Sixth Patriarch of Chan Buddhism, separated the two terms, explaining that "remorse" involves regret for past offenses, encompassing all past unwholesome deeds, delusions, deceit, envy, and other sins, which are sincerely confessed and vowed to be eradicated forever. "Confession" involves regret for future transgressions, with a determination to cease all unwholesome deeds, delusions, arrogance, deceit, envy, and other sins from this moment onwards, having awakened to their nature and vowing to never commit them again. Therefore, during repentance, one not only earnestly confesses past negative karma but also vows, with an awakened mind, to refrain from creating new negative karma, thus embodying the essence of "ceasing to create new offenses" as described in Buddhist teachings.
