The sacred sound of temple bells in Truong Sa

The 7th Congress of the Vietnam Buddhist SanghaMaleis about to take place in the last week of November 2012 in Hanoi. Among the delegates attending the Congress, there are representatives of monks and nuns from Truong Sa island district, Khanh Hoa province. On this occasion, for us, the feelings about a special trip to Truong Sa archipelago are like yesterday, where there was a monk we met - Venerable Thich Tam Hien, former abbot of Dao Song Tu Tay pagoda.

At dawn, the temple bells rang regularly. This sound has become a daily habit for the soldiers and people of Song Tu Tay island commune for many years.

The abbot of this pagoda is Venerable Thich Tam Hien, a native of Khanh Hoa. In April this year, the Venerable, along with four other monks from Khanh Hoa, volunteered to go to Truong Sa island district to perform Buddhist duties, and to preside over the pagoda on Song Tu Tay island.

Scene of a solemn mass at Song Tu Tay Pagoda

What a special opportunity, the day our group visited the temple, the monk came to the east gate to welcome the group, at that time his face could not hide his joyful emotions: "You guys come here, today is the first day of the month, stay and have a meal with the monks". Having finished speaking, the monk quickly led the group to visit the temple, while walking he emotionally told about the peaceful life at the head of the waves, the wind,...

At Song Tu Tay Pagoda, every early morning when the temple bell rings, the islanders often come to help the abbot clean the temple and trim the bushes in the yard in front of the main hall.

Among them, there was Mr. Coc who often came back and forth to help the pagoda with small tasks, and was very much appreciated by Master Hien. Master Hien said that a very interesting thing was that the households on the island, some of whom were Buddhists, some of whom were not, often had the habit of going to the pagoda to burn incense, chant sutras, and recite Buddha's name every day.They came to the temple as a familiar spiritual attribute. Looking at that scene, the abbot felt fulfilled and happy, the same peaceful feelings as in many other temples in the Vietnamese countryside.

It is truly a matter of impermanence. After a while, in early September, we heard the bad news that Master Hien had passed away. An island soldier reported that Master Hien had fallen seriously ill and although he was brought back to the mainland for treatment, his illness was so serious that he could not survive. The island soldier said that on the day Master passed away, the temple bell suddenly rang strangely, as if sending off a virtuous person to the Buddha's door.

According to Daidoanket-M