Hanoi: Vu Lan event pays tribute to ancestors, fallen soldiers

Hanoi (VNA) – An event, entitled “Dao Hieu va Dan Toc” (Filial Piety and Nation), took place at the Hanoi Opera House on August 31 to celebrate the Buddhist festival of Vu Lan, or Ghost Festival, a time for Vietnamese people to show gratitude to their parents and the deceased.

The event, featuring musical performances, also paid tribute to fallen soldiers. It was held by the Buddhist Sangha of Vietnam (BSV) Central Committee with former Vice President Nguyen Thi Doan in attendance.

Speaking at the event, Vice Chairman of the BSV Executive Council Most Venerable Thich Gia Quang said on the 15th day of the seventh month in the lunar calendar, Vu Lan comes, reminding us of our roots and helping us reflect on the saying “When drinking water, remember its source.”

He went on to say that Vu Lan is an opportunity for people to look back to their origins and remember who brought them up. Filial piety is not only the foundation of Buddhism but also a moral principle of Vietnamese people, he added.

The event honoured figures that set great examples of filial piety and presented gifts to people who served the nation and their families.

It is widely believed that on the Ghost Festival, the gates of hell are opened for dead souls to visit their loved ones. 

The festival is based on the legend that once when mediating, a disciple of Buddha named Muc Kien Lien saw his mother suffering hell's tortures.

Following Buddha's advice, on the seventh full moon of the year, Lien gathered monks and devotees and prayed with them for his mother. Therefore the festival is to express gratitude towards ones' parents and help ancestors' lost souls find their way back to earth.

People visit pagodas and temples to worship ghosts and spirits through offerings of food, votive objects, and animals such as birds and fish are also released.-VNA