(VOVworld)- Activities to celebrate the Vu Lan or the 7^th full moon festival, one of the biggest festivals in Vietnam according to Buddhism, are underway across the country. In recent years, the festival has been observed as the day to pay gratitude to parents and ancestors in general. Venerable Thich Bao Nghiem, Vice President of the Executive Board of the Vietnam Buddhist Shanga elaborates on the significance of the festival: “In Buddhism, the Vu Lan festival reflects the humanity of people, teaching people to pay gratitude to their ancestors, grandparents and parents and prayers for the dead to live in the good heaven of Buddha. This is an occasion to teach people about the morality of Vietnamese people”.

For the occasion, the Big Truong Sa pagoda in Truong Sa island district, Khanh Hoa province organized a requiem to pay tribute to the martyrs who laid down their lives to defend the nation’s sea in Truong Sa and those who died in Vietnamese territorial waters. The event was attended by soldiers stationed on the island as well as islanders. Most Venerable Thich Giac Nghia is Head of the Big Truong Sa pagoda: “Many soldiers attended the event. From the bottom of our hearts, we pray longevity and happiness for our living parents and peace for those who have passed way. We pray for the soldiers who sacrificed their lives to safeguard the nation. This evening, we organized a ceremony to recite the Buddhist scriptures and burn incense”.

After the requiem, the Big Truong Sa pagoda helped the soldiers stationed on the island to call their parents to express their gratitude to them. A vegetarian feast was also held on the island. For the occasion, the Vietnam Buddhist Shangha in Thua Thien Hue province presented 10 tons of rice to the poor.