From a Buddhist point of view, the Dharma assembly held in temples in various places on the 15th day of the seventh lunar month every year is referred to as the "Obon Assembly".
Why is it called the "Obon Festival"?
This "Yu Lan" is translated as "Jie Daoxuan", which means extremely bitter.
This is a metaphor for a person who falls into the three evil realms after death, like beings in the realm of hungry ghosts. Their belly is as big as a drum and their throat is as thin as a needle. They are hungry and embarrassed, as if they are hanging upside down, and are extremely painful.
"Basin" is a container for holding food, that is to say: use this basin to hold all kinds of precious delicacies, respectfully offer them to Buddhas and monks, and rely on the power of the inconceivable blessings of the Three Jewels to relieve their "hanging upside down" pain.
Therefore, it is called the "Obon Assembly", which is a Dharma assembly where various offerings are made and the Three Treasures are given to relieve the suffering of the deceased.
The origin of this Dharma Assembly is that when the Buddha was still alive, among his disciples there was one named Venerable Moggallana. He was among the ten disciples of the Buddha and was famous for his supernatural powers.
One day he thought of his deceased mother and wondered where she was now.
So the Venerable Moggallana went into concentration and observed. He saw his mother fell into the realm of hungry ghosts, suffering from hunger and thirst.
White rice is sent to the hungry ghost realm using magical powers to satisfy the mother's hunger.
His mother couldn't wait to see the rice. She stretched out her hands very happily, took the bowl full of rice, and held it in front of her. When she started to eat, flames suddenly burst out of her mouth, and the whole bowl of rice turned into ashes.
It's like burnt charcoal and cannot be eaten!
Seeing this situation, Venerable Moggallana felt very sad and couldn't bear the thought of his mother suffering in the realm of hungry ghosts while he could not save his mother from her suffering!
Then I thought of asking the Buddha to help me to free myself from the bondage of suffering.
Therefore, he immediately came to the Buddha and told the story of his mother's suffering in the realm of hungry ghosts. He also told how he had used his supernatural power to serve food to his mother, but her mother could not eat it. He also sincerely begged the Buddha for mercy.
Rescue.
Picture of Venerable Moggallana rescuing his mother At that time, the Buddha said to Venerable Moggallana: "Don't think that you can save your mother with your supernatural power! You must know that all living beings in the Saha world accumulate evil and create karma throughout their lives.
, the sins are deep. If you want to save your mother, you can’t save her from suffering only by relying on your own magical power, not the power of great merits and conditions!” The Buddha taught Moggallana: “
On the 15th day of the seventh month, all monks should devote themselves to it, piously set up various offerings and food, and offer them respectfully to the Buddha and the Sangha. With the help of the power of the Three Jewels, you can save your mother from the suffering of hunger and thirst in the realm of hungry ghosts. "Moggallana!
After listening to the Buddha's teachings, the person followed the method shown by the Buddha and prepared various foods and drinks on the fifteenth day of the seventh month.
He wrote a copy of the Ullambana Sutra.
It can be seen from this that if one can set up a fast to offer sacrifices to the Buddha and Sangha on the 15th day of the seventh month, his merits will truly surpass the sins of his parents for seven lifetimes.