03/24/2024

24 local Austin people of various ethnic groups sought refuge

On the afternoon of March 24, Xiangyun Temple held a ceremony for taking refuge in the Triple Gem. 24 local Austin people of various ethnic groups sought refuge. More than fifty relatives and friends came to the scene to watch and bless the ceremony.

The entire ceremony was conducted in English and was accompanied by a presentation with English subtitles. At the end of the ceremony, venerable Jueji sprinkled holy water on the converts one by one, issued refuge certificates, and explained the meaning of the Dharma names to each person in detail, encouraging everyone to persevere and make progress on the Buddhist path.

Many of the converts this time came to know Buddhism through participating in the Saturday English service, and then identified Buddhism as their lifelong faith. Most of them are young adults with talents in various fields. There are mother- daughter converts, husband and wife converts , and single converts. I was deeply moved by the solemn and grand ceremony. Pri Tyagi, who is of Indian origin, immediately encouraged his two sons, aged 14 and 16, to join the Second Youth League and work together to promote humanistic Buddhism.