Guide to worshipping Buddha at Mount Putuo in Zhejiang Province What does the "Ten Things Not to Ask" mean when burning incense and worshipping Buddha?

According to Buddhist legend, during the Dazhong period of the Tang Dynasty, an Indian monk came to Mount Putuo in Zhejiang Province and witnessed the Bodhisattva Avalokitesvara appear in person to preach. The monk gave the Bodhisattva a seven-colored gem, so this place is called the Holy Land of the Appearance of Avalokitesvara. The Buddhist scriptures say that Guanyin resides in Putuo Luojia Mountain in South India, so it is simply called Putuo Mountain.

Guide to worshipping Buddha at Mount Putuo in Zhejiang

1. Puji Temple

1. Yuantong Hall: The main deity is Guanyin (male Guanyin), and the main purpose is to make great wishes. When worshipping, say "Namo Guanshiyin Bodhisattva"

2. Manjusri Hall: The main offering is to Manjusri Bodhisattva, and the main purpose is to seek wisdom. When worshipping, say "Namo Manjusri Bodhisattva"

3. Samantabhadra Hall: The main offering is to Samantabhadra Bodhisattva, and it is mainly for seeking work and career. When worshipping, chant "Namo Samantabhadra Bodhisattva"

4. Main Hall: The main offerings are the Three Buddhas (Shakyamuni Buddha, Amitabha Buddha, and Medicine Buddha), and the main purpose is to pray for family peace. When worshipping, call out "Nano Buddha of the Three Ages"

5. Ksitigarbha Hall: The main offering is to Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva, and the main purpose is to pray for the health of the elders. It was originally ranked sixth because filial piety comes first among all virtues. When worshipping, call "Nano Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva"

6. Pumen Hall: The main deity is the Thousand-armed Thousand-eyed Avalokitesvara Bodhisattva, who will grant all prayers and is very effective in seeking marriage. When worshipping, call out "The Thousand-armed and Thousand-eyed Avalokitesvara Bodhisattva, who is merciful and saves the suffering and the distressed."

7. Galan Hall: The main deity is Galan Bodhisattva, and the main purpose is to seek wealth. When worshipping, call him "Navratra Bodhisattva"

8. Sanzhou Ganying Hall (behind the Tianwang Hall): Mainly dedicated to Bodhisattva Weituo, praying for peace in the home. When worshipping, call "Navratri Bodhisattva"

2. Fayu Temple

1. Hall of Heavenly Kings: Worship Maitreya Buddha upon entering. The future Buddha prays for peace and happiness and goes out to worship Wei Tuo. (Light incense) Go out (Bell Tower on the left, Drum Tower on the right)

2. Jade Buddha Hall: White Jade Sakyamuni Buddha

3. Yuantong Hall: Guanyin Bodhisattva (lighting incense)

4. Thousand-armed Guanyin Hall: Thousand-armed Guanyin Bodhisattva

5. Main Hall: Main offerings to the Three Worlds (Buddha Shakyamuni, Amitabha Buddha, Medicine Buddha) (light incense)

6. Western Three Holy Hall: The main offering is Amitabha Buddha (Western Welcoming Buddha), Guanyin Bodhisattva on the left, and Mahasthamaprapta Bodhisattva on the right (extinguishing the sword light and sword shadow)

7. Guan Gong Temple: Guan Gong

3. Huiji Temple at Foding Mountain

1. Hall of Heavenly Kings: Worship Maitreya Buddha upon entering. The future Buddha prays for peace and happiness and goes out to worship Wei Tuo.

2. Main Hall: Mainly dedicated to the Buddha Shakyamuni

3. Guanyin Hall: It enshrines Guanyin Bodhisattva, and the white jade Guanyin who delivers children. Praying for a child is the most effective method.

4. Nanhai Guanyin Scenic Area

1. Nanhai Guanyin

2. Guanyin Dance: Tianwang Hall, Yuantong Hall

What does "Ten Do Nots" mean when burning incense and worshipping Buddha?

One thing not to ask for: "Don't ask for a healthy body. If your body is healthy, greed will easily arise."

Buddha said that there are four major sufferings in life: "birth, old age, sickness and death". Birth, aging and death are inevitable, but what people worry about most is getting sick. Therefore, those who pray to Buddha, whether they are praying for wealth or for a good marriage, will pray for good health. However, one cannot pray to Buddha for healthiness, because if a person remains healthy for too long, he will lose his respect for life and thus go down the path of indulgence and self-destruction.

The second thing not to ask for: "Don't ask for an easy life. If there are no difficulties in the world, you will become arrogant and extravagant."

Everyone hopes for a smooth life. It is said that most of the things in life are not satisfactory. No one wants to be in troubled times and be troubled by worries. However, we cannot expect a smooth life. Without ups and downs, there will be no state of mind to rise up in adversity, and we will naturally be infected with arrogance. Then our mentality will be depressed, and we will fall into the field of lust and cannot extricate ourselves. Therefore, "adversity is a blessing in life, and no one can become a Buddha without going through disasters."

Three things not to seek: "When studying the mind, do not seek to be free of obstacles. If the mind is free of obstacles, then what you learn will be rapid."

When seeking the truth from Buddha, one cannot seek to understand it all at once. One must be able to grope in the fog and twists and turns. Only then will one have a feeling of great enlightenment when proving the Buddhist state of mind. However, if one finds it easy to learn any kind of knowledge in the world, one will naturally become lazy and will not know how to cherish and hold on to it.

Four things not to seek: "When you are in action, do not seek to be free from demons. If you are in action without demons, your vows will not stand firm."

The mind cannot be without obstacles, and the actions cannot be without demons. This "demon" means suffering. Our mentality can motivate us to move forward, and we must also work hard to do things. As the old saying goes, "Those who accomplished great things in the ancient times not only had extraordinary talents, but also had unyielding determination." The so-called perseverance is not innate, but a mentality that needs to be developed through various hardships. That is why Miao Ye said that if there is no devil in the way, then the vows will not be firm.

Five things not to seek: "Don't seek things that are easy to accomplish, for if things are easy to accomplish, you will become complacent."

What life needs is the rhythm of accumulating sand into piles. If most people try to achieve success in one go, they will not be able to maintain the achievements. Improving bit by bit is what Buddha taught the world. So don't sigh that it is difficult to accomplish anything. Only difficult things are valuable. If doing things is as simple as eating and drinking, how can you achieve anything great?

Six things not to seek: "Do not seek to benefit yourself through friendship. Making friends that benefit you will damage your morality."

There are three most important emotions in the world, and friendship is the most difficult of them. Family love is innate, love is a feeling from the heart, but friends are something you have to choose yourself. So what is the point of making friends? Some people make friends for the sake of benefits, which is a big mistake, because friends are relatives without blood ties, and sincerity is the most important thing. If you measure it by benefits, you are undoubtedly betraying yourself.

The seventh thing not to seek: "Do not seek to please others. If others please you, you will become proud of yourself."

There is an old saying that goes "honest advice may be unpleasant to the ear, but honest advice may be unpleasant to the ear." In life, you should not be surrounded by too many flatterers. If you hear only pleasant words all day long, you will feel conceited over time, and then you will have high expectations but poor skills, and you will be arrogant and conceited, and you will be in a state of looking down on the world. In life, one must always be warned by others, and recognize one's own shortcomings while being embarrassed, so that one can improve oneself.

Eight things not to ask for: "Do good without expecting reward. If you expect reward for your virtue, then you have ulterior motives."

Being kind to others is the foundation of human nature. Can doing good deeds bring good rewards? A person who truly practices spiritual cultivation does good and accumulates virtue just for the sake of doing good and accumulating virtue. He does good deeds with good thoughts in the present moment, without worrying about future rewards. Because if everyone has good thoughts, it will benefit everyone in the end, and everyone will be rewarded. This is the true thought of great kindness.

Nine things not to ask for: "When seeing profit, do not seek to get a share of it, as if you get a share of the profit, your infatuation will be aroused."

The desire for profit is a common human desire. Sakyamuni said that obsession misleads people from becoming Buddhas. Most of these so-called obsessions are the desire for profit. If you fight for profit, how can you have a pure mind for practice? If you fight for something and try to get it, your mind will become polluted. If you fight for something and fail to get it, you will become filled with resentment, dissatisfaction, stupidity, disgust, and murderous intent. After this, you will inevitably fall into the Avici Hell.

Ten things not to seek: "When being suppressed, do not seek to explain yourself. If you do, resentment will grow."

The world is a Shura field, and gossip has always been the cause of many destruction. Punishing evil and promoting good is what cultivators do, but there are many villains in the world who like to spread rumors and spread slander. If you are wronged, there is no need to get entangled with the villains. Because if you want to prove your innocence, you will have resentment towards the villains in your heart, and you will be further away from cultivation. In traditional Buddhist culture, this is the most well-known and important content. Let’s take a look at it together!