By Venerable Master Hsing Yun
Founder of Fo Guang Shan
Oh great, compassionate Buddha!
Please allow me to unburden the grief in my heart:
While we are living and working
In peace and contentment,
There are still many refugees who are suffering hardships, sorrows, and worries
In some parts of this world.
Some lost their homes and wander from place to place
Because their countries were engaged in wars.
Some left their hometowns
Because chaos, political unrest, and social upheavals.
Some are forced to flee
Because of political factors;
Some embarked to another country
To make a better living.
They are like flowing water that has lost its source;
They are like flowering plants that have lost their roots;
They have no one to rely upon, and drift along with the wind;
They have no family or help to get back on their feet.
Their eyes are expression of despair;
Their faces are etched with the traces of suffering.
They miss the customs of their mother country;
They worry about the people from their hometowns.
Oh great, compassionate Buddha!
Please commiserate with these refugees:
May they obtain safe protection;
May they live carefree lives;
May others embrace the refugees and lend them a hand;
May others show great compassion and heal the wounds of these refugees.
Furthermore, I pray to you, Buddha,
To grant them good causes and conditions,
To relieve the present difficult situation.
Oh great, compassionate Buddha!
There is another group of refugees:
Some forsake their hometowns and abandon their families;
Some betrayed their country for advancement and jeopardize their country’s security.
Oh Buddha!
Please inspire them:
May they mend their ways without delay;
May they repent quickly;
May they be able to detach themselves from the prison of their mind;
May they be able to turn over a new leaf and start anew.
Oh great, compassionate Buddha!
I pray for your protection and support:
May the refugees believe in your teachings;
May they be able to seek haven in your Pure Land.
In the Buddha’s Pure Land,
There is no dirty pollution,
Only a clean and pure environment;
There is no economic possession,
Only the daily necessities of wealth held in equity;
There is no suspicious misunderstanding,
Only mutual trust;
There is no slander among people,
Only harmonious families;
There is no hostility among enemies,
Only mutually helpful friendship;
There is no hardship of life,
Only the contentment of comfort;
There are no class differences,
Only the peace of moral transformation;
There are no suffering homeless people,
Only joyful Dharma companions.
Oh great, compassionate Buddha,
Please accept my sincerest prayer!
Oh great, compassionate Buddha,
Please accept my sincerest prayer!
(Excerpted from “A Prayer for Refugees 家庭普照祈願文)” from Pearls of Wisdom: Prayers for Engaged Living by Ven. Master Hsing Yun)