The Amitabha Buddha celebration originates from the story of Chan Master Yongming Yanshou, a monk of the Five Dynasties and early Song Dynasty.

Once, Emperor Zhong Yi of Wu Yue offered meals to the sangha members from all directions at Yongming Temple. After being invited by the emperor, many monks came to the temple to accept the offerings. Among them was a long‑eared monk dressed in ragged clothes and covered in scabies. Without the emperor’s invitation, he sat in a VIP seat, which shocked and disgusted everyone present. Seeing this, Emperor Zhong Yi became very displeased and ordered that the long‑eared monk be driven out of the temple.

Afterwards, Emperor Zhong Yi asked Chan Master Yongming whether any of the monks were incarnations of the Buddha. The emperor believed that if his offering was made to a Buddha’s incarnation, he would gain immense merit. Chan Master Yongming replied that the long‑eared monk was in fact the incarnation of Buddha Dipankara.

Hearing this, Emperor Zhong Yi regretted his actions and personally went to find the incarnation of Buddha Dipankara to apologize. At that moment, Buddha Dipankara simply said one sentence: “Amitabha is talkative.” Then he passed away.

Upon hearing these words, Emperor Zhong Yi immediately realized that Chan Master Yongming himself was the incarnation of Amitabha Buddha. Overjoyed, he hurried back to Yongming Temple, only to be told that Chan Master Yongming had already attained rebirth.

Later, people regarded Chan Master Yongming as the incarnation of Amitabha Buddha and naturally set his birthday as Amitabha’s birthday.

Thus, to commemorate Amitabha Buddha’s birthday, Than Hsiang Temple held a noon offering session on 5 January 2026 (17th day of the 11th month).

Before the start of the Noon Offering session, the volunteers, as usual, respectfully offered incense, flowers, LED lights, fruits, and delicious vegetarian dishes to the Buddha.

At 10:45 a.m., the Noon Offering session officially commenced. Everyone focused mindfully and chanted sincerely, creating a deeply solemn atmosphere.

Under the guidance of the Sangha members, everyone experienced great joy in the Dharma throughout the chanting.

After the Noon Offering session, the Sangha members led the assembly to the Ground Floor San Sheng Dian for the dedication of merits.

With the completion of the dedication of merits, the Noon Offering session concluded successfully.

******************************************************
More photos:https://thanhsiang.org/ch/node/6807
******************************************************

Spread the Buddha's teachings to guide more people to study Buddhism.
Continue diligently in the path studying the Buddha's teachings and listening to the Dharma.
Follow us on:
https://linktr.ee/thanhsiang