Religion Tree: The Process Of Religion Passing From Generation To Generation

Religion is something that you believe naturally and it is nearly impossible to convince one to believe in another. It is usually passed on from generation to generation. My family is Buddhist. Being one of the most popular religions that ex in the world, it is no doubt that everyone practices the same practices but also unique in their own way. It has been a religion followed by both of my parents side of the family. After a careful and informative discussion with my grandparents from both sides of the family, I came to conclusion that traditions are mostly kept the same with my parents but some traditions are switched around. My grandparents from both sides lived in the same area with the same beliefs which means they shared the same exact beliefs as their parents. Both families have a small shrine display of Guan Yin which means, “The One Who” in which they pray to with incense every day, but on the first day and fifteenth day of the month in the lunar calendar with incense and gives the Guan Yin oranges, rice wine, chicken and miniature red cups to pour the rice wine in. This is done to “feed” Guan Yin so she can bless us with luck, prosperity and get rid of evil spirits. Right next to the Guan Yin, we have a lotus flower which represents the ability to live with wisdom and purity despite all obstacles. Zen Monk Thich Nhat Hanh has a powerful saying, “No mud, no lotus. ” The lotus is a flower that grows in mud and through thick and thin, it was strong enough to blossom above the mud in order for people to see which is why it is a symbol of transforming our suffering into liberation. Most Buddhists deeply believe that the Guanyin would place them in the heart of the lotus after they leave the world, and sent them to the Pure Land of the West. The Pure Land of the West is where only peace exists, once the Buddhists are sent to there, they will reincarnate with good luck.

When we pray, we usually hold three incense because we need to feed Buddha, the Buddhism and the Monks. After praying and all the incense gone down, we burn joss paper which we burn to send money and materialist goods to the deceased relatives. Joss paper is burnt in almost every holiday, ancestors’ birthday and funerals. It can be burned as it is or can be folded; my family prays with it as it is and folds it when they have to burn it. After the papers turn into ash, we pour the rice wine into the ashes. Everyone should not wash their hair on days we pray. They believed that washing hair will wash away all the good luck.

My parents share similar religious beliefs as both of my grandparents, however they tend to be more liberal. They only pray on the first and fifteenth of the month and not every day. My grandparents used to go to the temple to pray on holidays but my parents only go when they are free on that holiday. Whenever, we pray at home, we leave the oranges in front of the Guan Yin until the next time we have to pray and we eat the chicken for dinner. They pray with the same essentials as my grandparents, sometimes they even bring the necessities to the temple to pray. My parents’ home have a Guan Yin just like my grandparents. They burn joss paper but does not use as much as my grandparents do. My grandparents use an orange tin can to burn the joss but my parents just use a regular bucket. However, my parents sometimes tend to forget when the holiday is approaching because of a busy schedule but that never happen with my grandparents. Also, my parents are more lenient with the idea of not washing hair especially on the first and fifteenth day of the month. They will advise me to not wash it but know it is too much to remember all these traditions. However, they do believe that we should not wash our hair on major holidays.

I will follow my parents’ way of being Buddhist instead of my grandparents because it is more realistic to the American world. Praying everyday will be too time consuming for me because I have a busy schedule but I will when I retire. It is only relevant for elderly’s who do not work. Since we live with one side of my grandparents now, whenever my grandmother prays, it represents all of us. So when my mother prays when she retires, it will represent my whole family. However, I will always find time to go to temples to pray since there are many Buddhist temples in the Chinatowns of New York. I will follow my parents lenient idea of only not washing hair on holidays. It is very easy for me to forget especially when I always follow a routine to wash hair every other day. Like my parents, I will go visit my ancestors and pray to them whenever I visit my home country. I will follow every holiday tradition there is because that not only shows respect to my religion but to my ancestors as well. As proven my parents are not as religious as my grandparents are in terms of religious practices. For example, Buddhists believe that in a married couples relationship, the husband should be the leader of the family and the women should always do what her husband requests. However, it is the opposite for my parents. My mom is the leader of the house because my dads’ only responsibility in the family is to provide money and food for the family. My mother is the one who guides the family through problems and she is the one who instructs my father what to do. They both have to be faithful in the relationship in order for it to last.

As generations pass on, I realized that the next generation is “less Buddhist” than the previous which I hope to stop that because I believe that religion is a part of our identity. It has an aspect on the way we think, act and believe. One of the major holidays celebrated by the Buddhists is Qing Ming which is usually celebrated in the beginning of April and lasts three days. On the first day we would visit our ancestors graves by bringing food such as sweet rice balls and tea and we burned incense. We would clean the tomb area and make sure weeds were pulled out so grass can grow. However, because our ancestors are in China and we are in America, we pray to the Guan Yin at home with the same necessities we would use if we are in China. There is a serious side of Qing Ming but there is also a time for us to have fun. When I was in China, my grandmother would take me to the park to fly kites. The park was filled with kids and adults flying kites and many families bought food out to have a picnic. The best time to fly the kite was at night because we would tie lanterns to the kite so as the kite was in the sky, my grandmother would cut the string off and let the kite fly. This brings the family happiness and health. We do not do that anymore now that we are in America; we just pray at home and eat chicken.

In conclusion, Buddhism is a religion that was passed on from both sides of the family from generation to generation. Each generation had its’ own unique ways to incorporate the religion into their lives but the beliefs and traditions were similar. It has been passed on for generations and I will not let it stop. Religion is a part of who we are and has an effect on our actions. Being Buddhist has guide my family through many problems we thought we would not overcome, spread positivity and luck, and be faithful to others.