A Question for Buddhism
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Abstain from killing should be extended to all sentient beings
including domesticated animals
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I advocate a Middle Way approach to diet, a path between excesssive eating of meat and rigid ascetic-like vegetarianism. This is a path where the choice of meat-eating or vegetarianism must be wisely determined and balanced according to one's circumstances,for example developmental stages and health conditions. I strongly recommend a meat diet for all children at their critical developmental stages, where adequate nutition is vitally required for their proper maturation. On the other hand, I recommend full-time strict (without milk and egg) vegetarianism for ALL adults, with the exception of situations in which someone is badly in need for crucial nutrition to sustain one's life, such as in the case of post-surgery or post-natal recovery. I personally feel that practising vegetarianism per se is a form of meditation for all buddhists. Just like meditating on the emptiness of our body, through vegetarianism buddhists can gradually cultivate a detachment from our sense objects, thereby extinguishing our broader clinging to sense pleasure. We eat to survive, not to satisfy our empty senses. I would like to emphasize that a vegetarian should also eat moderately in terms of quantity. Over eating can deplete our precious agriculture and destabilise the entire ecosystem, indirecting putting all animal sentient beings at risk of suffering. All buddhist adults should strenghten their mind and body by doing yoga to complement their vegetarian diet.
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i have some questions on buddhism... first question... the main tenets of buddhism seem to focus a lot on the self... but does buddhism encourage empathy for the people in their community? i know there are organisations like tze chi that help others, but correct me if i'm wrong, there is actually not a strong culture of active helping in the religion, at least in singapore?
personally i am buddhist. i don't go to the temple regularly, but i try to practise the more universal aspects of the religion in my daily life. i felt quite disillusioned with practitioners of the religion last yr, because my family went through a difficult period... my mum was hospitalised and after three mths in and out of hospital, she was finally diagnosed with cancer.
during this time, i realised that the relatives who stood by us, those who came and prayed for her to get well, helped us wif our daily life, were all christians. none of our buddhist relatives showed us so much concern. and the thing was, our christian relatives did not even try to convert us. they were simply just showing their concern and compassion because they believed that their god wanted them to be compassionate to their fellow human being.
i felt then that if buddhists could be like christians too, and take an active interest in others' life... it would be a good thing...
my second question is abt the sutras... do you feel that most of them are too general? E.g. "performs virtuous deeds" but what is virtuous to someone may not be virtuous to another... similarly, there are many different ways we can interprete the words "pure" and "evil"...
to share another experience... while my mum was still in hospital and i was full of fear of losing her, my ex bf, who is a teacher, and a buddhist who has sought refuge and goes for the san1 bu4 yi bai4 every yr, said that since i cldn't go out with him (because my mum was in hospital) it was not wrong for him to go out for movies and dinner every day with a female colleague whom he later confessed to having feelings for.
when i tried to tell him that i needed him with me, he criticised me further for trying to restrict his social life and even said that he was with me because he cldn't be with the other girl (she was already attached). i was troubled for a long time, and i felt that he was acting in a way that was unlike the way that he presented himself to his colleagues and his students, not like the man that he said he wanted to be.
i am not sure how buddhists seek refuge... but is it possible that the religion is being used by those who feel protected by the religion to justify their actions that could hurt others? is there any sutra that lists out specifically what is meant by a virtuous act and what is meant by an unvirtuous act? for instance, could it be that my ex felt that by consistently going for the san bu yi bai, he was already a virtuous man? but he is not aware of the adverse impact of his other actions on those who loved him?
when i sent the girl whom he went out with an email message, with no harm, but simply to ask her if she could spend less time with my bf, she told him abt it and he took the moral high ground and said that he was amazed at what "hatred" could do. could it be that buddhism has made him feel self-righteous and sure of himself that he simply could not empathise with another's feelings?
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Originally posted by cathykitty:
i have some questions on buddhism... first question... the main tenets of buddhism seem to focus a lot on the self... but does buddhism encourage empathy for the people in their community? i know there are organisations like tze chi that help others, but correct me if i'm wrong, there is actually not a strong culture of active helping in the religion, at least in singapore?
personally i am buddhist. i don't go to the temple regularly, but i try to practise the more universal aspects of the religion in my daily life. i felt quite disillusioned with practitioners of the religion last yr, because my family went through a difficult period... my mum was hospitalised and after three mths in and out of hospital, she was finally diagnosed with cancer.
during this time, i realised that the relatives who stood by us, those who came and prayed for her to get well, helped us wif our daily life, were all christians. none of our buddhist relatives showed us so much concern. and the thing was, our christian relatives did not even try to convert us. they were simply just showing their concern and compassion because they believed that their god wanted them to be compassionate to their fellow human being.
i felt then that if buddhists could be like christians too, and take an active interest in others' life... it would be a good thing...
my second question is abt the sutras... do you feel that most of them are too general? E.g. "performs virtuous deeds" but what is virtuous to someone may not be virtuous to another... similarly, there are many different ways we can interprete the words "pure" and "evil"...
to share another experience... while my mum was still in hospital and i was full of fear of losing her, my ex bf, who is a teacher, and a buddhist who has sought refuge and goes for the san1 bu4 yi bai4 every yr, said that since i cldn't go out with him (because my mum was in hospital) it was not wrong for him to go out for movies and dinner every day with a female colleague whom he later confessed to having feelings for.
when i tried to tell him that i needed him with me, he criticised me further for trying to restrict his social life and even said that he was with me because he cldn't be with the other girl (she was already attached). i was troubled for a long time, and i felt that he was acting in a way that was unlike the way that he presented himself to his colleagues and his students, not like the man that he said he wanted to be.
i am not sure how buddhists seek refuge... but is it possible that the religion is being used by those who feel protected by the religion to justify their actions that could hurt others? is there any sutra that lists out specifically what is meant by a virtuous act and what is meant by an unvirtuous act? for instance, could it be that my ex felt that by consistently going for the san bu yi bai, he was already a virtuous man? but he is not aware of the adverse impact of his other actions on those who loved him?
when i sent the girl whom he went out with an email message, with no harm, but simply to ask her if she could spend less time with my bf, she told him abt it and he took the moral high ground and said that he was amazed at what "hatred" could do. could it be that buddhism has made him feel self-righteous and sure of himself that he simply could not empathise with another's feelings?
Compassion is stressed in Buddhism too, and it is indeed odd and sad that your Buddhist friends showed little concerns during the times. But are you sure your relatives know the dharma and took refuge? Otherwise they aren't really Buddhists nor practicing the buddha dharma.
Buddhism teaches laities to practice the 5 precepts and 10 virtuous deeds. More info here: http://www.jenchen.org.sg/vol7no4a.htm
But more than that Buddhism also teaches people to 'purify the mind'... the mind causes all our thoughts and actions, if we can be always aware of our mind/thoughts and not follow our thoughts blindly, then our mind and defilements can gradually be purified. More than that we can be aware of the true nature of our reality and overcome greed, hatred and ignorance... and attain liberation from all sufferings and the cycle of rebirth in the 6 realms of samsara.
Other religions may teach doing good and avoiding evil, but they do not teach 'purifying the mind' and does not lead people out of the six realms of samsara. The highest state through accumulation of good karma is only a temporary (but long) rebirth in heaven, but one eventually passes away and reborn again in other realms according to karma. A liberated person however, attains Nirvana, the deathless state, the highest bliss that is unconditioned.
In Buddhism doing prostrations and chanting does not guarantee or make a person virtuous or spiritual, if one only occasionally chants or prostrate but does not practice in his everyday life, then he reaps little benefits from Buddhism. Buddhadharma should be a daily, moment to moment practice. People often have the misconception that cultivation means going to temple, chanting and prostrating. This is wrong. You can read more about daily practice here: http://www.jenchen.org.sg/cultivat.htm
Regarding taking refuge you can refer to this article: http://www.jenchen.org.sg/vol7no4a.htm
Extramarital relationship with a married person is definitely an unvirtuous act in Buddhism, and any sexual activities with a married person constitutes sexual misconduct and thus breaks the precepts.
And even though Buddhist texts don't restrict polygamy agreed on all parties (in some societies this is norm), the Buddhist laity is advised to limit themselves to one wife.
Also, he's your ex-bf means you all no longer in relationship right? If you all still in relationship then it is best you don't confront him too much and treat him nicely.. but if you are no longer in relationship then I guess just have to move on..
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thanks so much for the reply. we're no longer in a relationship... i'm trying to move on, but there is still some hurt and anger when i think about the past... i suppose time will heal all wounds...
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Originally posted by cathykitty:
i have some questions on buddhism... first question... the main tenets of buddhism seem to focus a lot on the self... but does buddhism encourage empathy for the people in their community? i know there are organisations like tze chi that help others, but correct me if i'm wrong, there is actually not a strong culture of active helping in the religion, at least in singapore?
personally i am buddhist. i don't go to the temple regularly, but i try to practise the more universal aspects of the religion in my daily life. i felt quite disillusioned with practitioners of the religion last yr, because my family went through a difficult period... my mum was hospitalised and after three mths in and out of hospital, she was finally diagnosed with cancer.
during this time, i realised that the relatives who stood by us, those who came and prayed for her to get well, helped us wif our daily life, were all christians. none of our buddhist relatives showed us so much concern. and the thing was, our christian relatives did not even try to convert us. they were simply just showing their concern and compassion because they believed that their god wanted them to be compassionate to their fellow human being.
i felt then that if buddhists could be like christians too, and take an active interest in others' life... it would be a good thing...
my second question is abt the sutras... do you feel that most of them are too general? E.g. "performs virtuous deeds" but what is virtuous to someone may not be virtuous to another... similarly, there are many different ways we can interprete the words "pure" and "evil"...
to share another experience... while my mum was still in hospital and i was full of fear of losing her, my ex bf, who is a teacher, and a buddhist who has sought refuge and goes for the san1 bu4 yi bai4 every yr, said that since i cldn't go out with him (because my mum was in hospital) it was not wrong for him to go out for movies and dinner every day with a female colleague whom he later confessed to having feelings for.
when i tried to tell him that i needed him with me, he criticised me further for trying to restrict his social life and even said that he was with me because he cldn't be with the other girl (she was already attached). i was troubled for a long time, and i felt that he was acting in a way that was unlike the way that he presented himself to his colleagues and his students, not like the man that he said he wanted to be.
i am not sure how buddhists seek refuge... but is it possible that the religion is being used by those who feel protected by the religion to justify their actions that could hurt others? is there any sutra that lists out specifically what is meant by a virtuous act and what is meant by an unvirtuous act? for instance, could it be that my ex felt that by consistently going for the san bu yi bai, he was already a virtuous man? but he is not aware of the adverse impact of his other actions on those who loved him?
when i sent the girl whom he went out with an email message, with no harm, but simply to ask her if she could spend less time with my bf, she told him abt it and he took the moral high ground and said that he was amazed at what "hatred" could do. could it be that buddhism has made him feel self-righteous and sure of himself that he simply could not empathise with another's feelings?
Good morning cathykitty,
I am sorry to hear about your mother's plight. I hope that she is recovering well and that you have the financial might to make ends meet right now.
After reading what you had posted, I feel that you should be appreciative and feel blessed to have christian relatives who helped you out during this crisis of your life.
As AEN had mentioned, we don't know whether your buddhist relatives really do understand the Buddha's Teachings. However, don't be surprised that there are people who understand the Buddha's Teachings but chose not to do anything about it or choose to do something about it which are socially disengage.
I have an aunt who is a devout buddhist and has been taking care of my grandmother who is suffering from dementia for near 10 years. Her husband is quite successful in his business. My aunt can give up the responsibility of taking care of my grandmother and be a taitai. But no, she chose to shoulder that duty. She told me, my grandmother has a total of 11 children. To her, it is ridiculous to say that none of them can take care of my grandmother. She is blessed that her husband did not object her decision and allow my grandmother to stay with them. Even her sons take turn to help moving my grandmother around (my grandmother is simply wheelchair bound and survive by feeding in liquid food, no controls of bowels, etc).
This aunt I have, has an elder sister who is a devout christian. She converted at the time when her marriage had problems. 2 years ago, she found out she had cancer and the operation was successful. Since then, she never stops to preach about how great Jesus is in saving her life (and I thought it's by the doctors?). To us, we may find that it's kind of absurd to have someone keep 'advertising' his/her religion. But to them, due to their faith and conviction, they consider to be living testimonies for their God.
I also feel that in Singapore, the altruism spirit that can be found in Buddhism is not strong. But that shouldn't bring you to giving up hope in the Buddha's Teachings.
If you willing to commit some time into studying the sutras, you can find that answers in there. Read sutras that are uncommonly found compare to those that you can commonly find in free distribution area. Certain sutras were preached by Buddha for easy read. Some were preached with more details in them. If you're really interested, comprehend both and you will know how to reconcile them.
In regards to your ex-bf, he's a jerk. Just ignore him.
Time will not heal your anger and hurt; time only numbs them. Your anger and hurt will only be healed when you choose to let those emotions go. You feel anger and hurt is because you still have some feelings for him. When you have feelings for him, you attached to him mentally, but you know very well that his heart has left you, this knowledge is the source of your anger and hurt. Only when that love for him is gone, then the anger and hurt will go away. I hope you can do that if not, it will be unfair for a new love to come into your life to have your heart not solely on him.
Love yourself;
Love your family;
Love those who love you;
And you will find the strength to move on. When you're despair and at your wits' end, offer your prayers to the Buddhas and Bodhisattvas, if you have a pure heart and good intentions, they will help you. Have faith.
Take good care okay? We hope to hear good news from you the next time =)
å�—ç„¡ä¹…é� 實æˆ�釋迦牟尼佛
�無多寶如來
�無妙法蓮�經
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The 1st issue is the identity of Buddhists in Singapore. Most people who has not even taken refuge in Triple Gems claim to be Buddhists. For example, there are a lot of people who are vegetarians on the 1st and 15th day of Lunar calendar, who do not understand anything about Buddhism claim to be Buddhists. Therefore, it is important to differentiate who is realm Buddist and who is not.
The 2nd issue is due to diversity. We have Mahayana, Theravada, Tibetan Buddhism in Singapore. Within Mahayana and Tibetan, there are also many different divisions with different styles. It is important to find the right group or organization that best suit your capacity. If you like Tzu Chi, why not join them and learn from them??
It is also crucial to ask why one become a Mahayana Buddhist?? Some people become Buddhists when they observe the suffering of this world and become compassinate and vow to save other beings. This is what we call 悲增上 (compassion motivated or inclined). Another group of Buddhists sought after wisdom in Buddhism and vow to study and spread Dharma to others i.e. they are more wisdom motivated or inclined. There is nothing wrong with either camp as their faith is conditioned upon Bodhi Heart (��心) which comprises of Wisdom and Compassion deep from within. And Bodhi Heart can be cultivated from one life to another.
The less desirable way is if one's faith in Buddhism is based on something other than Bodhi Heart e.g.
- seeking protection and blessing or healing from sickness
- seeking magical power
- peer pressure, family tradition
This kind of faith can be easily shaken as it is conditioned external factors in your current life only.
In Surangama Sutra, Ananda gave the reason why he became a monk was because he was impressed by Gautama's impressive look (32 characteristics). Since this is not based on the Bodhi heart (or Buddha nature), Ananda is slow to attain Arhatship and fell prey to indecent artifice.
Quote:
The Buddha said to Ananda, “You and I are of the same family and share the affection of a natural relationship. At the time of your initial resolve, what were the outstanding characteristics which you saw in my Dharma that caused you to suddenly cast aside the deep kindness and love found in the world?”
Ananda said to the Buddha, “I saw the Tathagata’s thirty-two characteristics, which were so supremely wonderful, so incomparable, that his entire body had a shimmering transparence just like that of crystal.
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i have a question...my dad demise about three weeks ago..we had buddhist rites for him..the monk attending request us to have the ordinary chanting at $1k or a more detailed chanting （地臧王�）at $1.5k...
my burmese friend was around at that time and he was astonised that monk charged a price for these prayers. In his country, it is their duty to perform such rites and for free..afterall, temples and public donations provide for the monks
i was dumbfound to answer him
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Originally posted by dragon_stone:
i have a question...my dad demise about three weeks ago..we had buddhist rites for him..the monk attending request us to have the ordinary chanting at $1k or a more detailed chanting （地臧王�）at $1.5k...
my burmese friend was around at that time and he was astonised that monk charged a price for these prayers. In his country, it is their duty to perform such rites and for free..afterall, temples and public donations provide for the monks
i was dumbfound to answer him
Hi,
Namo Amida Butsu, sorry to hear about your father's passing. May he be well and happy.
Well, there are monks and there are "monks". Some of these "monks", unfortunately, are just "ritual monks" who do such ceremonies to "earn a living". Most of them have contracts/contacts with funeral parlours in Singapore who call them up when their services are needed. My auntie (my maternal uncle's wife and a free-thinker) had the same experience when her father passed away and Buddhist rituals were conducted. She even asked me to listen in on their chanting to make sure they didn't "short-cut".
Best is if you are able to find a well-respected temple. Some of them do not even charge, but of course, a donation, especially to cover transport costs, would be appreciated.
Gassho
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nice to hear tat..it all too sudden and the pressure was to great then to organise the last rites..the tablet is at kong meng san and there will be the 49 days praying soon
anyway thanks for the thoughts..
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Originally posted by sanath:
Hi,
Namo Amida Butsu, sorry to hear about your father's passing. May he be well and happy.
Well, there are monks and there are "monks". Some of these "monks", unfortunately, are just "ritual monks" who do such ceremonies to "earn a living". Most of them have contracts/contacts with funeral parlours in Singapore who call them up when their services are needed. My auntie (my maternal uncle's wife and a free-thinker) had the same experience when her father passed away and Buddhist rituals were conducted. She even asked me to listen in on their chanting to make sure they didn't "short-cut".
Best is if you are able to find a well-respected temple. Some of them do not even charge, but of course, a donation, especially to cover transport costs, would be appreciated.
Gassho
To add-on to what sanath had mention, those temples who do not charge for a fee usually comes with a condition:- that is the person who request is a member of the temple. I think let's be fair to the temple. If these good temples are to do it for free without conditions, I think they have no time to do other things as there are so many people who pass away everyday.
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my grandma was member in one of the temple in telok kurau. even then, we have to pay (quite a lot too) to get the praying done.
my point is i dun expect free praying but the fees charged are getting rediculous.
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If you know Chinese, you can chant Di Zhang Jing yourself and transfer merit. Or you can chant the shorter Amituo Jing (阿弥陀�） or even just the name of the Buddha/Bodhisattva (amitabha or Na Mo Di Zhang Pu Sa)。All these are preferrably done within 49 days, the sooner the better.
Think about it this way, those who charge you a heavy sum, they may not be sincere when they chant since they are after the $$$. This kind of chanting I seriously doubt the merit. Chanting by close relatives can be very powerful as they are close to the dead.
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And I recommend donating to charity organization like Tzu Chi Foundation on behalf on the dead if you can. This can help the dead to be reborn to better realm.
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Originally posted by dragon_stone:
my grandma was member in one of the temple in telok kurau. even then, we have to pay (quite a lot too) to get the praying done.
my point is i dun expect free praying but the fees charged are getting rediculous.
Trust me, $1k to $1.5k for 地�� is still considered within the market rate.
If you want cheaper, then opt for 弥陀� which is less than $1k. This is how the market charge.
Last time, you have to pay extra for putting the remains into the casket; and the so call 'lifting the casket' when you move off to crematorium. But seems like they take off that charge liao. Time is bad. If the chanting monks are Singaporeans or Malaysians, I think still okay, if they from China...then good luck to you =)
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I read from account from �木� that last time 广洽法师 only charged 1 dollar to help in chanting for the dead ... sigh !!!
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Originally posted by JitKiat:
I read from account from �木� that last time 广洽法师 only charged 1 dollar to help in chanting for the dead ... sigh !!!
'cos they are rich and they don't need that kind of monie for a living. -
Originally posted by cathykitty:
i have some questions on buddhism... first question... the main tenets of buddhism seem to focus a lot on the self... but does buddhism encourage empathy for the people in their community? i know there are organisations like tze chi that help others, but correct me if i'm wrong, there is actually not a strong culture of active helping in the religion, at least in singapore?
personally i am buddhist. i don't go to the temple regularly, but i try to practise the more universal aspects of the religion in my daily life. i felt quite disillusioned with practitioners of the religion last yr, because my family went through a difficult period... my mum was hospitalised and after three mths in and out of hospital, she was finally diagnosed with cancer.
during this time, i realised that the relatives who stood by us, those who came and prayed for her to get well, helped us wif our daily life, were all christians. none of our buddhist relatives showed us so much concern. and the thing was, our christian relatives did not even try to convert us. they were simply just showing their concern and compassion because they believed that their god wanted them to be compassionate to their fellow human being.
i felt then that if buddhists could be like christians too, and take an active interest in others' life... it would be a good thing...
my second question is abt the sutras... do you feel that most of them are too general? E.g. "performs virtuous deeds" but what is virtuous to someone may not be virtuous to another... similarly, there are many different ways we can interprete the words "pure" and "evil"...
to share another experience... while my mum was still in hospital and i was full of fear of losing her, my ex bf, who is a teacher, and a buddhist who has sought refuge and goes for the san1 bu4 yi bai4 every yr, said that since i cldn't go out with him (because my mum was in hospital) it was not wrong for him to go out for movies and dinner every day with a female colleague whom he later confessed to having feelings for.
when i tried to tell him that i needed him with me, he criticised me further for trying to restrict his social life and even said that he was with me because he cldn't be with the other girl (she was already attached). i was troubled for a long time, and i felt that he was acting in a way that was unlike the way that he presented himself to his colleagues and his students, not like the man that he said he wanted to be.
i am not sure how buddhists seek refuge... but is it possible that the religion is being used by those who feel protected by the religion to justify their actions that could hurt others? is there any sutra that lists out specifically what is meant by a virtuous act and what is meant by an unvirtuous act? for instance, could it be that my ex felt that by consistently going for the san bu yi bai, he was already a virtuous man? but he is not aware of the adverse impact of his other actions on those who loved him?
when i sent the girl whom he went out with an email message, with no harm, but simply to ask her if she could spend less time with my bf, she told him abt it and he took the moral high ground and said that he was amazed at what "hatred" could do. could it be that buddhism has made him feel self-righteous and sure of himself that he simply could not empathise with another's feelings?
Hi CathyKitty,
It does not mean that if one is a buddhist, it automatically means that one is morally-upright and a virtuous person. 'Buddhist' is just a label, a conventional term that we give to ourselves. It does not mean that you are in a high-ground because of a term when your actions speak otherwise.
Regards,
isis
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Originally posted by yamizi:
To add-on to what sanath had mention, those temples who do not charge for a fee usually comes with a condition:- that is the person who request is a member of the temple. I think let's be fair to the temple. If these good temples are to do it for free without conditions, I think they have no time to do other things as there are so many people who pass away everyday.
Hi i do believe that when you have the condition to meet the right monks or nuns and request them to chant for your deceased loved ones. They will do it without a price tag. I don't remember the temple that i used to patronised has a memberlist.And to dragonstone, sorry to hear your loss.
Amituofo
/\
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Originally posted by Isis:
Hi i do believe that when you have the condition to meet the right monks or nuns and request them to chant for your deceased loved ones. They will do it without a price tag. I don't remember the temple that i used to patronised has a memberlist.And to dragonstone, sorry to hear your loss.
Amituofo
/\
Not everyone has as good condition as you.
Sadhu
/\
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Originally posted by JitKiat:
If you know Chinese, you can chant Di Zhang Jing yourself and transfer merit. Or you can chant the shorter Amituo Jing (阿弥陀�） or even just the name of the Buddha/Bodhisattva (amitabha or Na Mo Di Zhang Pu Sa)。All these are preferrably done within 49 days, the sooner the better.
Think about it this way, those who charge you a heavy sum, they may not be sincere when they chant since they are after the $$$. This kind of chanting I seriously doubt the merit. Chanting by close relatives can be very powerful as they are close to the dead.
thanks for the advice, will look for this Jing. really, it's for my dad..
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Originally posted by yamizi:
Trust me, $1k to $1.5k for 地�� is still considered within the market rate.
If you want cheaper, then opt for 弥陀� which is less than $1k. This is how the market charge.
Last time, you have to pay extra for putting the remains into the casket; and the so call 'lifting the casket' when you move off to crematorium. But seems like they take off that charge liao. Time is bad. If the chanting monks are Singaporeans or Malaysians, I think still okay, if they from China...then good luck to you =)
Well, the main monk is local ('cos he can also speak english) and the other two are of china origin. $1k for ordinary jing as mentioned by the monk, 地�� is $1.5k. End of the day, still have to give them ang pows, but no matter so long they are thorough with their chanting
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Originally posted by dragon_stone:
Well, the main monk is local ('cos he can also speak english) and the other two are of china origin. $1k for ordinary jing as mentioned by the monk, 地�� is $1.5k. End of the day, still have to give them ang pows, but no matter so long they are thorough with their chanting
The ordinary jing is the one you're looking for lor.It's better to be recited by family members lah. I believe you can read hanyu pinyin right? Even though he had passed away for some time, do recite sutra and dedicate merits to him.
No harm and beneficial too.