Page 33 - HuongTuKySu-PhiChau2021-Final_Neat

Loving Kindness Chronicles - Africa

After a night in little rustic wood cabins on the bank of the Nile River accompanied by the calling of insects
and lizards chasing one another, the next morning we found our beds and all the furniture littered with insect

droppings. Regardless, another night had passed with some unforgettable memories. After breakfast, our team
headed to a remote village called “Buyende,” the hometown of Bhante Sangharakkhita, the first disciple of
Bhante Buddharakkhita, and six other novice monks. One can say that the people of this village are kindred with
Buddhism. They have certainly made significant contributions to Buddhism in Uganda by allowing their sons to
become Buddhist monks and donating land to establish a meditation center.

At dawn, Bhante Sangharakkhita and the six novice monks had already set out from Entebbe to meet us in
their home village of Buyende. This reminded me of the Buddha and his disciples who also left their homes in
search of Dharma until the day they found it, they all returned to where they were born and grew up to help their
friends and relatives. The day of homecoming was a day full of celebration from the capital to the countryside,
everyone was excited and happy waiting for their arrival with flowers and music. Here in Buyende, though mak-
ing ends meet is a constant struggle, everyone was still happily drumming, dancing and singing to welcome the
return of their loved
ones. It was clear to see
that they were very
proud of their sons. It
was here that a former
general, who is now a
member of the Uganda
Buddhist Centre, donat-
ed 2 tracts of land for
the establishment of a
meditation center and
shared a few words to
encourage more people
in this village to let their
children practice Bud-
dhism.

After the village
chiefs’ remarks, we had the inauguration ceremony for the second well and the distribution of food and school
supplies in a most joyful atmosphere. We then headed to a second village about 30 minutes away where many
elders and young children were waiting for us at a modest school site, facing two magestic mountains. Following
our instructions, the villagers came up one by one to receive their food supplies while the children sat in rows as
the team members handed each child our “Dreams Take Flight” gift of school supplies.

The sun was setting as we continued to our final village of the day. It was quite a rough ride traveling through
dirt roads with giant potholes. The entire bus was rocking side to side in the dark of night as we made our way
through the woodlands. In the distance, we could see some flickering lights from the little huts and it was here
that the villagers had gathered and waited for a long time. The village young men and women were both very
eager to help us unload bags of rice and flour from the truck. As for the children, they were also most coopera-
tive which helped us greatly in distributing school supplies to them smoothly. Lastly, to close out the day we had
an inauguration ceremony for the third well in this village. We finished at around 9pm and made it back to our
hotel around 11pm. Before we left, the villagers generously gifted us their own home-grown cassavas, avocados,
mangoes, beans, and bananas. These gift bags full of love and gratitude certainly made the whole team forget all
of our weariness.

We also could not forget to thank the Uganda TV station for accompanying Huong Tu Foundation and the
Uganda Buddhist Centre group today. All of these images will help spread the message of loving kindness and
so Dharma will flourish throughout Uganda as well as the entire African continent in general.

Wishing the teachings of Gautama Buddha,
Will flourish far and wide throughout Uganda.
From the cities to the countryside,
All will enjoy serenity and delight.

33