The Buddhist Lent is the Moral Camping period for monks
The monks not only study the Pali Cannon but also practice meditation. Moreover, when there are many new monks, their families and relatives will go to the temple to visit the new monks. Even if the new monks are able to teach Dhamma, the senior monks can, so the new monks’ families and relatives have a good chance to listen to the senior monks’ sermon and make merit. So, it is also the moral study time for the congregations.
What the Buddhists should do during the Buddhist Lent
During the Buddhist Lent, both senior and junior monks stay in the same places, so it is a good chance for the congregations to make merit with a lot of merit fields. Our forebears never let the monks to have the special time only, they did too. Our forebears had this special time by making a pledge to do some special things during the Buddhist Lent.
Three Dhamma Principles in Buddhism
They are
1. Stop doing bad deeds
2. Do only good deeds
3. Purify his/her mind
“Stop doing bad deeds for monks” is deeper than not doing the bad common things for people. The monks have to get rid of or lessen their defilements and some of them are difficult to determine worldly that they are bad deeds such as the distraction of mind. The monks try to lessen their distraction by meditation. They try their best for the dignity of their monkhood.