Wesak Day fell on May 3 this year. It is this day that the Buddhist community commemorates the birth, enlightenment and Parinibbana (final passing away) of Lord Buddha. On this auspicious day, we are encouraged to do Dana (alms giving) and many Buddhist temples also offer the public "offering of light" programmes which can lead the way towards spiritual development and attainment of Nibbana.
We also celebrate this festival at our Sai Centre annually. Our prayers began at 10 a.m. and included a ten-minute recitation of a mantra for the victims of the recent Nepal earthquake. This was followed by the Bathing of the Buddha ceremony. Bathing the statue of the Buddha symbolizes our aspiration, determination and effort to purify our body, speech and mind. There was a good turnout of devotees, young and old, to celebrate this occasion. Here are some pictures I took.
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| Offerings to the Buddha |
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| Our centre decorated with Buddhist flags |
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| Statue of Lord Buddha for the bathing ceremony |
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| A devotee bathing the Buddha statue |
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| Baby also wants to take part! |
The Phor Tay temple also has a statue of the Buddha for bathing, as is customary every year, and many devotees go there for this purpose. Devotees are also given small bags of the water which has been used for bathing the Buddha, to take home for washing the face or bathing.
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| A devotee bathing the Buddha at P.T. temple |
Fortunately the weather in the evening was fine despite threatening rain clouds and many of us managed to take part in the annual Wesak Day float procession. I found that the floats this year were not as elaborate as in previous years (maybe due to rising costs + GST!!) but nevertheless, it was a spiritually enlightening experience watching so many creative works of art slowly moving by, each housing a radiant likeness of the Buddha. For some reason or other, my photographic skills were not at their best that evening, so I am posting only the better photos! Enjoy!
May the light of the Buddha, Dhamma and Sangha illuminate all sentient beings with
good health, happiness and peace!
SADHU! SADHU! SADHU!
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