Vesak Celeberated In Brussels With Participation Of International Buddhist Community

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Brussels, Belgium -- Decorated with Buddhist flags, scores of colourful Vesak lanterns, and also other decors presented by several Buddhist countries, gave an ambiance of a temple and serene atmosphere to the Sri Lankan Residence in Brussels, on the evening of Sunday 26th May, when the Embassy of Sri Lanka to the Kingdom of Belgium, Luxembourg and the Mission to the European Union marked the noble Day of Vesak.

The event was graced by the presence of Hon. Deputy Speaker of the Sri Lanka Parliament, Mr. Chandima Weerakkody and the five-member cross-party Parliamentary delegation from Sri Lanka who are on an official visit to the European Parliament.

Ven. Murungasyaye Gnanissara Nayaka Thero of Jethavana Vihara in Paris and Ven. Pra Shdhinanaivides of Wat Thai Dhammarama Temple in Brussels and monks conducted the religious ceremony, including the Buddha Pooja, a Dhamma Sermon, and invoking blessings by chanting Seth Pirith followed by a brief meditation programme.

The second half of the programme began with the lighting of the Vesak lanterns by the participants and inaugurating the illumination. Addressing the gathering that consisted the diplomatic corp, the Sri Lankan community in Belgium and Luxembourg, Ambassador P.M. Amza, recalled the joint efforts of the international Buddhist community, led by Sri Lanka to gain international recognition for the Day of Vesak in 1999. The life of Lord Buddha, was exemplary and his teachings convey a timeless message for every individual to live happily and peacefully, he said.

A brief cultural programme symbolizing the diversity with which the millions of Buddhists around the world commemorate Vesak, brought in a group of Sri Lankans and Mission staff singing devotional songs (Bakthi gee), and the Thai Buddhist Community presenting two traditional dance items honouring the noble triple gem. At the end of the days programme, the gathering also had the opportunity to enjoy a sumptuous Sri Lankan vegetarian meal.

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Thai PM visit Sri Lanka – a platform to align the Buddhist Nations of Asia

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Colombo, Sri Lanka -- Thai Prime Minister Ms. Shinawatra is due to visit Buddhist Sri Lanka during the month of Wesak. The bond that Sri Lanka and former Siam (Thailand) share needs to go beyond diplomatic niceties.

<< Thai Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra

The people of present and future need to know the exact nature of what ties Buddhist nations together. In addition to seriously considering forming a League of Buddhist Nations it is suggested that a film be produced in co-partnership about the “Fascinating Journey from Sri Lanka to Siam” based on the narration of Wilbagedera who wrote the original narration of his journey to the Thai capital of Ayuthiya and the magnificent welcome accorded to the Sri Lankan delegation by the Thai King.

Let all those preparing to welcome the Thai PM remember that she arrives not to talk about multiculturalism but to mark the special Buddhist bond that exists between Buddhists and Buddhist nations. Therefore, it is essential that the agenda is solely on Buddhism and those involved in discussions are capable of giving genuine voice to Buddhists this translated means that all those mouthing opposing views should be left out.

It was in 1752 that Ven. Upali Thera of Siam was assigned by the Siamese monarch to visit Sri Lanka to restore the Buddhist Sangha Order in Sri Lanka. The backdrop to this was the request made by King Keerthi Sri Rajasinghe who sent a convoy of monks initiated by Ven. Weliwita Saranankara to Siam.

The Siam Nikaya is located around the city of Kandy and is named so because of its origins in Thailand. The two main divisions of the Siyam Nikaya are the Malwatta and Asgiriya. Together both Nikayas have over 6000 temples and close to 20,000 Buddhist monks. It is this bond that brings the Thai PM to Sri Lanka bringing a special message from Thailand.

The hospitality shown by Siam continues unabated to this day and Sri Lanka acknowledges with pride the warmth with which a fellow Theravada nation continues to uphold traditions.

The Sri Lankan delegation headed by Wilbagedera was a journey that took 3 months passing Cambodia to reach Siam in 1750. The detailed and picturesque account of the respect and honor given to the Sri Lankan 60 member delegation by the Siamese King is enchanting to any reader.

We are told that a retinue of 32 boats formed in procession to carry the Sri Lankan envoys with music in accompaniment. Outdoing even the diplomatic chivalry of the present the protocol procedures followed at the Royal Thai palace cannot be left to a book for selected reading only. Ayuththa was 60km inland and described as a “glorious capital” and far more practical than the present floodprone capital of Bangkok.

The narrative of Wilbagedera and others being taken on horse-drawn carriages to the Palace, given a Guard of Honor consisting of Regiments with thousands of troops in attendance needs to be visually made available to the entire world in film jointly sponsored by both nations and filmed in both Sri Lanka and Thailand.

It would be a great opportunity to forge and strengthen people to people contact between Thailand and Sri Lanka to enhance cultures between the two nations.

Everything that the Sri Lankan envoys saw from white elephants in the Thai place, the precious stones, gold, figures of lions and elephants, the golden Lion throne on which the King sat like a God Sakra radiating the place from the gemstones, being served on gold and silver trays, visiting holy temples is something that should definitely not escape the attention of the present and future generation of Buddhists.

It was after this visit that Sri Lanka saw a revitalization of Buddhism and within 3 years 3000 samaneras had joined the Sasana.

Sri Lanka also has the honour of initiating the discovery of Footprint of Buddha in Siam in the year 1628 A.D.

Thus the meticulous account kept by Wilbegedera, Sri Lanka’s envoy to Siam from the time the delegation departed from Trincomalee port aboard the Dutch ship Weltryg on 1st August 1750 to sail back to Sri Lanka on 30th May 1753 on board the VOC ship Oost Kapelle after 2 ½ years needs to be put into a film a joint effort by the Governments of both Sri Lanka and Thailand.

The heroes of the Buddhist world need to now gain the publicity it is denied by the English press, in order to bring these to the open a League of Buddhist nations would ensure that forgotten histories are revitalized and forgotten heroes are once more remembered. Asia’s heroes and Asia’s fetes are exclusive and awesome too.

A film on Wilbegedera’s journey to Siam is certainly one agenda item that cannot be omitted. This will provide the basis to form better ties not only amongst the clergy but amongst lay Buddhists as well throughout the Buddhist world.

Asgiriya and Malwatte chapters must back the initiative to form a League of Buddhist nations as well as the film that would link the people of Sri Lanka and Thailand closer.

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Remain vigilant against religious bigots: President

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Dhaka, Bangladesh -- President M Abdul Hamid Advocate on Thursday urged all to be vigilant against the reactionary bigots with a view to maintaining traditional communal harmony in the country at any cost, reports UNB.

"A reactionary quarter of bigots is active with ill motive to misguide the people of the country in the name of religion. Ordinary people never accept the heinous activities easily. All of us will have to remain vigilant against the quarter," he told journalists at a reception programme at Bangabhaban.

The President and his wife Rashida Khanom hosted the reception for the members of the Buddhist Community on the occasion of Buddha Purnima, the biggest religious festival of the community.

The President and his wife welcomed the guests and exchanged greetings with them.

President Abdul Hamid said: "Bangladesh is a country of communal harmony. The country came into being with the spirit of building a non-communal society free from oppression? for that secularism was identified as one of the main principles in the constitution of 1972."

He said: "We've to keep in mind that people of the country are pious, but not bigots."

The President mentioned that secularism does not mean non-religiousness. Secularism means to work for national development through pursuing respective religion.

The time has come to work for building Bangladesh as non-communal country as dreamt by father of the nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, he said.

"The state and festival are for all irrespective of religion. All of us-Hindu-Muslim-Bouddha-Christian-are Bangalis. Our today's pledge will be to advance the country towards development and prosperity with the joint efforts of all."

Abdul Hamid noted that from time immemorial, the Buddhist community has been contributing to the country's education, culture and socio-economic development. "Different archeological sites in different parts of the country bear the proof," he said.

Industries Minister Dilip Barua, State Minister for Religious Affairs M Shahjahan Miah, ambassadors and high commissioners of different countries including Myanmar, Bhutan, Vietnam, Thailand and Sri Lanka as well as representatives of various international organisations and professionals of Buddhist community attended the reception.

Secretaries to the President's office were present on the occasion.

BSS adds: Members of the Buddhist community here today celebrated their most sacred and largest festival Buddha Purnima in the city and elsewhere in the district with traditional enthusiasm and solemn devotion.

Buddhists celebrate the Purnima marking the three significant events, took place in the life of Lord Buddha- the birth, enlightenment and passing away.

Lord Buddha was born on the Full Moon day in 563 BC, attained supreme enlightenment and nirvana (the cycle of rebirth) on the same day.

The festival was celebrated in all monasteries and different Buddhist organizations with elaborate programmes.

The day's programmes were heralded with hoisting of the national and religious flags atop all monasteries in the dawn and chanting of the sacred verses from the Tripitaka.

The Buddhist devotees also offered fruits, flowers, candles etc to statues of Lord Buddha throughout the day.

Prayer meets, sermons on the life of Gautam Buddha, religious discourse, continuous recitation of Buddhist scriptures, group meditation, processions, worships of the statue of Buddha were the highlights of the day's programmes.

In the city, the main religious congregations were held at Nandankanan Buddhist temple, Katalganj Nabapandit Vihar, Purnachar International Buddhists Monasteries at Devpahar, Sarbajanina Buddha Vihar at Momin road and Biswamoitry Buddha Vihar at Agrabad.

The Buddhists in Chittagong organized a two-day programme ahead of Buddha Purnima. Deputy Commissioner of Chittagong Abdul Mannan will inaugurate a religious procession at Nandankanan Buddhist Monastery at 8 am Friday.

To mark the day, local dailies also brought out special articles while Bangladesh Betar and Bangladesh Television, Chittagong centres aired special programmes highlighting importance of the festival.

To mark the occasion, special issues of a good number of periodicals of the community like Amitabh, Sombodhi, Krishti, and Arya were brought out.

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Buddhist temple moving to Wauwatosa due to heavy growth

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Congregation relocating from Milwaukee due to growth

Wauwatosa, Wisconsin (USA) -- When Tu Mai, leader of the Buddhist Youth Association, moved to Milwaukee in 1988 there were only 15 people in his congregation. Now there are 150.

During Tu Mai's early years as a Milwaukee resident, the 15-person congregation was praying in a small, two-bedroom home. They recently bought a 14,000-plus square foot complex and will be moving in where Unity West Church once stood at 4750 W. Mayfair Road.

The newly-named Phuoc Hau Buddhist Temple opens its doors June 16.

Open to the public

"It will be very open to the public," Tu Mai said, adding that they will post events on their website for people to follow and will have open meditation and culture classes for the public every Sunday.

Some classes will focus on Vietnamese culture and dharma, the teachings of Buddha. Tu mai stressed that he wanted many classes to be open to children.

Growing pains

The two-bedroom home on 11th street and Southside in Milwaukee worked for the congregation for 10 years. The living room served as a prayer room and the kitchen could be used for cooking for the congregation.

As the community grew, the house became more and more cramped. In less than 10 years the congregation had outgrown the home. Sunday services had to take place in hourlong shifts from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.

The congregation sold the home and moved to a 2,000 square foot old school building on 16th Street and Oklahoma Avenue in Milwaukee in 1993. From there, things were perfect. They could fit as many people as needed for their Sunday service, have enough space for their classes on the Dharma and Vietnamese culture and accommodate everyone.

The congregation, however, kept growing.

Much like their house, their prayer space was getting more and more cramped as members joined the congregation. So they looked around for something in their budget and found the Unity West Church on sale for $625,000.

They bought it, hoping that the church's size, which can accommodate 225, will meet the needs of their growing community.

Tu Mai said he was happy with the congregation's growth.

"The Buddhist followers feel good and we have more people and more members," he said. "That's the way it's supposed to be. We believe in the Buddha and the dharma and it really helps our lives."

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Sri Lanka inquiry into Buddhist monk's self-immolation

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Colombo, Sri Lanka -- Sri Lanka is to investigate the role of the media in the death of a Buddhist monk on Saturday, the day after he set fire to himself.

<< Dozens of people protested after the authorities rejected a state funeral for the monk Dozens of people protested after the authorities rejected a state funeral for the monk

Officials say journalists who filmed Bowatte Indarathana's self-immolation could have tried to have him rescued.

The Media Ministry Secretary, Charitha Herath, said the monk had told at least one TV journalist of his plan.

Meanwhile, hardline Buddhist nationalists are hailing the dead monk as a hero for his act.

Mr Herath said any reporter who knew in advance of the monk's plans should have contacted the police.

"My issue is that if you have already [been] informed by somebody that he is going to commit suicide, you are supposed to at least inform others to get rid of that disaster," he said.

Venerable Indarathana was protesting against the slaughter of cattle and the alleged conversion of Buddhists by Sri Lanka's minority faiths.

He set himself on fire outside the holiest Buddhist shrine in the country - the Temple of the Tooth in the central city of Kandy. He died in intensive care in the capital Colombo the following day.

The monk - believed to be aged 30 - belonged to a Buddhist revivalist group which has been campaigning against the Muslim halal method of slaughtering animals.

Coverage criticised

The government condemned media outlets showing video of the incident.

The BBC's correspondent in Sri Lanka, Charles Haviland, says some viewers have criticised the extensive coverage the suicide

received from a hardline Buddhist TV channel, Swarnavahini.

However, Sinhalese ultra-nationalist ministers in the government have praised the incident as an act of self-sacrifice for the good of the country, he adds.

Dozens of monks from the same group, Voice of Sinhala, and their supporters, staged a demonstration in Colombo on Sunday after the authorities rejected their demand for the monk to be given a state funeral.

Self-immolation by Buddhist monks in Sri Lanka is exceptionally rare, although many Tibetan monks have recently committed suicide in this way for political reasons.

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Buddhist site in Guntur district faces monumental neglect

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NAGARJUNASAGAR, India -- Anupu Park located near Macherla town in Guntur is one of the important Buddhist religious sites in Andhra Pradesh. This is where Acharya Nagarjuna was believed to have taught his disciples. The Anupu ruins were surrounded by lush green gardens and beautiful parks, till recently.

But the visitors to the park who came here to attend the Buddha Jayanti celebrations organized by the state government on Saturday were shocked to find the place in complete neglect. All the greenery around the park has vanished due to the lack of maintenance. Several Tibetans, who visited Anupu and Nagarjunakonda museum, expressed their dissatisfaction over the poor maintenance.

Horticulture department foreman Sunil Kumar said the motor of the borewell in the park had tripped thrice in the last one month due to frequent fluctuations in power supply. The entire Anupu Park, it seems, has dried up due to poor maintenance.

Incidentally, the state government, during the World Tourism Conference in Hyderabad, had decided to celebrate Buddha Jayanthi at historical Buddhist sites including Anupu but did not do much to improve the conditions at the park.

Hence, the festival at Anupu only showcased the utter casual attitude of the tourism department.

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Malaysian Buddhists celebrate Wesak Day

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KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia -- Visitors came as early as 7am to the Buddhist Maha Vihara here to commemorate Wesak Day on Friday.

<< Devotees at the Buddhist Maha Vihara in Kuala Lumpur performing prayers on Wesak Day.

Devotees presented flowers, lit candles, sought blessings and made offerings to the monks to commemorate the birth, enlightenment and death of Buddha.

Ng Chun Hoe, a 54-year-old volunteer of the Friends of the Vihara, said the spirit of giving was very important to him as he was happy seeing people smile and hungry folk fed.

The manager of an insurance company recounted seeing a boy picking up unlit firecrackers during Chinese New Year some 30 years ago.

“The child's family was very poor, he had no toys and barely enough food to eat, so he ended up playing with a dangerous item,” said Ng, adding the episode led him to help the needy ever since.

Tents selling offerings, candles, flowers, balloons, lotus buds, food and beverages as well as booths recruiting volunteers were set up inside and along the road leading to the temple in Brickfields here.

<< The thanka, a giant canvas painting of Sakyamuni Buddha, is unfurled at the Enlightened Heart Buddhist Centre in Tambun.

Over in IPOH, hundreds of devotees unfurled a thanka - a giant canvas painting of Sakyamuni Buddha - at the Enlightened Heart Buddhist Centre in Tambun.

It is a traditional practice to unfurl the thangka in the temple compound to draw power from the sun.

Devotees also ran under the 60m by 12m canvas to receive blessings from Buddha.

Meanwhile, in PETALING JAYA, DAP adviser Lim Kit Siang called an end to race politics and ease escalating racial polarisation.

"My wish on Wesak Day is for all leaders, starting with the Prime Minister (Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak), to walk the talk of their Wesak Day messages.

"I urge Najib to show leadership by example in his call to the people to set aside their differences at all levels of society," he said in a statement here Friday.

He challenged Najib to demonstrate his political will and ease escalation of racial polarisation and for Barisan Nasional component parties to open their membership to other races to make them Malaysian-based and not raced-based.

Lim also wished all Buddhists in Malaysia a happy and enlightening Wesak Day and non-Buddhists a happy holiday.

"The best way to celebrate Wesak Day is to truly and sincerely strive to follow his teachings, reiterate the determination to lead noble lives, develop the mind, practice loving kindness and bring peace and harmony to humanity," he said.

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