Buddhism- Vesak/Wesak

what is Vesak for?

- most commonly performed ritual of public devotion

- most important day in the Buddhist calendar

- celebrates the Buddha's life and spiritual achievements, his birth, spiritual enlightenment and final passing into nirvana (paranirvana), mirrors temporal boundaries and focuses on religious high points of his life.

how does Vesak vary between the variants and different countries?

most believe to celebrate Vesak annually on the Full Moon in may according to the Lunar calendar, and that all three events took place on the same day

what is Vesak?

- a day that Buddhists anticipate a spiritual cleanse

- opportunity to achieve new spiritual truth or enlightenment

- Vesak focuses on the buddha, 'one who is awake', 3 jewels

focuses on the life/teachings (dharma) of the Buddha, time to reflect/remember his enlightenment and his insights into previous lives and his revelations about the nature of death.

rituals/celebrations

- range from quiet meditations to noisy festivals

- bathing (a statue of) the buddha

- parading of lights (lamps, candles)

- large ceremonial releases of caged birds

- gather in monasteries (viharas) to worship, give alms to monks and practice prayers, sermons and nonstop recitation in viharas, religious halls and homes.

- lotus flower

symbolism of the lighting of the lamps and birds

light - associated with the Buddha as the remover of darkness of ignorance

birds - symbolic of a release from Samsara, to enlightenment and the end of suffering (dukkha)

what does Vesak generate?

Vesak generates good (white) karma for all individual participants and their wider community.

--> therefore assisting buddhists in Samsara and achieving Nirvana

symbolism of lotus flowers

desire and attachment (impurities)

symbolic of enlightenment - cycle of Samsara, 4 noble truths, and achieving Nirvana through the 8 fold path to obtain enlightenment

bathing the Buddha

practiced using fragrant water to bathe the image of buddha, influenced by the story of his birth and the dragons who bathed him.

universal message that "it's easy to wash away physical dirt but it's much more difficult to cleanse one's 'inner dirt' of greed, anger and ignorance," - 4 noble truths and suffering (dukkha)

symbolism - to get rid of inner attachments; greed, anger, ignorance.

aim/importance of the ritual

to commemorate and explore the 3 events in the Buddha's life, celebrate his achievements and recognise his importance as a model for all Buddhists to emulate.

what is the purpose of Vesak

for the individual to reflect on the key teachings of Buddhism, 3 jewels, to examine his or her life according to these teachings.

how long has Vesak been a tradition for?

2500 years, reconfirms the tradition as a valid explanation fo life and a means by which followers can attain happiness through practice and teachings.

what does Vesak celebrate

the three refugees

examples of ways individuals increase their generosity (dana) and compassion (karuna)

- donation of meals and money to monks

- community comes together to decorate temples and the village

purpose

a day to remember what one can achieve in life and what to strive for - in relation to Buddhist beliefs.

vesak is a day to focus on the 3 important things;

1. birth - awareness of privilege and pleasure

2. enlightenment - example of possibilities

3. death and parinirvana - acceptance of death as a part of life.