Attending the floral candle light ceremony on the Shakyamuni Buddha"s Attainment Day at Bang Pagoda - Ha Noi

Back to the time of more than 2,500 years ago, it was a great period in human history when an ordinary man, after struggling with many internal chaos, gave up his royal title as a Crowned Prince to practice and overcome the sufferings bondage of Samsara cycle (with Birth-Aging-Sickness-Death), to search for the enlightenment for all. He is a great and unsurpassed man, teacher of Devas and Humans. His Enlightenment is an awakening bell arousing human beings from ignorance. That is Shakyamuni Buddha, the Bhagavat.

In the evening of Jan 04,2017 (Dec 07, lunar calendar), based on the invitation from the Abbot Most Venerable Thich Bao Nghiem of Bang Pagoda in Hanoi, Senior Venerable Thich Chan Tinh and monks from Hoang Phap Pagoda attended and witnessed the floral candle light ceremony on the Shakyamuni Buddha’s Attainment Day.

After the clergy procession got onto the stage, the ceremony official started with divine sounds of the chanting and bells creating blissful mood among the mass in the pure and calm environment of the great ceremony.

After the statement of the reason and audience introduction, Most Venerable Thich Bao Nghiem, head of the ceremony organizers, gave the opening speech. The mild weather in Northern Vietnam made people feel more comfortable and warmer. The clergy people and lay Buddhists sincerely headed to the Buddha altar to offer incense and pay homage. Then came the most expected and sacred moment of the ceremony. Light sharing ritual starting from Buddha altar reached to the mass via the sharing of the Most Venerable Thich Bao Nghiem, Thích Trí Quảng and the clergy delegation on the stage. This is the symbol of harmonization, succeeding and developing Buddhism value. In the calm and sacred moment, thousands of Buddhists wholeheartedly took the light of love and protection from clergy leaders. Everyone could feel that they have found the spiritual shelter of life.

The program continued with the preaching from the Most Venerable Thich Tri Quang, the head of Phap Hoa ashram. His simple and practical words helped Buddhists understand more about the value of Buddha’s teachings via stories. The lecturer encouraged the mass taking the energy and momentum of Buddha at his attainment moment as the propulsive power during their practicing to transform the sufferings to happiness on the Path to the Enlightenment .

The ceremony continued with the Buddha praising rite. Senior Venerable Thich Chan Tinh proclaimed the process of Buddha’s attainment. The whole ashram seemed to be at that moment when Buddha gets the Enlightenment under the Bodhi tree, quaking the human and God realms in six ways. It is the mysterious, magical, glorious moment that Buddha wins the mara power, crushing the confusion, raising the flag of victory and liberation and bursting the triumphal hymn. It is his attainment opening the Path to the Enlightenment for sentient beings. He affirms that all have Buddha nature, all can get awakened and attainment.

The ceremony fulfilled with joys. The sacred image of the floral candle light night with thousands of glistening candles offering to Buddha Sakyamuni and the enhanced faith have made a big difference in the mind of the participants.

Following are the recorded photographs:

BBT Website