Spread the ideal of Love and Peace

People in Taiwan are generally aware of the basic history of Myanmar, in that the country was war-torn for a long time and her people suffered tremendous calamities. Wounds cut deep into the history of the past and result in the slow pace of modern-day development there. The preservation of the traditional Buddhist culture, however, has managed to remain relatively intact by people in despair and in need.

There are three traditional festivals of particular significance in Myanmar, and these are the Water Sprinkling Festival, the Vassa Festival (Settlement for the Summer Sinhala or the Rains Retreat), and the Bright Light Festival. All actually follow their original customs in Buddhism and thus constitute a major cultural characteristic of Myanmar as the ‘Buddha’s Land on Earth’. Due to the influx of immigrants from south-east Asia into Taiwan in recent years, people have become better acquainted with the Water Sprinkling Festival, which is derived from the Vesak Day (Buddha’s Birthday) and the Bathing-Buddha Festival. The three-month summer retreat for meditative practice and studies of Buddhism that follows is what “Settlement for Sinhala” is all about.

A bit of background check into the “Settlement for Sinhala” leads one to understand that the Buddha himself definitively requested that his followers who have not taken a monk’s vow come stay a three-month period in the monasteries without break. Monks, therefore, did not have to go for alms for the period, and they could hardly be sighted outside monasteries. If, however, Bhikkhus do break the 3-month Sinhala for 7 days, or even go for alms, it would suggest that their monastery is decaying or already in shambles.

With regard to the Bright Light Festival, which falls on the last day of the “Settlement for Sinhala” and the ritual of ‘Presenting the Kasaya’ is performed. It bears some resemblance to the Teacher’s Day in the Chinese culture. The ritual of presenting a robe as a daily clothing for a Buddhist monk or nun in a gesture of gratitude for their teaching in general and the spreading of Dharma in particular is carefully observed and practiced in its time-honored tradition at the LJM School of Sramaneras at Naung Mon. In fact, such act of respect toward the teaching faculty continues to be a common practice throughout much of Myanmar today.

The Dharma Wheel turns in Heaven, and Shabda Brahman, the transcendental sound, flows from Heaven.

Trees of lights shined on by thousand beams, and flames flicker on every other 7th twig.

Reflection of the Moon doubting the water’s flow, and the scent of plum blossom at night is in the wind of Spring.

Flapping flags tremble the golden ground on which they stand, and bells chime from within the glass altar. 

Talking about traditional lantern festivities, the Chinese folklore of the Lantern Festival ranks high on the list and enjoys a long history of over 2 millennia already. But few people are aware that the festival, in fact, owes its origin to the introduction of Buddhism into China in the Han dynasties. The Han Emperor Ming was a Dharma devotee and ordered that lights be lit up at night on January 15th of the Lunar calendar as a way of paying homage to the Buddha. The general populace followed suit and a festival began to take root. The given date marks the year’s first full moon, the official ending of the half-month celebration of the Lunar New Year holidays, and the quasi-official beginning of a new year for an agricultural society. The festival’s prayers for a prosperous year with bountiful harvests quickly became widely popular and celebrated by aristocracies and common folks alike across China.

As the Chinese lantern festival relates to Buddhism, it makes sense to believe that a similar folklore would of course enjoy popularity in neighboring Myanmar as the Buddha’s Land on Earth. In fact, the Bright Light Festival as it is called in Myanmar does not shy away from comparison and is in effect larger in scale as it usually lasts 3 days beginning on Myanmar’s Lunar 15th of July (mid-October by the Solar calendar). All households throughout the land light up many candles and the flickering light everywhere against the dark night is a feast to the eye. By comparison, the Chinese lantern festival usually attracts big crowds in high, celebratory spirit for one elated and joyous evening, whereas the Burmese Bright Light Festival basks for three consecutive nights in the warm glow of candlelight with a touch of serendipity to it and in awe of the Buddha, and a naturally quiet and peaceful bliss is its hallmark.

The Burmese Bright Light Festival came about because of a legend that told of the story of how the Buddha would ascend to Heaven, observe the commandments and recite the sutras for all three months of the monsoon season before returning at sunset to our world on the Lunar July 15. The candlelight signals a respectful welcome-back and monastic monks refrain from trips and stay put in their monasteries for advancement in their Dharma studies practice. The three-month period is thus called the Vassa Festival ('Settlement for the Summer Sinhala’ or the Rains Retreat), and its end ‘Summer Relief’ that signals the kickoff of the Bright Light Festival to welcome the return of the Buddha. The Festival remains a key annual celebration in modern-day Myanmar.

For all three nights of the Bright Light Festival in Myanmar, light of all sorts is everywhere, as are light tents in downtowns and suburbs, where colorful lights adorn streets and buildings. In particular, the countless stupas, temples, and monasteries are decorated with candle or low-watt light in mosaic and totemic patterns that never cease to amaze. Fireworks here and there light up the nightly skies in majestic ways. And away from the rowdy celebrations of city crowds, urban monasteries and temples as well as the countryside offer a warm glow in golden beams that fills their surroundings to soothe and calm down people basked in the Dharma’s blissful atmosphere.

The Dharma Wheel turns in Heaven, and Shabda Brahman, the transcendental sound, flows from Heaven.
Trees of lights shined on by thousand beams, and flames flicker on every other 7th twig.

These are the first four verses that started us off at the top of this story, and the poet is none other but the controversial Emperor Yang of the Sui Dynasty. He ascended the flight of stairs of the southern tower of his royal palace on the eve of the lantern festival to take in the view of his subjects celebrating joyfully. For a moment he was on an ego trip and secretly compared the scenario to what he imagined the Buddha must have experienced upon returning to our world: the bright illumination emulated the Dharma, the turning wheel of Dharma symbolized the world, and the sound of his celebrating subjects from the streets below were to his ears like the  Shabda Brahman for the Buddha. We can relate to such sentiment, only with a lot of more respect and awe. Lighting up the candles, lanterns, oil lamps, and what have you, we automatically appreciate the wisdom Heaven graciously granted us that washes away our troubles by day and worries by night, and allows us to praise the gift of life that bonds us with Heaven-sent good karma.

Every religion owes its origin to a unique set of circumstantial and spiritual background, and no matter the geographic location, there is a corresponding faith, as long as there are sentient beings. In this special program we take Buddhism for our starting point, and our exploration of other religious cultures unfolds. Welcome to join us on a journey to gain insight into a time-honored topical issue: Religion.

Buddhism originated in ancient India with a fundamental doctrine that begins with a relief from suffering. The Dharma is taught in a myriad of ways, yet all aiming at getting the disciples and followers to pursue purity of mind via spiritual practice to finally escape suffering and retain happiness. For our mundane life, the wish is universal to stay away from suffering and go after happiness instead. On major issues such as life philosophy, the Way and its alternatives, and the sensitivity of timing, different religions echo similarities, sometimes more, sometimes less. What they do share in common is the yearning for love and peace. Let us take India, where Buddhism was born, for a subject of study and try to appreciate other local religions and how sentient beings pay homage to their faith.

Let us take a look at Hinduism and Sikhism first and see how different religions manifest themselves in people’s life and how people become accommodating by way of understanding. Let us find out about the common ideal for life as shared by different religions, and let us really get to know one another with love and accommodation. And finally, let us cross over prejudice and march together towards an authentic world peace.

India as a country not only consists of many races for her people but hosts religion of many kinds. Several important religions originated in India, such as Buddhism, Hinduism, Jainism, and Sikhism. Over 80% of her population are Hindus and worship three principal deities: God of Creation ‘Brahma’, God of Protection ‘Vishnu’, and God of Fertility and Destruction ‘Shiva’. Co-existing alongside Hinduism in India are many other faiths such as Islam, Sikhism, etc. Such diversity is not without implicit worries, but it has brought along a rich and colorful religious culture.

Of all the institutionalized faiths, Hinduism is the most ancient and it incorporates a diverse concept of God and terms like polytheism and pantheism, among others, apply. Hindus believe that souls of human and sentient beings are eternal, and subscribe to the notion of karma and cyclic reincarnation. Accordingly, individuals can only attain Brahma by way of spiritual practice and accumulative good deeds. And from there you pursue moksha, which is core to Hindu philosophy and the ultimate goal of life for all Hindus.

In comparison to Hinduism, our countrymen know even less about Sikhism. As opposed to the caste system upheld by Hinduism, Sikhism stresses equality for all and is against caste-induced segregations, prejudice against women, and idol worship. Close to the Connaught Place in Delhi, the Gurudwara Bangla Sahib is probably the most famous house of worship of Sikhism, with the golden dome as its characteristic architecture. Upon entering any Gurudwara, Sikhs take off their shoes and men wear turbans and women put on chiffons before saying their prayers. There appear to be similarities with the Islamic dress code at the first sight, but there are differences indeed. Just follow our program and see how we unveil the mysteries for you.

One can almost say with certainty that religions differ in doctrines and philosophies, but always rely on people’s spirituality as the main conduit for their practice to bring the world closer to a domain ideal for the heart and soul. We hope that it becomes easy for you to sense the power of peace and bliss as the core value of the religions we introduce in the program.