Buddhist
Hour
Radio Broadcast on Hillside 88.0 FM
Buddhist Hour Script
328 for Sunday 9 May, 2004
This script is entitled:
Dedicating the merits of this 2548th Versak Day Celebration to all
Mothers.
Sadhu Sadhu Sadhu.
Well done to all mothers,
past, present and future.
May they come to full
enlightenment.
We celebrate all mothers for they practice in
their unbounded love for their children, the four Brahma qualities of
compassion, loving kindness, equanimity and sympathetic joy. These
are the qualities that the Buddha advises all beings to practice. To
pay respect to your mother and father who hold these four qualities
inherent in their nature.
These qualities all Buddha Dhamma
practitioners strive for.
How will I repay the kindness of my
mother is a Buddha teaching used to generate compassion and love for
all beings. In the Karaniyametta Sutta the Buddha states:
'Thus
as a mother with her son,
Might guard with her life her only
child,
In the same way with all beings,
Unlimited one's mind
should be developed.'
In a recent Dhamma talk given by
Venerable Uppatissa at our Temple to two junior members the Venerable
explained these four qualities held by all mothers.
The Buddha
said that compassion is like the king of minds and all other good
minds are the retinue. Where compassion leads the others will surely
follow.
When we think of our mothers with kindness and
gratitude for all they have done for us, it is these four great
qualities that come to mind.
The merit from this program is
dedicated to all mothers, past present and future.
May they
receive the blessings of the Triple Gem, Buddha Dhamma Sangha. May
all mothers past, present and future come to full
enlightenment.
Versak celebrations were held at our Temple on
the full moon day of Wednesday 5th May 2004.
The meaning of
celebration found in the Shorter Oxford English Dictionary is to
perform publicly and in due form any religious ceremony; to honour
with ceremonies and festivities; a ceremony is an outward rite or
observance, religious or held sacred.
Our celebrations began
on Versak Eve 4 May 2004 at 6.00pm with water and flower offerings to
the Buddha on all altars within our Centre.
Food offerings
were made to all Members present followed by chanting of the Vandana
for Buddha, Pancasila (Five Precepts), Triple Gem Refuge, Qualities
and Attributes of the Buddha, The Five Groups, Paramita-Metta (Loving
Kindness Merit), Statement of the Law of Karma, Dedication of the
Merits, Mindful Direction of the Merits to all beings for their
enlightenment, May all beings be well and happy and concluding with
Sadhu Sadhu Sadhu.
Offerings to Buddha, Dhamma Sangha were
made at the Temple every two to three hours through the day.
Versak
is a celebration of Shakyamuni Buddha's birth, enlightenment and
death. It is celebrated by Buddha Dhamma practitioners around the
world.
Senior Members received precept robes to enhance their
Dhamma Practice. Our Abbot vowed to continue to look after our Centre
and all within it by continuing to propagate Master John D. Hughes'
wishes in serving the Buddha.
The Abbot Anita M. Hughes
speech was as follows:
'Namo tassa bhagavato arahato
sammasambuddhassa
My dear friends,
We gather together
here on this Versak eve, and my Birth Anniversary. Thank you for
attending today.
We celebrate Shakyamuni Buddha's Sasane by
our practice in his teachings.
The path that I practice for my
enlightenment to help enlighten all beings is to help John David
Hughes in his vows to help the Buddha.
Since the passing away
of John David Hughes, my path is no different. I continue.
I
vow to continue to help Master John David Hughes with his vow. I
offer my life, my speech, my action, my thought to looking after his
Centre and all within it.
Namo Buddhaya Namo Dhammaya Namo
Sanghaya.'
Our Members sat in meditation and reinforced their
life plans in the practice and study of Buddha Dhamma for their
enlightenment to help all beings come to enlightenment.
Buddha
Dhamma teaching followed with Geshe Michael Roach's Class One of
Higher Level Abhidhamma Course Five Online Teachings from the Asian
Classics Institute.
On the morning of Versak, 5 May 2004,
Members gathered at the Temple at 6.00am and sat in meditation during
the full moon at 6.04am followed by Buddha Dhamma chanting to
generate blessings for the world.
Chanting and offerings were
made through out the day, and following the evening Buddha Chanting
fresh robes were offered on the Reclining Buddha image in the
Heavenly Dhamma garden.
Our Versak Celebrations concluded on
the evening of Friday 7 May 2004' with Class No.1 of The Diamond
Cutter Sutra taught by Geshe Michael Roach. It is Course No.6, Level
1 of the Middle-Way Philosophy (Madhyamika), and can be downloaded
from The Asian Classics Institute website.
Today we would like
to share with you some reports of Versak celebrations held in places
from around the world.
Over the weekend leading up to Versak
the annual Buddha's Day Multicultural Festival was held in Federation
Square, in the City of Melbourne. It was organised by the Buddhas
Light International Association and Fo Guang Shan Temple Melbourne.
Many people attended throughout each day and were able to
make offerings to Buddha at giant Buddha image set up in the square,
offer water in the Washing the Buddha ceremony, and to make wishes at
the Wishing Bell. The Festival included many stalls of food and goods
run volunteers.
The official program for the opening ceremony
held on Sunday 2nd May included the following 'Sharing of the Merits'
blessings.
May palms in every world be joined in kindness,
compassion, joy and generosity.
May all beings find security
in friendship, peace and loving care.
May calm and mindful
practice give rise to tolerance and equanimity.
May we be
humble and grateful, with an immense heart pledged to
service.
Overseas, The Dhamma Times 6 May 2004 edition article
titled 'Buddhists should follow Atthasila' described Vesak or
Vaishaka as an important day for Buddha Dhamma practitioners all over
the world and is celebrated with fervour in Buddhist countries such
as SriLanka, Thailand, Burma, Japan, Korea, China, Malaysia and
Indonesia.
This day commemorates the birth of the founder of
Buddhism Prince Siddhartha in Lumbini, northern India 2,548 years
ago. Gautama Buddha attained enlightenment and then nirvana on this
day after 45 years of public service.
The Venerable Maitraya
of the Chennai Centre of the Maha Bodhi Society in SriLanka said this
day was called the Pooi Day meaning full moon day.
On this
day, the followers of Lord Buddha are expected to follow Ashtasila.
The followers are required to sincerely follow Panchasila meaning
five principles everyday throughout their life.
The five
principles are: restraining from killing, stealing, chastity,
speaking truth and avoiding alcohol.
The other three
principles mentioned in the Ashtasila are: Restraining from taking
food at different intervals, (one is supposed to take food one time a
day during special days), keeping away from decoration and applying
perfume on self and paying respect to monks. These together form the
eight principles of Lord Buddha.
From the Lanka Daily News in
London came the story of 'Vesak on a grand scale in London'.
For
the second year in succession Versak was celebrated on a grand scale
at the Sri Lanka High Commission in the United Kingdom, at its
premises at Hyde Park Gardens in London. The celebration was
participated in by a large and representative gathering of SriLankan
expatriates as well as the members of the staff of the High
Commission and their families, British devotees and several members
of the other Missions in London and well wishers.
A Dhamma
sermon was given by Venerable Dr. Deegalle Mahinda Thera, Lecturer in
the Study of Religion at the Bath Spa University who also
administered the Panchaseela. The Venerable also spoke on the topic
of "How Buddhism can be appropriated to challenges in the modern
world in the 21st century".
Venerable Galayaye Piyadassi
Thera, MBE, Head of the Saddatissa International Buddhist Centre
Kingsbury was also in attendance.
The SriLanka High
Commissioner Faiz Musthapha said it was with great pleasure that he
welcome them on behalf of the High Commission and on his own behalf.
He said that he was particularly happy to see in the audience
the adherents of different faiths.
The High Commissioner
quoted from the Pali cannon "Ittaka vuttilika" to the
effect that the Buddha urged the practice of boundless love.
On
4 May 2004 at Staten Island Advance, New York USA, islanders chanted
and listened to speakers in celebration of the Buddha's birth,
enlightenment and death.
Amid the glow of rows of homemade
lanterns, hundreds of people gathered at the Staten Island Buddhist
Vihara in Port Richmond (New York USA) for the Buddhist calendar's
holiest day.
The largely SriLankan group meditated, heard
ceremonial chants and listened to a bevy of speakers in celebration
of Vesak, the triple anniversary of the Buddha.
The day's
event focused on love and compassion said Bhante Kondanna, the head
monk and spiritual leader at the Vihara. "That's the whole
thing. That's part of sharing. Everything we do today is based on
that," he said.
In the far North of Australia, The
Magnetic Times reported a Vesak Celebration held on Magnetic Island
hosted by the Magnetic Buddha Dharma group.
The newspaper
story titled 'Versak is a most special day for Buddhists' commented
that: in Australia, where many people have come to embrace the spirit
of Buddhism, the tradition of celebrating Vesak is being maintained
and is developing its own flavour as people come together to
acknowledge the values of compassion, loving kindness and the right
to happiness for all.
From Bangladesh, Dr. Sukomal Barua's
Dhamma paper titled 'Buddhism and human values', in the Daily Star,
Bangladesh, and also reported in the Dhamma Times on 4 May 2004
stated:
Once again the sacred Buddha-Purnima has come with the
message of Lord Buddha. On this full moon day of Vaishakha the
Gautama Buddha was born (624 BC) in the royal Lumbini Garden at the
foot of the Himalayas, attained Enlightenment (589 BC) under the
Bo-tree at Gaya and passed into Mahaparinibbana (544 BC) at
Kushinara.
The thrice-sacred memorable events of Buddha
Purnima is of great significance to the Buddhist world as well as the
people all over the world. This day brings peace, harmony,
brotherhood, universal love and compassion for all sentient beings of
the world.
After his Enlightenment, the Buddha delivered his
first sermon as follows: "Go ye O Bhikkhus, for the gain of the
many, out of compassion for the world, for the good, for the gain,
for the welfare of men. Proclaim O Bhikkhus the doctrine glorious,
preach ye a life of holiness, perfection and purification.
The
heart of the Buddha's teaching lies in the Four Noble Truths that he
expounded in his very first sermon to his disciples.
The Four
Noble Truths are:
(1) Dukkha,
(2) Dukkha Samudaya the
arising or origin of Dukkha,
(3) Dukkha Nirodha -- the cessation
of Dukkha,
(4) Dukkha Patipada Magga -- the way leading to the
cessation of Dukkha.
Among these, the fourth noble truth maga
-- is very important for everybody, because it is known as the
'Middle Path'. It avoids two extremes: one extreme being the search
for happiness through the pleasures of the senses, which is low,
common, unprofitable; the other being the search for happiness
through self mortification in different forms of asceticism, which is
painful unworthy and unforgettable.
Having himself first
tried these two extremes, and having found them to be useless, the
Buddha discovered through personal experience the Middle Path 'which
gives vision and knowledge, which leads to Calm, Insight,
Enlightenment and Nirvana.
This middle path is generally
referred to as the Noble Eight-fold Path because it is composed of
eight categories or divisions: namely:
(1)Right Understanding.
(2)Right Thought.
(3)Right Speech.
(4)Right
Action.
(5)Right Livelihood.
(6)Right Effort.
(7)Right
Mindfulness.
(8)Right Concentration.
The eight factors aim
at promoting and perfecting the three essentials of Buddhist training
and discipline: namely
(a)Ethical conduct (Sila)
(b)Mental
discipline (Samadhi) and
(c)Wisdom (Panna).
Practically
the whole teaching of the Buddha, to which he devoted himself for 45
years, deals in some way or other with this path.
According
to Buddhism, for a man or woman to be perfect there are two qualities
that he or she should develop equally: compassion (Karuna) on one
side, and wisdom (Panna) on the other.
Here compassion
represents love, charity, kindness, tolerance and such noble
qualities on the emotional side or qualities of the heart, and wisdom
(Panna) on the other. Wisdom would stand for the intellectual side or
the qualities of the mind.
If one develops only the
emotional, neglecting the intellectual, one may become a good hearted
fool; while to develop only the intellectual side neglecting the
emotional may turn one into a hard-hearted intellect without feeling
for others.
To be perfect, therefore, one has to develop both
equally. That is the aim of the Buddhist way of life.
Those
who think that Buddhism is interested only in lofty ideals, high
normal and philosophical values and that it ignores the social and
economic welfare of people are wrong.
The Buddha was
interested in the happiness of men and women.
To him
happiness was not possible without leading a pure life based on moral
and spiritual principles. But he knew that leading such a life was
hard in unfavourable material and social conditions.
Buddhism
does not consider material welfare as an end in itself: it is only a
means to an end -- a higher and nobler end. But it is a means that is
indispensable, indispensable in achieving a higher purpose for each
human being's happiness.
So Buddhism recognises the need of
certain minimum material conditions favourable to spiritual success.
A man named Dighajanu once visited the Buddha and said:
'Venerable Sir, we are ordinary lay men leading the family
life with wife and children. Would the blessed one teach us some
doctrines that will be conducive to our happiness in this world and
hereafter?'
In reply the Buddha told him that there are four
things which are conducive to a man's happiness in this world.
First: He should be skilled, efficient, earnest, and
energetic in whatever profession he is engaged, and he should know it
well.
Second: He should protect his income, which he has thus
earned righteously, with the sweat of his brow. This refers to
protecting wealth from thieves' etc. All these ideas should be
considered against the background of the period.
Third: He
should have good friends who are faithful, learned, virtuous, liberal
and intelligent, who will help him along the right path away from
evil.
Fourth: He should spend reasonably in proportion to his
income, neither too much nor too little, i.e. he should not hoard
wealth avariciously nor should he be extravagant -- in other words he
should live within his means.
Then the Buddha expounds the
four virtues conducive to a lay person's happiness hereafter:
(1)Saddha: He (or she) should have faith and confidence in
moral, spiritual and intellectual values:
(2)Sila: He (or she)
should abstain from destroying, from adultery, from falsehood and
from intoxicating drinks;
(3)Caga: He (or she) should practice
charity, generosity without attachment and craving for his (or her)
wealth;
(4)Panna: He (or she) should develop wisdom that leads to
the complete destruction of suffering to the realisation of Nirvana.
Buddha encouraged and stimulated each person to develop
himself or herself to work out his or her own emancipation for each
human being has the power to liberate himself or herself from all
bondage through his or her own personal effort and intelligence.
Today, we hope, with a better understanding of our common
humanity and common values, we can say 'hatred does not cease by
hatred, but it ceases by love and compassion".
Buddha's
verse is as follows:
Nahi verena verani
sammantidha kudha
canam
Averena ca sammanti
eso dhammo sanamtano.
Conquer
anger by love and compassion, evil by good; conquer the miser with
liberality and the lair with truth. Let us think good, do good and
pray good for the welfare of mankind.
Sabbe satta sukhita
bhavantu -- May all beings be happy. Nibbanam Paramam Sukham
--Nirvana is the supreme bliss of the world.
Overseas again,
the Sunday Observer, Colombo (and in The Dhamma Times, 3 May 2004)
reported that President Chandrika Bandaranaike Kumaratunga
inaugurated this year's National Vesak Festival on May 4 until May 7
in Colombo, Sri Lanka.
As in many locations in Sri Lanka, the
festival included pandals, as well as an exhibition of Vesak
lanterns, exposition of sacred relics and a photographic exhibition
of ancient Buddhist shrines.
The Lanka Daily News, Colombo
reported that Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapakse opened All-Ceylon
Buddhist Congress Versak celebrations with the theme 'May the Light
of the Buddha Reach Everywhere'. The celebrations included an
exhibition of ancient Buddhist art by the Department of Archaeology
and Museums and Central Cultural Mawatha.
Much closer to our
Temple home in Upwey, a special Versak celebratory exhibition or
pandal was organised by the Shakyamuni Sambuddha Vihara, in Homestead
Road Berwick, Victoria. Held over two weekends, from 6pm on Saturday
1st and Sunday 2nd May and this weekend, Saturday 7th and Sunday 8th,
the pandal tells the Jataka tale of Chulla Setti Jathakaya.
The
exhibition or pandals are story paintings, each around 2 meters in
diameter, with a circle of lights around the outside in the colours
of the Buddhist flag. A sixth painting, of the Buddha, is in the
Centre.
The story is of Chulla Setti Jathakaya and is as
follows:
Long time ago, there was a very rich Noble man call
Chulla. He was a very wise and intelligent man and he could for see
the future.
One day on his way to the palace, he saw a dad rat
on the street. He did his mental calculations using his knowledge in
astrology and said 'this dead rat can make an intelligent man rich'.
A poor man heard this comment and took the dead rat. Another man who
was working in a nearby rich house was going to get food for the
master's cat. He saw the dead rat and bought it from the poor man.
The poor man used his meager earnings to buy jaggery. A sweet made
from sugar cane.
He took the jaggery and a pot full of water
to the street and gave jaggery and water to people who were picking
flowers for the florists. Each of them in return gave a handful of
flowers to the poor man and he sold the flowers to buy more jaggery.
On the second day when the poor man gave jaggery and water to the
people who picked flowers they left half of the flowers un-picked for
the poor man. He picked the flowers and sold them.
This
exchange of flowers and jaggery continued for a few days and the poor
man could save eight gold coins.
On a windy and rainy day that
followed the royal garden got littered with leaves, broken sticks and
branches. The royal gardener was devastated. The poor man offered to
clean the royal garden if he got the things to be removed. The royal
garden agreed without hesitation, The poor man gave jaggery to a
group of children and got them to clean the royal garden and gathered
the sticks and the branches near the entrance to the royal
garden.
The man who supplied pots to the palace ran out of
firewood on that rainy day and bought the sticks and branches from
the poor man who received sixteen gold coins and five hundred pots in
return.
The poor man saved his line of business when he sold
twenty-four gold coins. He started to supply drinking water to people
who supplied grass to feed the cattle and horses in the city. When
asked what he expected in return he answered 'I will asked you for a
favor when necessary.'
He also made friends with merchants
who travel overland as well as overseas.
One day he got
information from his merchant friends about five hundred horse
breeders who were coming to the city to sell their horses. So he
asked his grass supplier friends to give him a bundle of grass each.
He also requested them not to sell any grass before he finished
selling his bundles. He sold his five hundred bundles of grass for
one thousand gold coins to the horse breeders who were desperately
searching for grass to feed the horses.
On a later day he
received information about a ship that was approaching the harbour.
According to the information it was full of worthy goods. He went to
the ship with his friends and gave an advance to the ship owner
saying that he was going to buy the goods.
Later one hundred
rich merchants went to the ship to buy the goods. The ship owner told
them about the advance he received before their visit so the rich
merchants went to see the poor man. He collected two hundred gold
coins from each of them before they were allowed to buy goods from
the ship. He was not poor anymore.
He earned two hundred
thousand gold coins from his last transaction. As a rich man he went
to see the wise noble man. He took one hundred thousand gold coins as
a gift to the wise noble man. The wise noble man after hearing the
story of the grateful man who came to see him with one hundred
thousand gold coins as a gift was very happy.
He gave his
daughter in marriage to that intelligent persevering and grateful
man.
The celebration of Versak is also a time when we can make
special thanks to our parents for their vast kindness.
In June
we will hold a special day at our Temple to celebrate the kindness of
our parents. Our Members are each inviting their parents to come to
the Temple as our special guests, as a way of showing our gratitude
for their kindness.
Today all around Australia families
celebrate Mothers day.
Recently when telling a Venerable
member of the Sangha of our Mothers day flower stall, and our
celebrating parents day celebration, the Monk made the observation
that in SriLanka they make every day a mothers day celebration.
Our
members are holding a flower stall over this weekend where passers-by
can purchase beautiful flowers for their mothers. The stall is
located on Swansea Road Lilydale, on the North bound side, just past
Ravenswood Court. Please visit our stall today to buy flowers for
your mother.
May you gain the blessings from Versak each
year.
May all our mothers, past present and future be well and
happy.
May all beings come to full enlightenment and
Buddhahood.
May all beings be well and happy
This
script was researched, written and edited by Julian Bamford, Lenore
Hamilton, Anita M. Hughes, Julie O'Donnell and Amber
Svensson.
References:
1. 'Buddhists should follow
Atthasila' The Dhamma Times, 6
May 2004.
2. 'Vesak on a grand
scale in London' Lanka Daily News, The Dhamma Times, 6 May 2004.
3.
'Vesak focuses on love and compassion' The Dhamma Times, 4 May
2004.
4. Barua, Dr. Sukomal. 'Buddhism and human values', Daily
Star, Bangladesh, reported in the Dhamma Times, 4 May 2004.
5.
'Vesak, is a most special day for Buddhists', Magnetic Times,
Australia reported in The Dhamma Times, 3 May 2004.
6.
Mendis,Keerthi. 'Sri Lanka President inaugurates National Vesak
Festival' Sunday Observer, Colombo, The Dhamma Times, 3 May 2004.
7.
Lanka Daily News, Colombo, The Dhamma Times, 1 May
2004.
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