Thousands observe Waisak nationwide

The Jakarta Post ,  Jakarta   |  Wed, 05/21/2008 10:43 AM  |  Headlines

ENLIGHTENING DAY: Thousands of Buddhists take part in a ceremony to celebrate Waisak, Buddha’s Day of Enlightenment, at the Jakarta International Expo in Kemayoran on Tuesday. The event was organized by the Indonesian Buddhists organization Walubi.

Thousands of Indonesian Buddhists on Tuesday observed Waisak Day in many parts of the country with emphasis on three important events in Buddha Gautama's life: his birth, enlightenment and parinibana (perfect liberation).

At least 15,000 thronged to Borobudur, the world's largest Buddhist temple, and nearby Mendut temple in Magelang, Central Java.

"We've prepared 28,000 bottles of holy water for distribution to the worshipers," chairman of Waisak 2008's organizing committee Sugiyanto said after joining a Waisak meditation ritual at Mendut Temple.

Worshipers came from Kalimantan, Sulawesi, Bali, Greater Jakarta, West Java, and various neighboring towns in Central Java, Sugiyanto of the Indonesian Sangha Grand Conference said.

After the ritual at Mendut temple, a procession was held at 2 p.m. along the three kilometer road to Borobudur Temple, passing Pawon Temple on the way.

Among the worshipers, many of whom were clad in traditional attire, one group carried a torch and holy water on top of an ornamented vehicle.

Some others carried on their shoulders a sedan chair on which were arranged flowers around a small golden metal statue of Buddha, while six worshipers next to them brought six umbrellas -- three in yellow and three in white.

Worshipers who had arrived at Borobudur Temple early came to greet the monks and the rest of the procession.

"We focus on making Waisak ritual more sacred now because both Borobudur and Mendut temples were indeed sacred shrines in the past," Sugiyanto said as quoted by Antara.

The celebrations, he said, were also part of the committee's efforts to preserve the temple, which was built in the ninth century AD and is one of the world's precious heritages.

"The climax of the ceremony is not held here but at Bung Karno Stadium in Jakarta on May 24," he added.

Waisak is observed on the eighth day of the fourth month according to the Chinese lunar calendar.

This year's commemoration also took place at a number of Buddhist temples across the country, including in Pangkalpinang (Bangka Belitung), Palu (Central Sulawesi), Biak (Papua), Ambon (Maluku), Denpasar (Bali), Semarang (Central Java) and Palembang (South Sumatra).

In Palembang, thousands observed Waisak at Dharmakirti Temple, the largest Buddhist temple in South Sumatra, on Jalan Kamboja.

Nearby on Si Guntang hill, a series of rituals, including worshiping, began Monday evening.

"The main ritual was held from 7 a.m. to nearly noon. We are grateful the whole commemoration ran smoothly," Darwis Hidayat, chairman of the South Sumatra branch of the Council of Buddhist Communities said as quoted by Antara.

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