DDVC Held the Bathing the Buddha Ceremony to Celebrate the Birth of the Buddha

On May 18^th, Dharma Drum Vancouver Centre (DDVC) held its annual Bathing-the-Buddha Ceremony, attracting nearly 190 Buddhist followers to celebrate together Buddha's birthday. By sincerely bathing the Buddha, the participants prayed for peace and happiness in the world.

The Dharma assembly began with the participants reciting the Heart Sutra, and "Mahā-Prajñā-pāramitā" three times. After reverently chanting the Praise of the Buddha (佛寶讚), and the Verse for Praising Sakyamuni Buddha (讚佛偈), the participants recited "Namo Ben Shi Shi Jia Mo Ni Fo" (homage to our teacher, Sakyamuni Buddha) in unison. Under the guidance of the Venerable, everyone ladled the scented water with a bamboo dipper to bathe the statue of Prince Siddhartha. 

Venerable Chang Wu (常悟法師), Director of DDVC, officiated at the Dharma assembly. She imparted how, according to legend, at the time of the Buddha's birth, nine dragons in the sky poured spring from their mouths to bathe the little prince. Through the ceremony, we not only bathed the physical Buddha statue, but also extended our hope to cleanse our body and mind with this scoop of water, as well as to see our inherent pure Buddha nature. 

At the end of the Dharma assembly, the participants recited the dedication verse to transfer the merit of bathing the Buddha to all sentient beings. In addition, they wished for the thriving propagation of the Dharma, world peace, and the happiness of all sentient beings. After making the great offering before the Buddha, everyone enjoyed the vegetarian lunch meticulously prepared by the volunteers. Before returning home, the attendees received longevity peach buns and scented water for peace from the Venerables, as well as their warm blessings.


Original Chinese text / Wu Jiun-yi (巫俊毅)
Photos / Dharma Drum Vancouver Centre
Translation / Li Siang-ling
Editing / Keith Brown, YKL