Meditation Retreats
Another quiet affair this year as Malaysian Buddhists celebrate Wesak Day at home
GEORGESTADT: Wesak Day is usually a lively holiday with chants from monks and devotees seeking blessings and lighting incense and lotus-shaped candles at the temples.
With the temple gates closed, families are again watching the celebration at home due to Covid-19 restrictions.
IT worker Teoh Seow Yin, 35, said it was her second year celebrating Wesak Day at home.
“It feels different, but it still makes sense.
“My husband, son and I celebrate it by watching Wesak Day programs online and listening to Dhamma conversations to remind us of what the Buddha teaches us about finding true happiness.
“In pre-pandemic times, we performed the bathing ceremony of the Buddha statue in a temple and participated in the annual parade. We usually also volunteer at the temple during Wesak Day, ”she said yesterday.
That year, however, Teoh said that she and her family did Buddha bathing at home.
“All you need for the ceremony is a clean container, water, flowers, and essence.
“We offer the water to Buddha and chant the mantra of Sri Devi Dharani or Great Compassion. Then the water can be used to clean the altar, the Buddha statue and the bath, ”she said.
Over at the Mahindarama Buddhist Temple on Kampar Road, a handful of devotees were seen hanging food and offerings on the gate for the celebration.
The temple, which is usually home to more than 2,000 devotees on Wesak Day, had its gates locked with a padlock.
60-year-old housewife Lim Foo Lin said she usually attended the celebration and never failed to attend prayers.
“The last two years have been different and the celebration is now online. I came to offer some roses and betel nuts. I was told I can hang them on the gate. “After that, I’ll go home to watch some vocal videos. We will pray at home and spend the day listening to lectures and prayers, ”she said.
The Vice Chairwoman of the Temple, Dr. Surya Dharamdass said fewer than 10 committee members were in the temple to offer prayers.
“This is the second quiet Wesak Day celebration due to the pandemic. We have encouraged devotees to participate in the numerous online chant sessions, meditation retreats, and lectures available from many sources.
“We will not be offering a live feed of the prayers as we know many others who do. Families can watch the prayers from the comfort of their homes, ”she said.
Dr. Surya said devotees come daily and hang food for monks on the temple gate.
“This time some left offerings for the prayers. It is normal practice for them to hang them on the gate and walk, ”she added.
Meanwhile, devotees were stopped for a minute to pray outside the gates of Wat Buppharam Buddhist Temple on Perak Road and the Penang Buddhist Association on Anson Road.
The Malaysian Buddhist Association (MBA) executive secretary, 44, Chuah Cheng Ying videotaped the prayers in the Penang MBA building on Burmah Road for their followers to watch from home.
In Kuala Lumpur, Buddhists in the capital celebrated Wesak Day on a moderate scale with the new normal practices introduced as a result of the nationwide Movement Control Ordinance.
Although devotees were not allowed to visit temples, the use of technology has helped them participate in online streaming prayer services such as those conducted by the Subang Jaya Buddhist Association and the Bandar Utama Buddhist Society. Minister of National Unity Datuk Halimah Mohamed Sadique in her Wesak Day Message said the peaceful Wesak celebration had shown that people in the country enjoy religious freedom that has become a symbol of national unity. “Efforts to embrace and cultivate noble values in society today should be further stepped up, especially as the country faces the Covid-19 pandemic.
“We should take this opportunity to embody the true meaning of unity,” she said.
The ministry had previously announced that no devotees would be admitted to temples for Wesak Day under MCO 3.0 Standard Operating Procedures.
The ministry said there could only be 10 people, consisting of a monk and committee members, for the Wesak day ritual, adding that only one ritual session per temple is allowed between 6 a.m. and 2 p.m. that day, while that of Buddha decorated float procession is not allowed.