By: Niveja Assalaarachchi, News Writer
Vesak is a religious celebration that marks the birth, enlightenment, and parinirvana (passing away) of Siddhartha Gautama, the Lord Buddha. The day is regarded as the most important religious day of the year for the nearly 506 million Buddhists around the world. As a Buddhist myself, I regard the date as not only an important reflection of my faith, but an important point of cultural expression as many different cultures who have adopted Buddhism express this day differently.
Though generally held on the first full moon day of May — the interpretation of the date changes depending on the country or sect. In Myanmar, Vesak was celebrated on April 30 this year and in Sri Lanka, where I’m from, it will be celebrated on May 30.
Though I left Sri Lanka when I was young, I still remember some of the major traditions of the holiday. In Sri Lanka, Vesak is celebrated as a Poya (පොහොය) day, which is a monthly Buddhist holiday held every full moon. Poyas mark important events in the history of the Buddha, and Buddhism in Sri Lanka, with notable Poyas including Poson Poya (පොසොන් පොහොය — commemorating the arrival of Buddhism to the land of Sri Lanka) and Esala Poya ( ඇසළ පොහොය — commemorating Lord Buddha’s first Dharma sermon). In Buddhism, Dharma refers to the nature of the universe.
Vesak is the most important Poya and the whole country rejoices to celebrate the occasion. Street stands known as Dansal (දන්සල්) are held on Poya days like Vesak. While a difficult concept to translate into English, Dansal is generally when a type of food or dish (or other good) is freely given to others as an act of faith. The Thorana (තොරණ), a type of decorated gateway, is often constructed en-masse and depicts certain scenes in the life of the Lord Buddha. One of my core memories is making Vesak lanterns with my family during the time of Vesak Poya. Vesak lanterns, or kudu (කූඩු), are made from paper with a lit candle in the middle to represent the illuminating nature of the teachings of the Buddha.
Speaking of those teachings, it is this that truly ties Vesak together with all Buddhists around the world. On this day, Buddhists remember the core messages of the faith and the Buddha’s life journey. I spoke to Reverend Dr. Ernest Ng, Buddhist chaplain at the SFU Multifaith Centre.
“The core message from the Vesak is also what the Buddha taught us in terms of compassion and wisdom. Compassion, meaning understanding the commonality — the link that is tied in each one of us, all sentient beings, even of all different kinds of existence in the world — that we all have resistance or refrain from suffering and we all pursue happiness,” he said. “Suffering not in a pessimistic sense, but suffering in a sense that we need to understand the predicaments, the challenges that we have in the world.”
Ng highlighted one of Buddhism’s primary teachings, the Four Noble Truths, which explains why suffering happens in this life. The truths are Dukkha — suffering exists in life, Samudaya — craving and attachments causes suffering, Nirodha — suffering can be stopped, and Magga — following the path of the Buddha and his eightfolded path, we can gain enlightenment and escape the suffering of this life. These are teachings that are essential to remember on Vesak and in practicing Buddhism in general.
Ng said that during Vesak Poya, Buddhists try to “learn and also to connect with our community and each other and support each other. So, it’s a good occasion to pay respect but also at the same time, good occasions to connect with our community, to rejoin together.”
For the purposes of this article, I also reached out to my local Buddhist temple, the Buddhist Vihara Society of BC, and connected with a monk who serves there. Venerable Dr. Mirisse Dhammika Thero is a Buddhist monk who is also currently serving as the chief incumbent of the Siri Sudassanarama Senasuna temple in Sri Lanka from abroad. He is also an SFU alum, gaining a PhD in education. He noted that his research focused on the “secular teachings in the Buddha’s past” in regards to “getting rid of stress and practicing mindfulness,” which are core tenets of the faith.
Dhammika Thero said that Buddhism highlights mindfulness (Sathi) and also further emphasizes the impermanence of this world. “That there is no permanent entity of self,” he explained, and we must train our mind to practice compassion and altruism “without asking for any kind of worldly feelings or sensations.” He continued, “Nothing is permanent, including our thoughts, even this physical body.
“Therefore, when you accomplish your goals, when you come to fulfill your dreams, be honest, be humble, and then give your helping hands to each other in whatever way.” He emphasized that on Vesak — and to follow the Buddhist teachings in general — it is key to give Dana — generosity, Sila — morality, and to do Bhavana — meditate.
“When we celebrate Vesak, there may be some differences because of culture and tradition . . . But we are coming to the same one point, that is Nibbana.”
— Ven. Mirisse Dhammika Thero, Sri Lankan Buddhist monk, SFU alumnus
Nibbana (also known as Nirvana) is the ultimate goal of all Buddhists, to escape the cycle of rebirth and worldly suffering. As Dhammika Thero put it, it is the “eradication of all kinds of defilement.”
Ng said that “it’s a very significant day for the Buddhist community, celebrating our teacher, the Siddhartha Buddha. It also signifies, of course, his compassion and wisdom that guided us over 2,500 years ago.”
The complexities of Buddhism and its teachings go far beyond Vesak Poya. When I finished speaking with Dhammika Thero, the monks at the temple gave me the book What the Buddha Taught written by the famous Sri Lankan monk Venerable Dr. Walpola Rahula Thero. The monks pointed out that the book provided a dense yet simple explanation of what Buddhism is and its teachings. It is perfect for anyone who wants to deepen their understanding and learn about Buddhism on a more profound level.
Ng pointed to resources on campus for those interested in engaging with Buddhism. He said that the Multifaith Centre hosts monthly Cha’an and Chat Sessions both in-person at the centre and online.
ඔබ සැමට පින්බර වෙසක් පුන් පොහෝ දිනයක් වේවා! That’s Sinhala for, “May you all have a blessed Vesak Full Moon Poya day!”
Connect with the SFU Multifaith Centre for their monthly meditation sessions held on a Saturday, primarily during the fall and spring semesters.
Connect with the Buddhist Vihara Society for their weekly meditation sessions on Sundays and their monthly Dhamma sermons held every Poya day.
