Radio Brisvaani
Wat Thai Buddharam, the Buddhist temple in Forestdale, organised the Buddhist lent ceremony on Sunday, 18 July.
Asalha Puja is a Theravada Buddhist festival which typically takes place in July, on the full moon of the eighth lunar month. This day marks the first public sermon given by Buddha, which took place at Deer Park in Banaras, India. In this initial sermon, Buddha presented the Four Noble Truths to five ascetics. While the ascetics believed in self-mortification, he taught that the cessation of desire was the key to enlightenment. Upon hearing this message, the five men reached enlightenment and became the first Buddhist priests or Sangha.
The day also marks the beginning of Vassa, the Buddhist lent period also known as the Rains Retreat. During Vassa (Rains Retreat), monks remain inside monasteries and temple grounds, devoting their time to intensive meditation and study. Lay people support the monastic sangha by bringing food, candles and other offerings to temples. Lay people also often observe Vassa by giving up something, such as smoking or eating meat. For this reason, westerners sometimes call Vassa the “Buddhist Lent.”
