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Children Celebrates
Vesak
at Dharma Vijaya
Buddhist Vihara in Los Angeles
Vesak was celebrated at Dharma Vijaya
Buddhist Vihara in Los Angeles this past Saturday and Sunday, and
the focus was on children. Ven. Walpola Piyananda, Abbot of
Dharma Vijaya and President of the Buddhist Sangha Council of
Southern California , said that the Buddha always emphasized the
importance of educating and training children, and that he
consistently showed his compassion to the innocent young.
Vesak, of course, is the anniversary of the Buddha’s birth and
passing away – as well as his enlightenment – a fitting occasion for
emphasizing the importance of the children who will carry on the
Buddha’s legacy, and live the Dhamma in their daily lives.
The Vesak weekend was divided into two
main events over the two days. Saturday was the “day of
children,” and over one hundred of them participated in special
activities. With the parents’ permission, twenty four bright
young boys and girls sat last Sunday at the temple and wrote essays
for competition. They chose topics ranging from “Buddhism and
World Peace,” “The Five Precepts,” “Respect for Elders and Parents,”
and “Buddhism in America .” Dr. Ananda Guruge, former
Ambassador to the US and a distinguished scholar, was the judge of
the essay competition, and he announced the winners on Saturday
evening.
Fifteen young orators – aged 8 to 17 –
competed in the speech contest at the event, and the audience gave
their undivided attention to such topics as “Buddha: The
Greatest Compassionate One,” “Buddhism in Daily Life,” “Vesak Day
Should Be World Peace Day,” “Qualities of a Spiritual Friend,” and
others. Imagine the look of surprise on the faces of the
judges when a young man of nine years old, Madusha Silva, gave a
talk on “The Four Sublime States in Buddhism” – an amazing
accomplishment that secured him second prize. One young man,
Dhishal Tennakoon, won first prize in the speech contest and tied
for first place in the essay contest with Nilma Edward. Dharma
Vijaya Buddhist Vihara awarded cash prizes to each of the winners in
both competitions, and all contestants were given gifts and special
certificates from the Buddhist Sangha Council of Southern California
.
Eleven-year-old Kalpa Semasinghe
co-wrote with his father, Sunil Semasinghe, a drama entitled “Mal
Wage Punchi Lamai,” and also performed in the piece in the role
of narrator. Mihiri Hettigoda played the lead, and twenty
other children acted in supporting roles. The audience was
enchanted, and applauded accordingly. Next came a series of
songs performed by the Dharma Vijaya Dhamma School – several of them
original compositions, the lyrics of which were written by Sunil
Semasinghe. The choir was directed by Ramani Weerasingha.
Award certificates and
beautifully-wrapped presents were given to every child in attendance
for their participation. Afterwards, a special dansala
was served to the three hundred parents and other guests by the
Dharma Vijaya youth.
Sunday was set aside as a meditation
retreat, and the participants, who numbered forty-five, took Eight
Precepts for the day. Children were encouraged to participate
in the meditation program as well, and a number of them practiced
with the adults. A special Dharma Vijaya tradition is the
admitting of new Buddhists to the congregation with a Pancil
ceremony. This year five Americans committed themselves to a
life of studying, practicing, and living the Buddha Dhamma.
Each of them were given new Buddhist names: Ananda, Sumana,
Gita, Panna, and Vijitha.
The event was organized by members of
the Sangha, members of the Dharma Vijaya Board of Directors, and
volunteers from the Daiaka Saba, and coordinated by
Ven. Maitipe Wimalasara and Ven. Barbarawana Kalyanawansa.
Honored guests included Ven. Halwitigala Assaji, Chief Sangha Nayaka
of India , Mr. Nelson Perera, Coordinating Secretary of Religious
Affairs in Sri Lanka , Mr. Ranaweera Bulegoda, and Dr. Ananda Guruge.
For the past 32 years Dharma Vijaya
Buddhist Vihara has been the center of Sri Lankan Buddhist
activities in Southern California . Most of the other temples
in the region – as well as those in the rest of North America – have
their roots at the Crenshaw Boulevard vihara. Ven.
Piyananda has presided over Vesak celebrations in America ever since
his arrival on July 4th, 1976 in the midst of the
bicentennial festivities in California .
The day before Vesak 2008 Ven. Piyananda
received his first box of advance copies of his new book, “The
Bodhi Tree Grows in L.A: Tales of a Buddhist Monk in America,”
which was published by Shambala, a division of Random House.
Everyone welcomed the arrival of the new book on Vesak as an
especially auspicious event for Buddhism in America .
“Children are the future not only for
Buddhism, but for all of mankind,” said Ven. Piyananda. “We
must train them early and thoroughly to prepare them for the unknown
challenges they will face in this ever-changing, and increasingly
more unstable, world. Dharma Vijaya is 100% committed to
placing our young people at the top of our priority list.”
Vesak this year certainly proved this policy.
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