The main Buddhist festival is Vesak, also known as Saga Dava. It commemorates the Buddha’s birth, enlightenment, and Nirvana. This is the most auspicious festival because it lets us to ponder on the Buddha’s teachings and fully comprehend the impermanence of our lives.
May 16, 2022
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What`s Vesak about?
When Buddha Shakyamuni was ready to enter Nirvana, he gave an order to one of his followers. Not only should he commemorate Buddha after his death, but he should also make his teachings a reality. Every human being’s heart must exude mercy to all living things. People must realize that the body is made up of various objects that will eventually disintegrate.
The month of Saga begins when the sky is illuminated by the star Saga. According to the Tibetan calendar, this occurs every four months. The date is always different in each country. The festival in Tibet will begin on May 16 this year.
The amount of good deeds and prayers is multiplied by a thousand during Saga Dava. This is an especially mystical period during which individuals purify their minds. They don’t kill animals, don’t eat meat, and release captured animals back into their natural habitat as part of a liberation ritual. Vesak also refers to the act of expressing compassion through supporting strangers. Buddhists help those in need by donating food, clothing, and money. It’s a good moment to start accumulating merit.
Celebration in Lhasa
Vesak begins by raising the Tarboche flag. Believers replace the old flagpole with a new one from the previous year. They take great care to ensure that the structure stands precisely upright. An incline flagpole is a negative sign for Tibet, indicating misfortune. Luckily, the flagpole is always exactly aligned, and everyone sighs with relief. They are confident that their prayers, carried by the wind, will reach their intended destination.
Of course, prayers enter the atmosphere not only through flags, but also by Buddhists’ constant recitation of mental and oral prayers during these days. They pray for the preservation and dissemination of the Buddha’s teachings in the consciousness of all living beings, as well as world peace, for holy gurus of all lineages. Tibetians and pilgrims spend the most of their time praying in monasteries and temples. Thousands of them are making their way to Lhasa’s Potala Palace which is full of lights inside. According to Tibetan Buddhist tradition, an abundance of light assists the mind in properly concentrating and entering profound meditation.
If you desire sublime realization, offer up hundreds of lights.
People go to the park near the Potala Palace when the bustling day comes to an end and twilight falls. They are having a picnic and taking a break, but many Tibetans continue to pray there.
The Importance of Kailash
The Kailas sacred circuit is a second essential and permanent part of the festival. On the first day of the holiday, hundreds of pilgrims begin their cleansing trip from here.
Long before the Buddha’s arrival, the impregnable and towering Kailas was revered as a sacred temple. The pilgrimage ritual of circuiting the mountain («kora» in Tibetan) stands at the top of the list. Tibetans believe that just one kora can purify the soul of this life’s heavy karma. After completing 108 rounds, a person can exit the rebirth cycle and never return to this planet. People are compelled to make a round around the Kailas by Saga Dawa, the driving power. You will have more strength to do this act towards oneself when immersed in the energy of this unique occasion than you would on a regular day. You will also be able to circuit a flagpole once it is erected atop Kailas in Tarboche. One round around the flagpole, according to Tibetans, is comparable to one round of the Kailas.
You should go to this fantastic mystical festival to find out which technique works in practice.
