Vesak, North Hollywood, LA (5/18 and 5/25)

Vesak Day | short documentary filmed live in Sri Lanka (Ceylon) for the sacred Theravada festival

• FREE: Celebrate Vesak in North Hollywood with Wisdom Quarterly's Dharma editor: food, meditation, culture (5/25)

WHAT HAPPENED?

The big cultural celebration at the Mindfulness Meditation Center petered out, as most of the Sri Lankan community still had Vesak religious celebrations to attend at other Sinhalese-speaking venues. NoHo's Sarathchandra Buddhist Temple had a large turnout in the run up to its big Vesak lunar observance (Poya Day) on May 25, 2025.

Vesak Day Pali chanting of blessings

CLARIFICATION: Sarathchandra Temple in NoHo is celebrating a Bangladeshi Buddhist version of Vesak on Sunday, May 18, and will hold the traditional Sri Lankan version on Sunday May 25, 2025. The monks participated in Long Beach's Bodhi Mission Bangladeshi Vihara's Vesak on the May 17 in the morning and chanting in NoHo in the evening. Why? It is the joyous season of Vesak, which brings out the best in cultural celebrations for countries all over Asia and the diaspora.

Vesak continues on May 25, 2025

In Buddhist Sri Lanka (the tradition of the dominant group, the ethnic Sinhalese), the teardrop island off the tip of Southern India, which is also home to Hindus, Christians, Muslims, and animistic indigenous folk surviving in the jungles, VESAK is a weeklong celebration that is prepared for and remembered for the entire month. The great Los Angeles area has various Sri Lankan Buddhist viharas ("monasteries") in Los Angeles (Dharma Vijaya, which celebrated May 10, 2025), Covina (Mindfulness Meditation Center), the Valley (Sarathchandra Temple, North Hollywood), Sunland, and elsewhere.

Vesak Day in Theravada Buddhist Sri Lanka

Public Vesak celebrations, May 11 and 18th

Sunday, May 18, 2025, will see two giant Vesak (commemoration of the Buddha's birth, enlightenment, and passing into final nirvana on the full moon day of the same month called Vesakha on the ancient lunar calendar) celebrations in LA's two valleys. NoHo in the San Fernando Valley holds its annual celebration (beginning tonight, Saturday, May 17th, with chanting of blessings), observing the Eight Precepts, practicing meditation, Pali canon chanting, blessings, and lots and lots of island cuisine on May 18, 2025 and May 25, 2025. Far to the east in the San Gabriel Valley city of Covina, the Mindfulness Meditation Center (formerly the Los Angeles Buddhist Vihara of Hollywood then Pasadena) will have its annual Sri Lankan cultural celebration of Vesak on May 18, 2025, following last Sunday's full moon religious observance (the Uposatha or Poya Day as it is known in Sri Lanka) and meditation retreat. Both events are free, and all are welcome. Wear white. Call to confirm details.

• Usually, the young Mexican American monk Rev. SanathaVihari is present in NoHo, but he is currently visiting Vietnam
• Sarathchandra Buddhist Vihara; MindfulnessMeditationCenter.org (on WhatsApp); Eds., Wisdom Quarterly

It's Buddhist Christmas: VESAK 2025

Full moon appearing to mark the Buddha's life

The full moon day in May is called VESAK and signifies the day Siddhartha Gautama was born, became the Buddha (the "Enlightened One"), and made an end of all further rebirth (by attaining final nirvana). This thrice blessed day all took place on the full moon of the ancient month of Vesakha, roughly equivalent to the Gregorian calendar's May. (It varies every year). This year it falls on the 12th; therefore, most Buddhist temples in America will celebrate it on Sunday, May 11th, to fall closest to it. But in reality it will be celebrated all month long in various Theravada Buddhist temples, monasteries, and nunneries. One of the largest and most well-conceived celebrations happens in the suburbs of Los Angeles in the small town of Azusa (which boasts that it has everything from A to Z in the USA, but the word Azusa is really an ancient place name for a Native American Tongva village, just like Pasadegna, Topangna, and elsewhere all across LA County and beyond).

• 

  Vesak in Long Beach, May 17, 2025

  Celebrations continue throughout the country and world. This Sunday (May 18, 2025) the Los Angeles Vihara, now located in Covina (after being established in Hollywood then moving to Pasadena), will hold a massive cultural program in honor of Vesak (after last Sunday's Uposatha or Full Moon Lunar Observance Poya Day Eight Precept meditation retreat). The Vihara is now the mindfulnessmeditationcenter.org but now distributes the latest information on WhatsApp rather than Facebook or the website. The event is free. Wear white in honor of longstanding Southeast Asian Buddhist tradition, extending back to the time of the historical Buddha.

WHAT HAPPENED?

It was a 100-mile odyssey in a steel chariot pulled by more than 350 horses, too far to walk.

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We traveled on across Los Angeles (from Pasadena to the Valley over to Hollywood then east and further east) to visit five Buddhist temples in search of holiday festivities, finding three active ceremonies:

• Nepali Buddhist/Hindu Temple (Shree Pashupatinath and Buddha Mandir for Buddha Jayanti) in Norwalk, a city in Los Angeles County on the eastside. From there we traveled north up the 605 Freeway and east to the
• Mindfulness Meditation Center of Covina (the Los Angeles Buddhist Vihara, which began on Beechwood under the Hollywood Sign decades ago, moved to Pasadena for another decade or more, then landed in a massive property deep in the San Gabriel Valley with plans for a large stupa monument) to observe the Eight Precepts (Poya Day, Uposatha, for a serious lunar observance, as distinct from next Sunday's more festive cultural event to celebrate the Buddha's birthday, great awakening, and final nirvana) then on to our evening destination:

• 

  Peace Point Meditation at DIMC, Azusa

  Dhammakaya International Meditation Center, Azusa, to sit with 100 Buddhist monks from a dozen different Buddhist countries and at least 20 Buddhist nuns from all over. It is a strange spectacle in a very green forested area. Due to the cooling heat wave, it felt like being at a resort in Thailand, White Lotus style, with giant imperial Roman banners topped by golden eagles hanging in the distance, as if the Nazis had organized the 1936 Olympics only for Hitler's ego to be trounced by American Jessie Owens. So spectacular is the ceremony that it is shown live on TV in Thailand. Dressed in white, we take our seats as the monastics enter two by two in a long line, drone cam and boom cameras catching it all. The mayor gives a speech in honor of Mother's Day, a science professor named Dr. Gautam Somethingorother delivers a short speech on how much meditation has helped him and how depressed and troubled scientists are without spirituality, Vietnamese monks chant in unison, a representative of Hsi Lai (Going West) Buddhist Monastery from the other side of the San Gabriel Valley (hsilai.org), chants in the style of Taiwanese Fo Guang Shan Buddhism, donations are made to the Sangha by special guests (lots of gift-giving all the way around, as is the custom in Buddhist Thailand), then a giant circumambulation around one of two large golden Buddha statues ensues, while chanting traditional Pali language verses. Finally, candles are lit and we repeat words of loving-kindness (metta) led by a senior monk to bless the entire world. All the while, all the Thai women have their phones out to document their spiritual journey with selfies as if these grand dames were teens. Then gifts and snacks are distributed to the hundreds in attendance, who go off into the clear summer-like spring night. It seemed as if the only SoCal Thai monastery not in attendance was Tan Jeff's (American Ajahn Geoff's) Wat Metta because Ven. Thanissaro badmouthed Dhammakaya and doesn't get invited anymore. Ah, that's just like the Tan Jeff we know. More
• Vesak is celebrated all month long at temples across US!

Come celebrate the Buddha's birth, great awakening, and passing into final-nirvana

The inclusive international Buddhist flag

Sunday, May 11 Vesak (Visakha) Day: Come celebrate (open to all) through the lighting of lanterns, meditation, and a candlelight procession. many Buddhist disciples will be dressed all in white and keeping the Eight precepts for the 24-hour period in observance of the most special uposatha (lunar observance) of the year.

• Sunday, May 11, 5:30-8:45 pm PDT
• Dhammakaya International Meditation Center
• 865 E. Monrovia Place
• Azusa, Los Angeles County, California 91702

Vesak Day: A Celebration of the Buddha

Who was this incomparable human being?

Join us at the Dhammakaya International Meditation Center for a joyous celebration of Vesak Day! This in-person event is a wonderful opportunity to honor the life and teachings of the historical Buddha.

On this special celebration of the Buddha, Dhammakaya welcomes more than 150 Buddhist monastics from 12 Buddhist countries and traditions to join together as a united Sangha (spiritual community), including monastics from

• Burma (Myanmar)
• Taiwan
• China
• Tibet
• Cambodia
• Vietnam
• Laos
• South Korea
• Sri Lanka
• Bangladesh
• Japan
• Thailand.
• (Dhammakaya is a Theravada Thai vihara).

Buddhist monks practicing for calm and insight

We will join in group meditation, sangha-dana (offering of necessities to the monastics), light lanterns to illuminate the meditation lawn, and participate in a candlelight walking meditation.

Vesak Day is a time for all to unite and reflect on the profound impact the Buddha has had on the world. Come and be a part of this meaningful celebration!

• Questions? Contact Dhammakaya at (626) 334-2160.

For meditation classes, visit Peace Point Meditation. For more Buddhist events, visit dimc.info.

SCHEDULE

• 5:30 pm - Registration
• 6:55 pm - Procession of international Sangha arrives
• 7:00 pm - The presiding monk lights the ceremonial lantern and welcome speeches
• 7:10 pm - VIP speeches
• 7:20 pm - Sanghas’ chanting
• 7:30 pm - Sangha-dana offering ceremony
• 7:50 pm - Metta or "Loving Kindness" Chanting for Humanity
• 7:55 pm - Meditation
• 8:05 pm - Candlelight circumambulation
• 8:20 pm - Candle lighting ceremony
• 8:35 pm - Spreading Loving Kindness
•  8:45 p.m. End of ceremony

• Peace Point Meditation, Dhammakaya (Eventbrite); Religion for Breakfast; Bhante, Dhr. Seven, Kelly Ani, Ananda (Dharma Buddhist Meditation), Jen B. (eds.), Wisdom Quarterly

To Bless a Pandemic World (Ratana Sutra)

Ven. Akaliko, Ven. Anandajoti (ancient-buddhist-texts.net), Dhr. Seven (ed.), Wisdom Quarterly

Poverty Death says to Covid-19 Death, "You ain't seen nothing yet." (creators.com)

Ratana Sutta: "Precious Jewel Sutra"

The backstory of Bahiya of the Barkcloth

(May 18, 2020) The "Precious Jewel Sutra" was originally uttered or chanted by the Buddha and Ven. Ananda as a protection (paritta) for a city ravaged by a pandemic and haunted by the unclean spirits of those who had died as a result. Here two Western Theravada monks in the Thai Forest Tradition, Ven. Sujato and Ven. Akaliko, chant the abridged version for 2020 Vesak celebrations organized by the Federation of Australian Buddhist Councils, an online event held during the pandemic.

CHANT: Ratana Sutta (Sn2.1)

Whatever riches there are -- here, elsewhere, or in the celestial realm -- that excellent treasure
Yaṁ kiñci vittaṁ -- idha vā huraṁ vā saggesu vā -- yaṁ ratanaṁ paṇītaṁ

cannot rival the Awakened One. This excellent treasure in [the world] is the Buddha:
na no samaṁ atthi Tathāgatena, idam-pi Buddhe ratanaṁ paṇītaṁ:

[Pollutants’] end, dispassion, deathlessness, excellence: which the concentrated Scythian sage attained,
Khayaṁ virāgaṁ amataṁ paṇītaṁ, yad-ajjhagā Sakyamunī samāhito,

By virtue of this truth may there be safety!
Etena saccena suvatthi hotu!

There is nothing that is equal to that state. This excellent treasure in [the world] is the Dharma:
Na tena dhammena samatthi kiñci, idam-pi Dhamme ratanaṁ paṇītaṁ:

By virtue of this truth may there be safety!
Etena saccena suvatthi hotu!

That which the Buddha, the Great One, praised as pure, the concentration said to have immediate result,
Yam-Buddhaseṭṭho parivaṇṇayī suciṁ, samādhim-ānantarikañ-ñam-āhu,

no equal to that concentration is to be found. This excellent treasure is in the Dharma:
samādhinā tena samo na vijjati, idam-pi Dhamme ratanaṁ paṇītaṁ:

By virtue of this truth may there be safety!
Etena saccena suvatthi hotu!

Those eight individuals praised by the noble ones, there are these four pairs (of individuals),
Ye puggalā aṭṭha sataṁ pasatthā, cattāri etāni yugāni honti,

those disciples of the Happy One are worthy of gifts, for things given to them have great fruit,
te dakkhiṇeyyā Sugatassa sāvakā, etesu dinnāni mahapphalāni,

this excellent treasure is in the Saṅgha:
idam-pi Saṅghe ratanaṁ paṇītaṁ:

By virtue of this truth may there be safety!
Etena saccena suvatthi hotu!

Those who have firm and devoted minds, without sense desire in Gotama’s dispensation,
te pattipattā amataṁ vigayha, laddhā mudhā nibbutiṁ bhuñjamānā,

those who have attained, and entered the deathless state, are enjoying liberation, gained for free,
Ye suppayuttā manasā daḷhena, nikkāmino Gotamasāsanamhi,

this excellent treasure in [the world] is the Saṅgha: by virtue of this truth may there be safety!...
idam-pi Saṅghe ratanaṁ paṇītaṁ: etena saccena suvatthi hotu!

The old is destroyed, and nothing new is produced, (their) minds are dispassionate about any future rebirth,
Khīṇaṁ purāṇaṁ navaṁ natthi sambhavaṁ, virattacittā āyatike bhavasmiṁ,

they have neutralized the seeds, and are dispassionate about growth, the wise are still, just as this lamp (is still),
te khīṇabījā avirūḷhicchandā, nibbanti dhīrā yathāyam-padīpo,

this excellent treasure in[the world] is the Saṅgha:
idam-pi Saṅghe ratanaṁ paṇītaṁ:

By virtue of this truth may there be safety!
Etena saccena suvatthi hotu!

Celebrating Vesak in Malaysia (video)

Ven. Mahinda (Malaysia), May 6, 2020; CC Liu, Crystal Quintero (eds.), Wisdom Quarterly

The Significance of Vesak

(Malaysia Buddhist Festival) This Vesak 2020 message is given by Bhante Mahinda, who talks about its significance and meaning. Other than the usual making of merit, what else can we do during lockdown on this great day for Buddhists all over the world? This video is courtesy of the Australian Buddhist Mission, Inc. (ABM), of which Bhante Mahinda is the spiritual director

ABOUT

Ven. Mahinda was ordained in 1976 as a Buddhist monk in the Sri Lankan Theravada tradition under the tutelage of the late Ven. Dr. K. Sri Dhammananda Nayaka Thera, a well-known Sri Lankan monk residing in Malaysia for more than 50 years. After his ordination, Bhante undertook a Buddhist studies program at the Paramadhamma Buddhist Institute in Sri Lanka from 1977 to 1982. He was trained in meditation by several well-known masters in Sri Lanka, India, Burma, and Thailand. He was also inspired by Mahayana masters from China, Taiwan, Korea, and Japan, as well as by Vajrayana masters from Tibet, Nepal, Bhutan, and India. Bhante has taught mindfulness and metta meditation for more than 30 years in 20 countries. His participation in inter-religious conferences and Dharma propagation has taken him to more than 30 countries. Currently, he is the abbot of the Aloka Meditation Centre in Australia (AMC); founder, spiritual director of the Australian Buddhist Mission Inc. (ABM); Buddhist chaplain at the University of Technology, Sydney (UTS); trustee of the University Buddhist Education Foundation (UBEF); and Training Committee member and training course presenter of the Australian Association of Buddhist Counsellors and Psychotherapists (AABCAP). He is the founder and spiritual director of the Aloka Foundation, Malaysia; religious patron of the Young Buddhist Association of Malaysia (YBAM); religious advisor to the Buddhist Missionary Society, Malaysia and a number of other Buddhist organizations in East and West Malaysia and Singapore.

Vesak: Buddhist Xmas, May full moon day

Dhr. Seven, Amber Larson, Ashley Wells, Ananda (eds.), Wisdom Quarterly Wiki edit

A human was born to complete a mission: Wake up and awaken others: The Buddha

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Buddhist Afghanistan (R.P.)

Vesak (Pali Vesākha, Sanskrit Vaiśākha) is also known as Buddha Jayanti, Buddha Purnima (full moon day), and "Buddha Day." It is the name of the ancient month on which, on the full moon night, three marvelous things happened:

• The Future-Buddha (Bodhisattva) was born as Prince Siddhartha Gautama.
• The wandering ascetic Siddhartha attained a buddha's great enlightenment.
• The Buddha consciously moved through the absorptions and passed away into is final nirvana.

Buddhist countries

Vesak is a holiday traditionally observed for thousands of years by Buddhists and some Hindus on different days in

• United States, Afghanistan, Mexico
• Burma (Myanmar), Thailand, Sri Lanka
• Tibet, Nepal, Bhutan, Australia, Canada
• India, Kashmir, Cambodia, Laos, Indonesia
• Himalayas, Iran ("Aryan Land"), Bangladesh
• Kalmykia, Buryatia, England, Germany
• Russia, Siberia, Tuva, Ukraine, Vietnam
• Philippines, Singapore, Malaysia, Greece
• Japan, China, Mongolia, New Zealand
• Taiwan, Hong Kong, South and North Korea
• Pakistan, Central Asia (The Silk Road Stans)
• Maldives, Iceland, Hungary (Budapest)
• African countries, Zabaykalsky Krai...

Missionary Buddhism started on the Silk Road when the Buddha sent out 60 arhats.

Buddhism began in Afghanistan (Scythia, Shakya Land, Silk Road) and Bihar (before it India)

. 

I want to be the Little Buddha

"Buddhist Christmas" or "The Buddha's Birthday" or the "Great Enlightenment Day" is also celebrated in many other parts of the world, wherever Buddhists live or are staying.

The festival commemorates the birth, great enlightenment (buddhahood), and passing (parinirvāna) of Siddhartha Gautama the Buddha in ancient Theravada and Tibetan Vajrayana Buddhism. More

The full Harvest Moon appearing orange close to the horizon (Roadcrusher, England/Wiki)

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.When is Vesak in 2020 (2563 BE)?

Look for the Earth's timekeeper the Moon.

It's easy to figure out the exact day: Determine when the month of Vaisakha falls then look for the full moon. This year it coincides with May, and the moon is full on the 6th and/or 7th.

The exact date of Vesak is based on Asian lunisolar calendars and is primarily celebrated in the Indian month of Vaisakaha on the Buddhist calendar and the Hindu (Vedic) calendar.

Full moon calendar (moonconnection.com)

Theravada Buddhist countries follow the BUDDHIST CALENDAR, which is based on the dependable phases of the moon. The uposatha (fasting or Eight Precept observance day), typically in the 5th or 6th lunar month.

Nowadays, in many countries it is celebrated on the full moon day in May on the Gregorian calendar. (Because of all these regional and sectarian variations, Vesak lasts all month longs and usually spills into the beginning and end of adjacent months. More

Vesak Day 2020 Australia with Ajahn Brahm

Ajahn Brahm+Ven. Hasapanna, Buddhist Society of W.A.; Amber Larson, Wisdom Quarterly

VESAK: Buddha's Xmas Potluck (May 23)

Ananda (Dharma Meditation Initiative), Dhr. Seven, Ashley Wells (eds.), Wisdom Quarterly

FREE event. This month, called "Vesak" in Buddhist Asia, gives us much to celebrate -- mothers (the Buddha had two), Mexico (Cinco de Mayo), and most of all Buddhist Xmas: the full moon day of the Buddha's birth, enlightenment, and passing into final nirvana. All three happened on the same full moon day in different years.

Washing the baby Buddha

We celebrate the Sage of the Scythians, Prince Siddhartha, with social time and heartfelt hugs then honor the Buddha, the Enlightened Teacher, in the way he said paid him the most respect -- actually practicing what he revealed.

Bring vegan snacks and drinks to share. Contact us for ideas. Think Cinco de Mayo fare and good drinks. RSVP:

• Dharma Meditation Initiative, L.A.
• Thursday, May 23, 7:00-9:00 PM
• Neighborhood UU Church
• 301 N. Orange Grove Bl., Room 23
• Pasadena, California 91103

Kombucha and vegan tacos with guacamole and spicy salsa

"Buddha Day" as Vesak celebration (May 12)

Editors, Wisdom Quarterly, Wikipedia edit

Vesākha
Vesak Day celebrations at Borobodur in Java, Indonesia
Official name	Vesākha, Buddha Purnima, Buddha Jayanti, Vaisakha, Vesak, Vaishakhi Purnima বৈশাখী পুর্ণিমার 包囲祭 衛塞節 वेसाक វិសាខបូជា
Also called	The Buddha's Birthday or Buddha Day
Observed by	Buddhists and some Hindus in South and Southeast Asia and in East Asia (as The Buddha's Birthday)
Type	Religious
Significance	The birth, enlightenment and death of Gautama Buddha
Observances	Meditation, observing the Eight Precepts, partaking of vegetarian food, giving to charity, "bathing" the Buddha
Date	Full moon of the month of Vesākha, usually in April (first), May or June (last)
2018 date	29 April (Sri Lanka, Cambodia, Burma, and Bangladesh) 30 April (India, Nepal) 29 May (Singapore, Thailand, Malaysia and Indonesia)
2019 date	May 19
Frequency	annual
Related to	Buddha's Birthday Other related festivals Laba Festival (in China) Rohatsu (in Japan)

Bathing the Buddha on Vesak

Vesak (Pali Vesākha, Sanskrit Vaiśākha), also known as Buddha Jayanti, Buddha Purnima, and Buddha Day, is a holiday traditionally observed by Buddhists and some Hindus on different days in the various Buddhist countries of India, Sri Lanka, Nepal, Tibet, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Indonesia, Singapore, Thailand, Cambodia, Laos, Malaysia, Burma, Mongolia, the Philippines, and in China (but not in formerly Buddhist countries of Afghanistan, Pakistan, Baluchistan, Kazakhstan, Kirgystan, Tajikastan, Gandhara (the former Scythian/Shakyian Land of the Buddha), Japan, Korea, Taiwan, and Vietnam as "Buddha's Birthday" as well as in other parts of the world. The festival commemorates the birth, enlightenment (Buddhahood), and final nirvana (parinirvāna) of the Buddha Gautamaa in the Theravada or more orthodox tradition. More

• Tzu Chi's Buddha Day (and Mother's Day) celebration, L.A.

5 Things to Know about Vesak Day

Dinah Amira Nordin (sg.theasianparent.com); Ananda M., Dhr. Seven (eds.), Wisdom Quarterly

Vesak observes three important events in the Buddha's life: birth, enlightenment, nirvana

How much do you really understand about Vesak Day ["Buddhist Xmas"]?

Here are some facts that many may not know about this massive annual Buddhist celebration.

A day of joy, peace, and reflection, Vesak is observed by Buddhists around the world.

However, it is traditionally celebrated by Buddhists in Singapore, India, Burma, Thailand, Sri Lanka, Cambodia, Laos, Nepal, Bangladesh, and other Southeast Asian countries.

 

Here are five things about Vesak Day you probably don’t know:

 

Inner peace and reflection are important components of Vesak Day celebrations

1. Vesak is the most significant day in the Buddhist calendar

Vesak day is the most important date in the Buddhist lunar calendar. It celebrates three major events in the life of the Buddha: his birth, his attainment of Enlightenment, and his passing into Nirvana. According to Buddhist scriptures, each of these occurred on a full moon in the lunar month of Vesak. 

2. Doing good deeds is an essential part of the celebrations

On Vesak Day, Buddhists reaffirm their commitment to living a moral and compassionate lifestyle; many of them believe that performing good deeds on this particular day will multiply merit many times over.

On this day, vegetarian meals are consumed and caged birds and other animals are released as a symbolic gesture of compassion. Showing kindness to those less fortunate than yourselves through acts of sharing food, blood donations, etc. are also part of the celebration. Good deeds like these, whether by individuals or temples, are known as "Dana."

 

Many Buddhists head to the temple to join others in a day of chanting and meditating.

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3. Mahayana and Theravada Buddhists celebrate Vesak Day differently

The majority of Chinese Buddhists in Singapore are Mahayana Buddhists.

Mahayana temples, such as Phor Kark See Temple on Bright Hill Road, practice the "three-step, one-bow" ritual on Vesak Day, where devotees take three steps on both knees, bowing at every third step as they pray for world peace, personal blessings, and repentance.
 
Theravada Buddhists, mainly comprised of Singapore's Burmese, Thai and Sri Lankan communities, rejoice at the Burmese Buddhist Temple at Geylang and the Sri Lankaramaya Temple on St. Michael's Road, respectively. Vesak celebrations include the ritual of preparing a pot of rich rice in coconut milk, reminiscent of the Buddha's last meal before his great enlightenment.
 

Often there are processions and celebrations to mark Vesak Day

4. Anyone can join the celebrations

You don't have to be a Buddhist to celebrate Vesak. Head towards Singapore's oldest Buddhist temple on Lian Shan Shuang Lin or the Buddha Tooth Relic Temple in the heart of Chinatown to observe the day.

5. Vesak Day in Singapore was only made an official public holiday in 1955
After World War II, the Singapore Buddhist Association led the petition to make Vesak Day an official public holiday.

Subsequently, this significant day for Buddhists was made an official public holiday in Singapore in 1955. Since Vesak is celebrated according to the lunar calendar, the date on which it is celebrated changes from year to year, usually falling in the month of May or early June.

Dharma Meditation Initiative is celebrating all month, including May 13, 2018

• References: yoursingapore.com, vesaksingapore.org. The Asian Parent wishes all Buddhist readers a very happy and blessed Vesak Day!

Buddhist Xmas+Cinco de Mayo PARTY (May 3)

Ananda M. (Dharma Meditaiton Initiative), Dhr. Seven, Crystal Quintero, Wisdom Quarterly

It's Buddhist Xmas x 3! It's a massive holiday throughout the Buddhist world simply called VESAK (April 29, 2018).

Vesak is the name of an ancient Indian month (April-May) when the auspicious full moon marked the birth of Prince Siddhartha.

It was also under the full moon of this month that saw the great enlightenment (maha bodhi).
 

Reclining into nirvana (parinirvana, Burma)

It was also the night of the Buddha's great final reclining into final nirvana without remainder or parinirvana.

It's also this year Cinco de Mayo (May 5th), the famous American holiday we think celebrates Mexican Independence Day, when it actually celebrates a battle that beat and threw out the Colonial French. 

So it's time to party with a vegan potluck at the Dharma Meditation Initiative. The cold kombucha will be flowing.

And a visit by the American nun Sayalay Aloka (shown below) will center around the theme of the (allegorical) Buddha's life, how and why he gained enlightenment, and how we can, too.

Prince Siddhartha sat under the bodhi tree to overcome Mara (Death) and awaken!

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Sayalay Aloka Nyani, American Buddhist nun

GUEST: Sayalay Aloka -- who was born and raised in Virginia, ordained and trained in Asia, a former student of Goenka-style insight meditation called vipassana.

She now resides at the Thabarwa Nature Center in Pasadena-adjacent Arcadia.

She visits D.M.I. to answer questions on Buddhist practices, easy meditation, as well as "life, the universe, and everything." There will be answers to everything you ever wanted to know.

Kombucha, tacos, salad, chips

And we'll feast on delicious vegan Cinco de Mayo and Asian Buddhist vegetarian foods by potluck, in the Native American potlatch tradition.

Lots of guacamole, salsa, corn chips, dips, tacos, and spice with noodles, veggies, savories, and sweets. Bring ice, bring cups, bring your favorite dish, even if you pick it up at Whole Foods or Trader Joe's, both located nearby on Arroyo Seco Parkway (110 Fwy).

• Dharma Meditation Initiative
• FREE, Thursday, May 3, 6:30-8:30 PM
• Sequoyah School Rm. 23 @ Neighborhood Church
• 301 N. Orange Grove Bl., Pasadena 91103