English
To celebrate Buddha’s birthday, Fo Guang Shan Templeof Toronto, West End Buddhist Temple, The Buddhist Association of Cham SanTemple and Karma Sonam Dargye Ling jointly organized the 2022 Virtual Vesak Festival on Saturday, May 28. In GTA(Great Toronto Area,) 15 Buddhist temples with more than 3,000 participantswent online through Zoom, Youtube and Facebook, to join the celebration together.
Dr. Bhante Saranapala from West End Buddhist Temple,Venerable Chueh Fan from FGS Temple of Toronto, Venerable Da Yi from Cham SanTemple, and Lama Tenzin Dakpa from Sonam Dargye Ling presented a welcome speech. Dr. Bhante Saranapala encouraged everyone to practice the Buddha’s teachings and cultivate wholesome qualities like compassion, tolerance,kindness, empathy and generosity in daily life. He expressed his appreciation for all temples' joint efforts to make this event successful and extended his gratitude to the government for their support.
Venerable Chueh Fan pointed out, “It is a special opportunity for Buddhists to connect together and strengthen our faith to spread love, respect and peace. Through this auspicious occasion, we pray to the Buddha for his protection and compassion for all sentient beings." She shared Venerable Master Hsing Yun's Dharma words, “Face the world with a peaceful mind. Accept adversity with joyin your mind. Make affinity with a mind to serve others. Repay society with a grateful mind,” inspired everyone to realize that life in peace is possible only if we treat others with love.
The Prime Minister of Canada, Justin Trudeau, issued a statement on Vesak to all Buddhists, wishing everyone to celebrate a peaceful and happy Vesak. In the statement, he said, "I invite all Canadians to learn more about Buddhist communities and the important contributions they have made – and continue to make – to our country."
BySock Gee Gan
