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Wesak Festival
The time of the full moon is a time of celebration.
We celebrate the energy of the SUN.
Why are we here?
The reason is that when the Moon is full it is the
furthest from the Sun, thus the Sun’s energy is the
strongest.
Thus we celebrate the energy of the
Sun through meditation and reflection.
For those of you who are not familiar with esoteric
philosophy – or do not know it well – I will remind
you that all is energy. Thus you should simply relax
and try to feel the energy rather then concern
yourself with understanding everything.
All is Energy!
During the lecture you can ask questions or make
comments. After the meditation you may also ask
questions.
Wesak Presentation

Buddha

Wesak Festival

Water Ceremony
- Short Break -

Coffee/Tea - discussion
Buddha (“the awakened” - someone who is completely free from
all faults and mental obstructions) was the title given to Siddhartha
Gautama, the son of a Nepalese rajah. According to tradition,
Guatama left a life of luxury at age 30 and devoted himself to
years of contemplation and self-denial, finally reaching
enlightenment while sitting beneath a tree. Henceforth known as
Buddha, he spent his life teaching disciples about his beliefs
(embodied in the Four Noble Truths) and the goal of achieving the
enlightened state of Nirvana.
Buddha
Lord Buddha is considered the ninth avatar (incarnation) of
Vishnu (Preserver in the Hindu Holy Trinity of CreatorPreserver-Destroyer)
As with Christ we know where Buddha was born. With Buddha it
was Lumbini, Nepal - which is in the southern part of Nepal, near
India.
As with Christ we do not know the year Buddha was born—563
B.C. is one date, 623 B.C. another, and 1029 B.C. a third.
As with Christ we do not know Buddha’s birthday.
But not knowing Buddha’s birthday it seemed that there should be
a day to celebrate his birthday—as we in the West have Christmas
for Christ.
Buddha
The date decided upon for the exact date of Vesak, informally
“Buddha’s Birthday,” is in the fourth month in the Chinese Lunar
Calendar (typically May), coinciding with the first full moon of that
month. The date varies from year to year in the Western Gregorian
calendar. This is a national holiday in Nepal.
This day commemorates three important events of Buddha’s life—
His birth—His enlightenment, i.e. attainment of supreme wisdom—
His attainment of Nirvana i.e. the complete extinction of his self at
Gautama Buddha was not a god and the philosophy of
Buddhism does not entail any theistic world-view. Thus using
a narrow definition of religion Buddhism is not a religion. The
teachings of the Buddha are solely to liberate human beings
from the misery and sufferings of life.
Buddha
According to Buddhism, sorrow and desire are the main
cause of all the evil and suffering of this world. Lord Buddha
advocated Four Noble Truths along with the Eightfold Path
consisting of precepts to gain mastery over suffering. It is
only after following this path one can reach the ultimate aim
of Nirvana. Nirvana is the transcendental state of complete
liberation.
Life means suffering.
To live means to suffer, because the human nature is not
perfect and neither is the world we live in. During our
lifetime, we inevitably have to endure physical suffering
such as pain, sickness, injury, tiredness, old age, and
eventually death; and we have to endure psychological
suffering like sadness, fear, frustration, disappointment, and
depression. Although there are different degrees of
suffering and there are also positive experiences in life that
we perceive as the opposite of suffering, such as ease,
comfort and happiness, life in its totality is imperfect and
incomplete, because our world is subject to impermanence.
This means we are never able to keep permanently what
we strive for, and just as happy moments pass by, we
ourselves and our loved ones will pass away one day, too.
The Four Noble Truths
The origin of suffering is
Life means suffering.
attachment.
The origin of suffering is attachment to transient things and
the ignorance thereof. Transient things do not only include
the physical objects that surround us, but also ideas, and—
in a greater sense—all objects of our perception. Ignorance
is the lack of understanding of how our mind is attached to
impermanent things. The reasons for suffering are desire,
passion, ardor, pursuit of wealth and prestige, striving for
fame and popularity, or in short: craving and clinging.
Because the objects of our attachment are transient, their
loss is inevitable, thus suffering will necessarily follow.
Objects of attachment also include the idea of a “self”
which is a delusion, because there is no abiding self. What
we call “self” is just an imagined entity, and we are merely a
part of the ceaseless becoming of the universe.
The Four Noble Truths
The cessation of suffering is
The origin of suffering is attachment.
attainable.
The cessation of suffering can be attained through nirodha.
Nirodha means the unmaking of sensual craving and
conceptual attachment. The third noble truth expresses the
idea that suffering can be ended by attaining dispassion.
Nirodha extinguishes all forms of clinging and attachment.
This means that suffering can be overcome through human
activity, simply by removing the cause of suffering. Attaining
and perfecting dispassion is a process of many levels that
ultimately results in the state of Nirvana. Nirvana means
freedom from all worries, troubles, complexes, fabrications
and ideas. Nirvana is not comprehensible for those who
have not attained it.
The Four Noble Truths
The cessation of suffering is
There is a path to the cessation of
attainable.
suffering.
There is a path to the end of suffering—a gradual path of
self-improvement, which is described more detailed in the
Eightfold Path. It is the middle way between the two
extremes of excessive self-indulgence (hedonism) and
excessive self-mortification (asceticism); and it leads to the
end of the cycle of rebirth. The latter quality discerns it from
other paths which are merely “wandering on the wheel of
becoming”, because these do not have a final object. The
path to the end of suffering can extend over many lifetimes,
throughout which every individual rebirth is subject to
karmic conditioning. Craving, ignorance, delusions, and its
effects will disappear gradually, as progress is made on the
path.
The Four Noble Truths
Life means suffering.
The origin of suffering is
attachment.
The Four Noble Truths
The cessation of suffering is
attainable.
There is a path to the
cessation of
suffering.
The Noble Eightfold Path
1.Right View
2.Right Intention
}
3.Right Speech
4.Right Action
5.Right Livelihood
}
6.Right Effort
}
8.Right Concentration
7.Right Mindfulness
Wisdom
Ethical
Conduc
t
Mental
Developme
nt
The Precepts
I undertake
to observe
the precept to abstain from:
1. … harming
living beings
2. … taking things not freely given
3. … sexual misconduct
4. … false speech
5. … intoxicating drinks and drugs causing
heedlessness
6. … taking untimely meals
7. … dancing, singing, music and watching grotesque
mime
8. … use of garlands, perfumes and personal
adornment
9. … use of high seats.
10. … accepting gold or silver.
Wesak Festival
The Wesak Festival stands for certain most
definite and clearly marked ideas:
1. This Festival links the past with the
present.
2. This Festival marks the high-water mark
of spiritual blessing in the world.
3. At the time of the Festival … and through
the united effort of the Christ and the
Buddha working in the closest cooperation
… there is opened a channel of
communication between humanity and
God.
Buddhism
Hinduism
Jainism
Bön
The Legend of Wesak
By what name we call
these Beings does not
greatly matter.
I see and when
the eye is
opened, all is
illumined.
Water Ceremony
Christians Celtic
Animal Realm Taoist
Water is essential to our very existence
Native Americans
Tarot
Greeks
Purity and
fertility
Astrologically
Buddhist
Egyptians
Transformation
Subconscious
Fertilization
Purification
Reflection
Intuition
Renewal
Blessing
Motion
Life
In the centre of all Love I
stand. From that centre I, the soul,
will outward move. From that centre
I, the one who serves will work. May
the loveWater
of the divine
Self be shed
Ceremony
abroad In my heart, through my
group, and throughout the world.
The Next Full Moon
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