CNEWS Reporters Li Yi-lun, Lin You-wei / Sri Lanka Report

Representatives of monks from 23 countries and Buddhists led by Ven. Shih Da Hui, Abbot of Taiwan’s Guang Xiu Zen Monastery and Chairman of the international Buddhist organization “One Buddha One World,” yesterday (1st) received blessings from the highly revered Sangharaja at Jaya Sri Maha Bodhi Tree, a Buddhist pilgrimage site in Sri Lanka. The scene was supremely auspicious and profoundly meaningful.

On the second day after One Buddha One World’s establishment, Assembly Chairman Ven. Shih Da Hui worked tirelessly, leading monks and lay practitioners from various places to Ruwanwelisaya Dagoba, a place every Buddhist most wishes to visit in their lifetime. They personally chanted sutras under the great tree planted from seeds of the same Bodhi tree under which the Buddha attained enlightenment, personally paid homage sitting on the ground of the great white dagoba that once enshrined the Buddha’s tooth relic, and personally prostrated before the Sangharaja who represents the unbroken lineage of the ancient orthodox Buddhist nation. Under the warm, golden sunset, everyone’s hearts were deeply moved—this was the most grateful and joyful day for them as Buddhists.

Ven. Shih Da Hui first led everyone to the famous Sri Lankan Bodhi tree, which grew from seeds of the original Bodhi tree under which the Buddha attained enlightenment. Over two thousand years ago, King Ashoka’s daughter brought these seeds back to Sri Lanka and planted them here. After devoutly chanting sutras under the Bodhi tree of the Buddha’s enlightenment, the group met with Ven. Pallegama Hemarathana Thera, the Sangha leader of the Jaya Sri Maha Bodhi Tree.

This venerable elder holds great prestige in Sri Lanka and is called the Sangharaja. He communicated with Ven. Shih Da Hui through translation and blessed One Buddha One World, hoping that more people will join in the future and that the Buddha’s enlightened teachings and Dharma propagation work will be even more successful. Ven. Shih Da Hui prayed for the blessings of the Three Jewels and the protection of Dharma protectors: “May all good spiritual friends throughout the world dwell long in this world and lead us together to perfect the Pure Land on earth.”

After meeting with the Sangharaja, the group came to the white Buddha relic stupa beside the Bodhi tree. Sri Lanka is one of the very few countries in the world that possesses authentic relics of the Buddha’s body, and this place has become a pilgrimage destination with endless streams of visitors because it once enshrined the Buddha’s tooth. The solemn and sacred atmosphere featured devout believers holding beautiful flowers of pure white, vivid purple, and pink; the air was filled with fragrance; Buddhist music reached their ears; people circumambulated the stupa; monks sat on the ground chanting sutras, all bathed in the sacred radiance of the warm sunset.

Ven. Shih Da Hui stated, “Seeing the relic stupa is equivalent to seeing the Buddha. Today the Buddha’s light shines universally, illuminating the earth, illuminating sentient beings, illuminating the darkness of the world, allowing us to follow the Buddha’s light on the path to enlightenment, enabling all sentient beings to be freed from suffering and attain happiness.” When One Buddha One World’s journey reached the white dagoba, everyone was very devout, following the master to visit good spiritual friends everywhere, “just like Sudhana’s fifty-three visits to spiritual teachers in the Avatamsaka Sutra, visiting many good spiritual friends and ultimately achieving Buddhahood.”

Photo source: File photo

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