Vesak Celebration at Tieu Dao pagoda, Quang Ninh province.

In order to honor the Buddha’s birthday from the Buddhists all over the world, the Vesak celebration was celebrated at 8 p.m. on June 1st, 2015 (15th April, Goat Year), the 2559 th year of Buddhist Calendar, at Tieu Dao pagoda, in Ha Khau ward, Ha Long city, Quang Ninh province, in formal and beloved atmosphere.

Many special attendants at the celebration are Junior\r\nVenerable Thich Dai Hien - Vice President of the board of directors and also\r\nconcurrently holding  the main secretary of the board of directors,\r\nwhich belongs to Buddhist Sangha of Vietnam, in Quang Ninh province; Junior\r\nVenerable Thich Tam Quan - the permanent commissioner and also the president of\r\nBuddhist Sangha of Vietnam in QuangNinh province; Junior Venerable Thich Tam\r\nTinh - the permanent commissioner of the boards of directors (Buddhist Sangha\r\nof Vietnam), the Abbot of Tieu Dao Pagoda, Ha Khau ward, Ha Long city, Quang\r\nNinh province. 

Authorities of Quang Ninh province are  Mrs. Tran\r\nThi Thu Hoai - Vice chairwoman of the Fatherland Front Committee; Mr. Tran Dang\r\nKien - Vice Chairman of Religious Department, Mr. Truong Hong Thanh - Vice\r\nchairman of Social Defense and Public Security Department, Mrs. Phi Thi Chi -\r\nVice President of Red Cross Union. 

Governmental leaders of the city include Mr. Vu Hong Son –\r\nCommissioner of The Standing Department (the body organ of the Communist Party\r\nof Vietnam in the city), Mr. Nguyen Van Tuan – Commissioner of the Standing\r\nDepartment (the body organ of the Communist Party of Vietnam in the city), Mr.\r\nTran Van Yen – the secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam, also the\r\nChairman of the People’s Council of Ha Khau ward,  Mr. Nguyen Huy Suu\r\n- the vice chairman of the Vietnam Fatherland Front, and there were\r\nrepresentatives for other governmental organs, deputies and many of Buddhists\r\nto the celebration. 

In the joyful atmosphere welcoming the Vesak, Junior\r\nVenerable Thich Dao Hien read formally “The message of the chief Dharma-lord of\r\nthe Buddhist Sangha of Vietnam to the monks in Vietnam in the Vesak\r\ncelebration, year 2015, and the 2559th year in Buddhist calendar”. On the\r\nmessage, the Dharma-lord sent the greetings that the Vesak is with joy, peace\r\nand get succeed in serving the religion and the country in order to build\r\nNirvana and the Pure Land in life. The Dharma-lord also sent his special care\r\nto the children and the youth, who are the future of the country and the\r\nSangha, because the Vesak this year was on the same day with the World’s\r\nchildren day. The dharma-lord want that the departments and the institutes in\r\nthe center of the Sangha, together with the local-level Sangha would take care\r\nof the children and the youth thoroughly. They should organize far more summer\r\nretreats for them in cultural spaces in useful summers.  

After that, the Junior Venerable  read the Vesak\r\nspeech of the President of the board directors in the center of the Buddhist\r\nSangha in Vietnam. The April full-moon day was also heard  the event\r\nfor the monks and the Buddhists of all over the world praying for merciful\r\nlight and the Buddha’s wisdom  to spread to the world with peace and\r\nkindness. Together they pray for the victims in the Nepal earthquake disaster,\r\nespecially in the Kathmandu receiving the protection of the Buddha of all\r\nworlds to get over the difficulties at the time, to stable their lives. 

After the procedure rituals was the main ceremony. All the\r\nhonored ones and all the Buddhists were right at the Buddha stations to raise\r\nthe flowers, read the Vesak sutra and do the Buddha showering ceremoniousness.\r\nEvery ladle of waters on the holy statue of the Buddha is the wish that the\r\nsadness of the human would be washed away, the greed-anger-delusion would be\r\ndisappeared. The mind is clear, the mind is pure, the mind leaves off the\r\nearthen world; focusing on chanting the Buddha’s names, and the Buddha\r\nshowering ceremony was carried out in the devotion of the Buddha\r\nchildren. 

Right at ten o’clock PM, the Vesak Celebration in the 2559th year,\r\nBuddhist Calendar at Tieu Dao Pagoda ended successfully among the joy and\r\npeaceful mind of the monks and Buddhists who attended the celebration. 

Here are the photos from the celebration: