Venerable Sangha,
Distinguished guests,
Ladies and Gentlemen,
On this 2634th anniversary of the birth of the Buddha, we warmly welcome all of you who have come here to share with us the happiness of this important day in the Buddhist calendar.
Prince Sidartha Gautama (who later became the Sakyamuni Buddha after he attained Enlightenment) was born over 26 centuries ago. This birthday and the commemoration of the enlightenment of Buddha is a significant celebration in the lives of those many millions of people who follow in the path or dharma walked and taught by the Buddha.
Those who follow the teaching or dharma of the Buddha know that:
- The Buddha was a real person who existed in history, not a mythical person or a god.
- He taught that everyone is potentially a future Buddha.
- He showed that the path to enlightenment means acting with compassion, wisdom, equality and selflessness.
- Everyone has the same human nature regardless of their skin colour, race, nationality and age.
The teachings of the Buddha are timeless. We know that the teachings of the Buddha now resonate closely with modern scientific knowledge of relativity and quantum mechanics. The more people learn and understand the physical world, the more relevant Buddhist principles become. This is because Buddhist principles can help all people to make sense of the world and allow us to act in the world to minimise harm. And they assist us in living peacefully together.The late Indian Prime Minister Nehru said that in a world full of conflicts, animosity and violence, the Buddha’s message shines like the sun. The Buddha’s message is as relevant today as it has ever been because the Buddha’s thoughts, experiences and actions were of a man living and acting in the world of people and things. The Buddha, however, saw more clearly than others the nature of the world, its people, change and the results of peoples’ actions.
We people who live today and act now do many of the same things that people did in the Buddha’s time. We may have the same misunderstandings and we may make the same mistakes. But if we are more aware of our own desires, thoughts and actions and we consider these things in the light of the Buddha’s teachings, the outcomes of those actions can change. So, the benefits of “correct” thoughts and “correct” actions can change the world for the better now.
The Buddha also showed us (as does modern science today) the infinite interconnections between, and interdependencies among, everyone and everything on earth, between the inside and the outside of things, the atom and the universe, between the Earth and other planets and so on.
The famous and fundamental teaching of the Buddha in the Avatamsaka sutra of the Mahayana tradition teaches us this. People overcome ignorance by understanding the interdependency of all phenomena (dharmas) and the progression of the Buddhist path to full Enlightenment.
The sutra tells of the journey of Suhana who is seeking Enlightment. Towards the end of his journey he encounters the Tower of Maitreya a beautiful metaphor of the infinite. The sutra describes that Suhana: “In the middle of the great tower... saw the billion-world universe... and everywhere there was Sudhana at his feet. ... Thus Sudhana saw Maitreya's practices of... transcendence over countless aeons, from each of the squares of the check board wall... In the same way Sudhana... saw the whole supernal manifestation, was perfectly aware of it, understood it, contemplated it, used it as a means, beheld it, and saw himself there.”
A further message of this great sutra also says finally that, with a subtle shift of perspective, we may come to see that the enlightenment that the pilgrim so fervently sought was not only with that person at every stage of his or her journey, but before it began as well. That Enlightenment is not something to be gained, but "something" the pilgrim never departed from.
A Christian monk, Father Milman, has said that as days go by, he felt closer and closer to the Buddha and became more and more influenced by His way, His philosophy and His life.
A Muslim scholar has said that the Buddha is not just for Buddhists. He is for all people. His teachings may be applied by all of us. All religions which were founded after Him borrow many great ideas from Him. I hope that in the not too distant future, we can open our hearts and minds to know more of, and to practise, the Buddha’s teachings.
People have faced in the past, face now and will face in the future many personal and common challenges. However, we have been and are still bound by our limited understanding and knowledge when we act. These things which bind us originate in our desires, our greed, our anger and our ignorance. They are invisible ropes which restrain humanity and human actions from fulfilling its full potential. Our common duty is to awaken in ourselves our true or Buddha nature and act in conformity with the Buddha’s teachings. On of these teachings being that there is absolutely no distinction between us, as all our blood is red and all our tears salty.
Vesak Day gives us the opportunity to reflect, and to see, the true value of our Buddha nature. Let us pray for everlasting love, kindness and selflessness. Buddhism believes that correct, disciplined understanding (or, our right thought) can control our ignorant and harmful acts to bring about right actions which will result in greater peace and happiness. We celebrate Vesak day to remember and pay respect to the Buddha, to show we accept his teachings and to show to others some of the multi- faceted gem that is His teaching.
We wish you, the Bhikkhus and Bhikkhunis of the Sangha, peace, happiness and the accomplishment of your Buddhist duties.
We wish the representatives of Local, State and Federal Governments, the members of community associations, the ethnic communities, the Free Vietnamese Community, our friends and distinguished guests happiness, understanding, empathy and harmony among us.
We pray that the wishes of our countrymen and women, the Buddhist disciples always come true, and that you always have peace, happiness and prosperity.
May the Triple Gem bless and protect all of you.
On behalf of the Sangha, we solemnly declare open the Great 2634th Vesak Day.
Namo Sakyamuni Buddha.
Senior Venerable Thich Phuoc Tan
Acting President of The United Vietnamese Buddhist Congregation in Australia – New Zealand
Last Updated on Thursday, 17 June 2010 00:21