Thousands gather for 'sunning of the Buddha'
Source: Xinhua |
February 6, 2012, Monday
|
Print Edition
Print Edition
A HUGE Thangka scroll bearing the image of the Buddha was unrolled to launch an important Tibetan Buddhist gathering over the weekend at Labrang Monastery in northwest China's Gansu Province.
The annual "sunning of the Buddha" is one of the most important ceremonies at Labrang, an 18th-century monastery in Xiahe County, which is regarded as a top Tibetan Buddhism educational institution in China.
Saturday's ceremony, held each year on the 13th day of the first lunar month, was heralded by escorts who welcomed the Buddha on horseback in the square in front of the monastery's main hall.
At 10am, almost 100 lamas carried the Thangka down a hill approximately 1 kilometer from the monastery.
They were followed by throngs of devout Buddhists, some of whom had traveled from Sichuan and Qinghai provinces. Many people tried to touch the Thangka with their foreheads to pray for safety and good luck.
The 100-meter by 40-meter Thangka was unrolled at 10:30am, when crowds prostrated on the ground, prayed and presented hadas, a traditional white ceremonial scarf.
It was "sunned" for an hour before being rolled up again.
The government of Xiahe county said more than 30,000 people watched this year's ceremony, including tourists from Germany and Austria.
Labrang Monastery, built in 1709, is home to 1,000 lamas.
It serves as a religious center for 340,000 Tibetans in Gansu's Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture of Gannan.
The annual "sunning of the Buddha" is one of the most important ceremonies at Labrang, an 18th-century monastery in Xiahe County, which is regarded as a top Tibetan Buddhism educational institution in China.
Saturday's ceremony, held each year on the 13th day of the first lunar month, was heralded by escorts who welcomed the Buddha on horseback in the square in front of the monastery's main hall.
At 10am, almost 100 lamas carried the Thangka down a hill approximately 1 kilometer from the monastery.
They were followed by throngs of devout Buddhists, some of whom had traveled from Sichuan and Qinghai provinces. Many people tried to touch the Thangka with their foreheads to pray for safety and good luck.
The 100-meter by 40-meter Thangka was unrolled at 10:30am, when crowds prostrated on the ground, prayed and presented hadas, a traditional white ceremonial scarf.
It was "sunned" for an hour before being rolled up again.
The government of Xiahe county said more than 30,000 people watched this year's ceremony, including tourists from Germany and Austria.
Labrang Monastery, built in 1709, is home to 1,000 lamas.
It serves as a religious center for 340,000 Tibetans in Gansu's Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture of Gannan.
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