People listen intently to sermons
inside the temple.
Staff reporters
It was a quieter Friday and Saturday in Pattaya as typical party nights
were transformed into evenings for religious reverence for Asalaha Bucha Day and
the start of Buddhist Lent.
From South Pattaya’s Chaimongkol Temple to Suttawas Temple and beyond, Thais
queued to donate rice, dried food and robes to monks and recite prayers. Many
took part in wien thien ceremonies, triple circumambulations of the Buddhist
relics, an age-old tradition.
Asalaha Bucha falls on the 15th night of the full moon during the eighth month
of the Buddhist lunar calendar. It’s deemed a holy day because of three
important events occurring on the day: the first sermon given by the Buddha,
called the “Dharmachakapavattama Sutta” concerning the “Four Noble Truths”
presented to the Buddha’s first five disciples; the birth of Buddhism; and the
Sangha, or the ordination of the first Buddhist monk.
Vijit Thummasan, chief of the Banglamung monk’s committee and abbot of Suttawas
Temple, preached July 10 for Buddhists to make merit in order to instill this
value of giving in the hearts of their children.
Thais are people with kind hearts, he said, and if children have been taught
since an early age to make merit, they will grow up to be kind-hearted
individuals.
Temples such as Nongyai, Phothisamphan, Bunsamphan and more saw merit-making,
alms offerings, sermons and prayers. At night, there were candle-making
activities, and “wien thien” processions and presentations of robes.
The double holiday continued July 11 with Khao Phansa, as the start of Buddhist
Lent is known. It marks the formal start of the traditional rainy season when
monks are confined to temple grounds to avoid stepping on new rice crops as they
go out to seek alms.
Donations of food and rice are supplemented this time of year with candles, to
help the monks reach enlightenment as they stay at the temple studying Dharma.
Khao Phansa is one of the most important days on the Buddhist calendar. In
recent years the holiday has taken a meaning similar to Lent in the Roman
Catholic Church with believers giving up one or more vices for the summer.
As usual for revered religious holidays, Pattaya’s bars and nightclubs went dark
and stores were prohibited from selling alcohol. With Thailand’s military in
charge in Bangkok, police were even more vigilant in ensuring the city’s many
entertainment establishments complied with the ban, leaving non-Buddhist
tourists little to do on typical party nights.
Monks pray to bless Buddhists attending the
ceremonies.
Citizens present items monks need for daily living
at Wat Suttawas, showing the importance that citizens give to Buddhism.
Citizens present candles for the Lent Festival at
Wat Suttawas.
Phra Khru Vijit Thummasan, chief of Banglamung monk
committee and abbot of Wat Suttawas, also makes merit on Asalaha Bucha Day.
Families ask for blessings.
At Wat Phothisamphan, families came for the ‘wien
thien’ ceremony on this important Buddhism day.
Parents lead their children to the temple to make
merit.
Naphaphorn brings her expat husband to the wien
thien ceremony.
Buddhists perform a magical wien thien ceremony on
Asalaha Bucha Day.
Believers take part in an ancient candle casting
ceremony to increase brightness in their lives.
Makthayok (prayer leader) leads Asalaha Bucha Day
prayers.
Little Wha-Wha participates in the wien thien
ceremony.
Lamps are filled with oil according to the belief of
prolonging one’s life at Wat Bunsamphan.
Father & son cast candles together to increase
brightness in their lives and to instill the importance of Thai traditions in
the next generation at Wat Bunsamphan.
Outside of Wat Bunsamphan, vendors sell birds for
citizens to release back to nature for luck, which is a personal belief and a
form of donation for the unfortunate.
Buddhists donate a lot of food to the monks.
Local people purchase food to donate to the monks at
Wat Suttawas.
Little Boom makes merit with his grandmother.
Little Phojai and her mother make their wishes
before offering alms.
Buddhists make merit on Khao Pansaa, the beginning
of Buddhist Lent.
Somjeed and friend offer alms.
Families with bright smiles offer alms early in the
morning.
Children wake up early in the
morning to offer alms at Wat Suttawas.
Citizens present candles and flowers in hopes they
and their families will prosper.
Businesses on Beach Road are quiet after closing
orders and the ban on alcohol distribution.
Pol. Col. Supathee Bungkhrong, deputy chief of
Chonburi police and acting superintendent of Pattaya police, warns operators and
shops from selling all types of alcoholic beverage during the 2 day religious
holidays, Asalaha Bucha and Buddhist Lent.
