Traditional Invitation to the
2020 Spiritual Rains Three Months Retreat
Invitation Ceremony to Vassana Saturday 04th July 2020
Do Join Online Temple from Zoom with the ID 696 889 1414
05:00PM Children Dhamma School Programme on Esala Full Moon Day
06:00PM Bodhi Pooja, Chanting of Most Sacred Sutta “Dhamma Chakkha Pavaththana Sutta” and Seth Pirith Special Protection Blessings Chanting
This Saturday Evening Pooja is sponsored by Bracknell Dhamma School parents and also By Mr Muralidaran & Family & Frinds in Loving Memory of Commodore L M Handunge
Dear All,
Greetings with Dhamma Blessings..!
Namo Buddhaya..!
You are cordially invited to our Esala Full Moon Day Programme together with Invitation Ceremony to Annual Three Months Rains Retreat, held on Saturday 04th July 2020 at 6.00PM from home through online temple by using zoom ID 696 889 1414.
It has been a very difficult time for all in the whole world due this unprecedented pandemic due to COVID-19. This holiest spiritual day blessings will be very meaningful to attend. We dedicate this Spiritual Three Months to heal the whole world.
It is also very hard time for Buddhist Centre as all our donations and support have been very limited and restricted. We are very grateful to our dayakas (devotees) for understanding this situation and coming forward to keep the centre activities going.
We will continue to host weekly meditation programmes, children dhamma school, pooja blessings, pirith chanting, dana programmes. Most of them are online that people can attend from home.
May all the blessings, merits be with all those who worked very hard to support the centre by monthly standing orders and the other means.
We invite all to join online temple programme on this holiest day Esala (July) Full Moon Day on Saturday 04th July 2020. Programme will start at 5.00PM with Children Programme 6PM Bodhi Pooja, Chanting of First Discourse, Dhamma Chakkha Pavaththana Sutta and Blessings.
This day we start the programme with children dhamma school, Bodhi Pooja and chanting the first sermon of the Lord Buddha, Dhamma chakka pavaththana Sutta (wheel of Dhamma Set in Motion). Then we invite the monks to observe three months retreat at Letchworth Dhamma Nikethanaya.
This is a highly blessed and an auspicious occasion, we encourage to keep the day free to join us and share the blessings!
Spiritual Rains Retreat Three Months Season 04-07-2020 till 01-11-2020
We invite all our friends and devotees of Letchworth Dhamma Nikethanaya Buddhist Cultural Centre to attend online on Saturday 14th July 2020 at 6.00PM.
Esala (July) Full Moon Day has many traditional significances. The three Jewels reached a completion on Esala (July) Full Moon Day with the ordination of the five ascetics as Bhikkhus and with the start of the Rainy Retreat “VAS” by the Buddha and his disciples. In commemoration of this great event and abiding to the monastic rules as laid down by the Buddha, the monks residing at Letchworth Dhamma Nikethanaya are observing their Rainy Retreat “Vas” for the seventeenth consecutive year.
During this season both monks and lay devotees engage in extra Dana (Charity), Sila (Morality) and Bhavana (Meditation). Hence this period is regarded as the highest sacred in the Buddhist Calendar. At the end, to commemorate the success and achievements of the retreat, devotees host Sangha Day Gratitude Kathina Ceremony which will be held. We kindly remind you to keep this date free for this special meritorious ceremony which can be held only once a year in any temple and share the merits of this.
This year the Rainy Retreat “Vas” period happens to be between 04th July 2020 and 01st November 2020. During this period we are organising a series of Weekly Dhamma Sermons, Bodhi poojas and meditation on Every Saturday Evening for the benefit of devotees and to make them understand to attend to the needs of the Buddhist monks during the rainy season. You can sponsor one week during this season. It is indeed in great help if you can sponsor one of these events during this periods to make the retreat success.
One individual can sponsor the event by taking the main responsibility. However it has to be done with the full participation of all the members (dayaka) of the centre.
We also conduct a Special Ceremony on this Full Moon Day July (Esala) Saturday 04th from 5PM till 6.00PM.
We kindly invite you to take part in this programme. If you wish to support by any other means to the day programme, please contact the centre.
Programme: Saturday 04th July 2020
05:00 PM: Children Dhamma School Programme on Esala Full Moon Day
06:00 PM: Bodhi Pooja Blessings Ceremony, Chanting of Dhammachakkapavaththana Sutta and seth pirith protection blessings.
06:45 PM: End of the Day Programme
All are Welcome!
Significances of Esala (July) Full Moon Day
Significances of Esala (July) Full Moon Day
Esala (July) full Moon Poya day is given much significance apart from other two main full moon days Vesak (May) and Poson (June) because it is related to great incidents of the life of Prince Siddartha (Later the Buddha) both prior to and following his Enlightenment. Among those significances, The conception of Boddhisatta in the womb of Queen Maya, The Great Renunciation at the age of 29 the prince decided to leave his palace and beloved ones in order to find the way out of the universal suffering, Preaching Abhidhamma (Buddhist Analytical Philosophy or The Highest Dhamma) to Matru Divya Rajaya (his mother) in the Thavuthisa heaven, above all, two months after the Buddha attained Enlightenment, he delivered his first sermon, Dhamma Chakka Pawathna Sutta (the wheel of truth) to the five ascetics, Realizing the Dhamma all five ascetics became Bhikkhus establishing the community of monks and as a result all three jewels (Buddha, Dhamma & Sangha) reached a completion, Declaration of his passing away to nibbanic bliss, the beginning of the ‘Vas’ “rainy season retreat” of the Sangha or the monks, Realizing the difficulties that mendicant monks undergone to propagate The Dhamma during the rainy season, The Buddha set out a monastic rule for monks to stay in one place during the rainy season, The first Vas was observed by the Buddha and his first five disciples - the five ascetics at Isipathana in Benares, Laying of the foundation for the Ruwanwelisaya in Sri Lanka and its enshrinement of relics by King Dutugamunu, Starting the Esala Celebration and Procession (Kandy Perahera) in Sri Lanka to honour The Tooth Relic of The Buddha which brought to Sri Lanka in 847 Buddhist Era.