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Buddhist Day: March 21, 2008 Press coverage in the Arizona Daily Star, Arizona Wildcat, and Tucson Weekly On the spring equinox, we join with other Buddhist centers in Tucson to sponsor Buddhist Day, on which Buddhists throughout the world celebrate being Buddhists.
On March 31, 2007, The Buddhist Council of New York held its annual Buddhist Council Forum, in which heads of all the New York Buddhist centers gather to discuss what they have been doing at their centers and how they can work together to benefit sentient beings in the city. The following day they asked Dzogchen Ponlop Rinpoche what he thought The Buddhist Council could do as a group to most benefit beings. Rinpoche said it would be very good to have one day a year on which Buddhists throughout the world celebrate being Buddhists. It would have to be based on a solar calendar, as it would have to be the same day each year. Eva Wong, a Feng Shui Master, was consulted and she suggested an auspicious day would be March 21, which is the Enlightenment Day of the Buddha according to Mahayana Buddhism, as well as being the spring equinox. The Winter Solstice represents the birth of the Buddha, the summer solstice is when the Buddha taught, and the fall equinox is the Parinirvana. Ms. Wong said that, of the four faces of the Buddha, the Enlightenment on the spring equinox would be the most auspicious to celebrate.
Dharmakirti College begins Buddhist Day with a Meditation Hour from 12:00 to 1:00 p.m. at the Little Chapel of All Nations on the University of Arizona campus. This will be followed by recitation of the Khaton Prayerbook from 1:00 to 2:00 p.m. for any who would like to participate. This includes many Buddhist prayers such as the Heart Sutra and the Prayer of Samantabhadra, as well as practices including Manjushri and Rigpa Guru Yoga. Meditation instruction will be provided.
From 6:00 until 9:00 p.m. at 1871 North King Street, Drikung Namgyal Ling, Drikung Kagyu Buddhist Center of Tucson, will offer Lama Chopa Practice and Teachings. Led by Traga Rinpoche, this practice works towards transforming one's body, speech, and mind into the pure enlightened state. A weekend teaching on the Life and Times of Lord Jitgen Sumgon, the original head of the lineage (1143-1217) will take place at the same venue from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., March 22 and 23. From 5:00 to 7:00 p.m., the Tucson Shambhala Center offers meditation practice and instruction, a reception, and an open mic at 3250 North Tucson Boulevard. All are invited to use the open mic to share inspirational readings, songs, poems, stories, and more.
Dharmakirti College is a Vajrayana Buddhist organization that offers comprehensive and systematic programs of study and practice guided by qualified masters in the tradition and facilitated by ordained Western practitioners, both locally in Tucson and on the Internet, to help ordinary beings attain enlightenment in this lifetime. For more information and directions, please visit dharmakirti.org. Drikung Namgyal Ling Buddhist Center brings experienced and qualified teachers to the community, provides one to three-day teachings, weekly meditation practices, and sponsors retreats and other events, helping practitioners clear away difficulties in listening, contemplation, and meditation. For more information and directions, please visit drikungkagyutucson.org. The Tucson Shambhala Center provides weekly meditation practices, offers meditation classes and instruction, and sponsors a curriculum of workshops that help students develop a personal meditation practice in order to engage more fully and compassionately in the world. The Center is located at 3250 North Tucson Boulevard, just north of Fort Lowell Road on the east side of Tucson Boulevard.
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All Tucsonans — adults, and children, Buddhists and non-Buddhists alike — are invited to participate in the celebration. Learn more about meditation and buddhism at shambhala.org |
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