A huge shobha yatra will be organised in the city on Tuesday to mark Buddha Jayanti. This is the first time in Ahmedabad that all the nine Buddhist organisations will come together to take part in a shobha yatra on such a large scale.
A huge shobha yatra will be organised in the city on Tuesday to mark Buddha Jayanti. This is the first time in Ahmedabad that all the nine Buddhist organisations will come together to take part in a shobha yatra on such a large scale.
Buddha Jayanti is celebrated on Vaisakhi Purnima every year to mark the birth of Gautam Buddha, his enlightenment and his Mahaparinirvan (death). This Tuesday, it will be the 2555th Buddha Jayanti.
Preparations for the Jayanti at vihars have already begun as the Lord's idol is being cleaned. The general secretary of Gujarat Buddhist Academy (GBA) Miling Priyadarshi said, "The procession will begin from Sarangpur circle at 8:30 am and will end at Panchsheel Buddha Vihar (PBV), Bapunagar at 11 am where a dhammasabha (lecture) is organised."
The idol of Lord Buddha will be made the central piece of the procession followed by a huge rush of devotees and horses. During the yatra, dhammagaan (songs on Buddha) will be played and banners and messages on Buddha's life will be displayed to the public.
"More than 500 devotees of the city are expected to join the shobha yatra. A similar shobha yatra was organised 20 years ago on the occasion of Buddha Jayanti but not all Buddhist organizations had taken part in it. This time we decided to educate people about Buddha and his life," said Madhav Fulzele, secretary of PBV Trust.
However, one of the Buddhist organisations, Triratna Buddha Mahasangh (TBM) will have a separate programme after participating in the shobha yatra. The chairman of TBM, Ratnakar Kaushangi said, "After shobha yatra, we will not go to PBV, but instead go to our vihar in Shah-e-Alam where we have organised puja, vandana, recitation of sutras.”
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