I decided to visit my favourite temple, Sri Lankaramaya (SL) at St Michael's Rd on the eve of Vesak Day. I was joined by my Malaysian Buddhist friend. Even though she has been working in Singapore for quite a while, it was her first time celebrating Vesak in Singapore.
We reached SL at about 9+pm. It was beautiful! Contrary to my original belief, the place was not too crowded. There were mainly the helpers preparing the place for the actual big day and devotees doing their usual chanting and offerings. The atmosphere was very tranquil and I liked it very much.
SL Tranquil Scene
Errr... Not sure what this is... Anyone can help:p
Buddhist Flags Decorations (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Buddhist_flag)
Reclining Buddha Shrine
Stupa at roof top of Main Shrine
Bodhi Tree (Widely believed that there are devas floating above)
Lanterns Decorations
A shot at being artistic:p
We were talking about another friend and presto, she "appeared" out of thin air. Never speak of the Mara:p
Then there is a lazy cat... haha:p
We helped an Indonesian Chinese, Herry take some pictures of him with the stupa. I mentioned him because he was to make an unexpected appearance on Vesak Day! Must be due to our past karmic links haha.
We left for Kong Meng San Phor Kark See Monastery, the largest Buddhist temple in Singapore at around 11pm. It belongs to the Mahayana Tradition. SL is of the Theravada Tradition. It was a sharp contrast to the scene at SL and was overflowing with people. The main event was the 3-Steps-1-Bow procession which devotees undertook to show their utmost respect and devotion on this most sacred occasion. They would queue for a couple of hours, followed by about 2 hrs of actual procession! There were also stalls selling and promoting Buddhist artefacts, wares, food, courses and events. I met quite a number of friends there:)
We decided to call it a day at around 1am but not before, we have a few bowls of free vegetarian noodles to fill our groaning stomaches:p
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