On the day of the Buddha Bathing Ceremony was also Mother’s Day, hence the students could be seen kneeling before their parents with a basin of water to wash their parents’ feet, expressing gratitude towards their parents. (Photo by Tew Yu Rui)
When Priyadarshani looked at her tall son kneeling before her to wash her feet during the Buddha Bathing Ceremony, the forty-nine-year-old mother burst into uncontrollable tears of joy.
Twenty-year-old Kesara from Colombo, Sri Lanka, was one of the many Tzu Chi student beneficiaries. He is currently studying Chemical Engineering at the university. When Kesara was washing his mother’s feet, he was equally touched and brimming with tears. He expressed that he would be filial towards his parents and said, “I can feel the hard callus on my mother’s feet. Our family’s financial condition is suboptimal, hence my mother has to take care of the farm on top of caring for me and my siblings. Life is very tough for her.”
When Tzu Chu’s student beneficiary recipient Kesara washed the feet of his Mother, Priyadarshani, he recalled the contribution his mother had made for the family and vowed to take good care of his parents. (Photo by Gan Ming De)
On the second Sunday of every May, Tzu Chi volunteers around the globe jointly celebrate three occasions: Buddha Day, Mother’s Day, and the Tzu Chi Anniversary. In 2023, a total of five sessions of the Buddha Bathing Ceremony were held in Sri Lanka. There was also a filial piety session during the ceremony, which engaged participants to express their gratitude toward their elders.
On 12 May 2024, four sessions of the Buddha Bathing Ceremony were held in Tzu Chi Great Love Village in Hambantota. The last session of the Buddha Bathing Ceremony was held in the capital of Sri Lanka, Colombo, on the following day. Nine hundred people attended this two-day event, marking the highest number of attendees for the Buddha Bathing Ceremony organised by Tzu Chi in Sri Lanka over the years.
It took the Tzu Chi volunteers from Singapore and Senior Tzu Chings two months to prepare for the Buddha Bathing Ceremony. During the preparation phase, Singapore Tzu Chi volunteers shared their experiences and worked hand-in-hand with local Tzu Chi volunteers and Tzu Chings to make the Buddha Bathing Ceremony a success.
Attendees bowing to the Buddha's feet, receiving the Dharma fragrance, and bathing the Buddha statue sincerely. (Photo by Dilmi)
Paying respect to the Buddha wholeheartedly
After several days of intensive rehearsals and venue decoration, the volunteers in Hambantota finally began to display the lucite Buddha statues and statues of Prince Siddhartha in the ceremonial hall in the early morning. Outside the ceremonial hall, volunteers carefully and respectfully laid out twenty Buddha statues, adorning them with garlands of yellow chrysanthemums, red water lilies, green leaves, and delicate white flowers. The setting of the Buddha Bathing Ceremony appeared simple yet solemn after decoration.
Tzu Chi volunteers used pale yellow chrysanthemum and delicate white flowers to create a simple yet solemn Buddha Bathing ceremony altar. (Photo by Gan Ming De)
The first round of the Buddha Bathing Ceremony started at 7:30 in the morning. Attended by more than a hundred Sri Lankan volunteers, the ceremony was hosted by the emcees in Sinhala. However, the four steps of the Buddha Bathing ritual, namely "bow to the Buddha's feet, vow sincerely, receive the Dharma fragrance, and receive blessing," were conveyed in Mandarin.
The song “Prayer” which was played in the ceremonial hall was sang in the Sinhala language, and videos featuring stories of local Tzu chi volunteers were also played. Sinhala subtitles were displayed in the video of “Buddha Bathing Verses”, so that the participants could better immerse themselves in the solemn atmosphere of the ceremony.
At 7:30am, more than a hundred volunteers gathered at the Great Love Village in Hambantota to commence the Buddha Bathing Ceremony under the lead of the emcees. (Photo by Gan Ming De)
Next up were three rounds of the Buddha Bathing ceremony. The attendees were mainly from Tzu Chi National School, students from surrounding temples in Hambantota, parents, teachers, entrepreneurs, and suppliers. Due to the venue’s space constraints, each round of the ceremony could accommodate up to one hundred and twenty participants. A total of 480 people attended four sessions of the Buddha Bathing ceremony.
During the Buddha Bathing Ceremony held at the Great Love Village in Hambantota, many parents attended the event donned in white. (Photo by Tew Yu Rui)
Most of the students and parents who attended the event were donned in white, similar to how they would dress when visiting a temple. The women could be seen dressed in white sarees, while the children and teenagers wore white long-sleeve shirts or long dresses. Everyone was very cooperative and followed the guidance of the volunteers to be seated in the ceremonial hall in an orderly manner.
The event coincided with Mother’s Day, so a foot bathing session was included in the program. Twenty groups of students participated in the foot bathing session, each carrying a basin of water and a towel. They proceeded to kneel before their parents to wash their feet and thank them for their contributions. It was truly a heart-warming sight.
The song “Prayer,” sung in Sinhala, was played in the ceremonial hall along with videos featuring stories of local Tzu Chi volunteers to better immerse the participants in the solemn atmosphere of the ceremony. (Photo by Tew Yu Rui)
Young students practising kindness and gratitude
For this Buddha Bathing Ceremony, young Sri Lankan volunteers were assigned to the traffic flow group. They were tasked with ushering the attendees to walk in an orderly manner from outside the ceremonial hall to the Buddha Bathing platform in batches. They then guided the attendees to follow the Mandarin instructions to bathe the Buddha statues sincerely. Everyone was touched by the sight of the participants paying respect and bathing the Buddha statues in a neat formation. After bathing the Buddha, each participant received a small gift. The volunteers took the opportunity to promote the spirit of "small donations can do great deeds." The participants also donated graciously to the Bamboo Bank and left the venue with joyous hearts.
Fifty-two years old Deepani lived in the Tzu Chi Great Love Village. Both her daughters Siluni and Lisumi were Tzu Chings and emcees for the event. Deepani agreed that the Buddha Bathing ceremony was a huge success, and the venue was well-decorated.
From the video “Prayer,” Deepani could see the contributions Tzu Chi had made to Sri Lanka. It made her recall the time when Tzu Chi volunteers first stepped foot into Hambantota more than ten years ago. She was very touched after witnessing the footprints left by Tzu Chi in Sri Lanka throughout the years, and she hoped she could join her daughters in volunteering with Tzu Chi in the future.
Both daughters of Deepani, a fifty-two years old secondary school teachers, are active Tzu Chings members. They were appointed as the emcees for the event. (Photo by Gan Ming De)
This was the first time Susandar, a supplier, had participated in the Buddha Bathing Ceremony. He learned about Tzu Chi through supplying construction materials needed for building the Tzu Chi International School. Besides attending the event himself, he also brought along twenty friends and family members.
Susandar felt that the Buddha Bathing Ceremony organised by Tzu Chi differed from others. When he was singing along to the song “Prayer,” his heart was filled with abundant joy and gratitude. He said that he would do his best to help whenever Tzu Chi requires assistance.
This was the first time supplier Susandar, who knew about Tzu Chi through supplying construction materials needed for the building of the Tzu Chi international school, participated in the Buddha Bathing ceremony. (Photo by Gan Ming De)
After the successful completion of the Buddha Bathing Ceremony in Hambantota, the team of Tzu Chi volunteers from Singapore travelled back to Colombo. The following evening, they organised another Buddha Bathing Ceremony near the Colombo office. 420 teachers, students, volunteers, and their family members attended the session. During the event, six young volunteers participated in the foot bathing session with their parents.
Priyadarshan, the principal of the neighbouring elementary school, attended the Buddha Bathing Ceremony for the very first time. She found the experience to be very unique, and it reminded her to be grateful towards the Buddha and her parents.
420 teachers, students, volunteers, and their family members attended the Buddha Bathing Ceremony held in Colombo on 13 May. (Photo by Gan Ming De)
A courageous and responsible group of youth volunteers
For the Buddha Bathing Ceremony held in Sri Lanka this year, Tzu Chi volunteers and Senior Tzu Chings from Singapore shared their experiences and worked hand-in-hand with local Tzu Chi volunteers and Tzu Chings. From the planning, invitation, venue decoration, to the emcee’s script and videos, all these were the result of collaborative efforts between the Singaporean and Sri Lankan volunteers.
28 Sri Lankan Tzu Chings took on roles in ground marking, traffic flow, and the humanistic culture group. Singapore Tzu Chi volunteers began providing online training and sharing sessions for the past two months, with seniors guiding juniors. Through this opportunity, they aimed to guide and impart relevant knowledge and experience to young Sri Lanka volunteers.
The Tzu Chings from Hambantota could be contributing during the Buddha Bathing Ceremony in neat uniform and respectful demeanour. (Photo by Dilmi)
Nethmi, a Tzu Ching from Hambantota, was one of the members of the traffic flow group during the Buddha Bathing Ceremony. She was delighted to be able to join this group. Through this experience, she witnessed the power of teamwork, and she hoped to participate in more activities in the future. Nethmi also wished to invite more friends and teachers to participate in Tzu Chi activities. She hoped to visit Taiwan one day to let Master Cheng Yen know that Tzu Chi volunteers from Sri Lanka were faithfully and diligently following her teachings.
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