PHOTO CAPTION: Future Higashi Hongwanji successor Yui Otani and Ayako Otani visited from Honolulu,
with Yui Otani spending three months in Hawaii to study overseas missions.
Namo Amida Butsu
As you may know, April 8 is recognized as Buddha Shakyamuni’s birthday, and many Buddhists around the world celebrate this special day as a time of joy and happiness. This year, the Central Maui Buddhist Association will celebrate this special service at the Wailuku Hongwanji Mission on April 6. I firmly believe this is the happiest occasion for all Buddhists, as it marks the birth of Shakyamuni Buddha.
The Buddha was born approximately 2,600 years ago in the Lumbini Garden, located in the northern part of India during the spring season. Today, this area is part of Nepal.
This special service, called Hanamatsuri or the Flower Festival, is a celebration commemorating the birth of Shakyamuni Buddha. During the service, a flower-decorated “Flower Pavilion” is set up to represent the Lumbini Garden where Gautama Buddha was born. Inside the Flower Pavilion, we place a statue of the baby Buddha and pour sweet tea over it. According to legend:
When Shakyamuni Buddha was born, sweet rain fell from the sky to bathe the baby Buddha. At the same time, beautiful flowers bloomed everywhere, thousands of petals fell from the sky, and soft music could be heard. It seemed as though all of Mother Nature celebrated the Buddha’s birth. The legend also recounts that as Queen Maya neared the time of Prince Siddhartha’s birth, she began a journey to her mother’s home, as was the custom of the time. On the way, she stopped to rest in the beautiful Lumbini Garden. While resting, she saw the flowers of an Asoka tree and reached out to grasp them. At that moment, the Buddha was miraculously born from her right side. Immediately after his birth, the baby Buddha took seven steps, pointed his right hand to the sky and his left hand to the earth, and declared: “Above and below the heavens, I alone am the World Honored One.”
Is this story true? It’s difficult to accept that a newborn could perform such miraculous acts. I don’t know whether this story is true—after all, I wasn’t born yet. However, this story, created by human beings, reflects the reverence for Buddha as a royal prince and the spiritual significance of his birth.
When we think about this story, we find profound teachings within it that are important to consider. I believe there are several ways to interpret the Buddha’s birth story.
1. The Buddha is the person who guided countless beings on the path of truth and provided great encouragement for our lives. He is the one who attained enlightenment within the world of Samsara.
2. His guidance reminds us that each human life is precious, and all beings have the potential to be reborn in the Buddha’s Land, where they can experience eternal peace and serenity. Ultimately, we can all become Buddhas.
When the Buddha was born, King Suddhodana expressed his immense joy and named his son Siddhartha, meaning “every wish fulfilled.” Shakyamuni Buddha, as our great spiritual master, teaches us true guidance, wisdom, compassion, hope, joy, and encouragement in our precious lives.
During Hanamatsuri, we pour sweet tea over the baby Buddha, symbolizing the sweet rain that bathed him at birth. The flowers decorating the pavilion represent the blooms of the Lumbini Garden. Offering sweet tea over the baby Buddha signifies the Dharma rain, which cleanses our hearts, while the flowers inspire us to feel peace and serenity in our lives.
Each of us possesses a wonderful Buddha nature that manifests peace, serenity, sympathy, joy, and happiness. To realize this, we must listen to the teachings of the Buddha Dharma with an open heart and rely upon the Buddha’s wisdom and compassion. The Buddha’s teachings provide us with a path of truth in our lives.
On this special day, may we all rejoice in the spiritual guidance provided by the Buddha and pass it on to future generations. This gathering, our sangha, and the teachings we receive are precious gifts from Buddha Shakyamuni, our great spiritual master.
The Nembutsu path is Buddha’s great guidance, showing us the way of truth and teaching us to rejoice in happiness with others. Our Issei and Nisei Nembutsu followers built this temple for us to find spiritual happiness and to celebrate our precious lives with others, including our children and grandchildren.
Shinran Shonin’s great master, Tao Cho of China, said: “Those born before us guide those who come next. Those born after follow the guidance and walk the firm path of truth.” Dharma friends, let us remember that we inherit the profound guidance of the Nembutsu, bringing happiness and joy into our lives.
Buddhism is a source of joy and happiness, which we can discover in our daily lives. Let us listen to the Buddha Dharma as our spiritual guide and follow the path of truth in our precious lives.
Hanamatsuri helps us realize that we live within Buddha’s great guidance, with joy, peace, and serenity
