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The Birth of the Buddha

Buddha's Day celebrates the birthday of Prince Siddhartha Gautama, who was to become Sakyamuni Buddha, the founder of Buddhism.

Prince Siddhartha was born on the 8th day of the fourth lunar month or on the day of the full moon in May over 2,550 years ago in Lumbibi, Kapilavatsu in Northern India near the present border of Nepal . His family name was Gautama and he was the crown prince of a small feudal kingdom of the Sakya Clan.

The Legend

According to the legend of Prince Siddhartha's birth, his mother Queen Maya was traveling home to see her parents and had stopped to rest in the lush Gardens of Lumbini where she went into labour.

It is said that auspicious signs herald his birth, the sky was clear with brilliant sunshine, flowers bloomed and birds sang. Directly after his birth nine heavenly dragons appeared and emitted two steams, one cool and one warm, of the purest fragrant rain from their mouths that gently cascaded to bathe the newly born Prince. The baby Prince immediately took seven steps and seven lotus flowers sprang from beneath his feet.

Flowers drifted down from the heavens. The young Prince purified in body and mind from the rain, pointed one hand towards the heavens and one towards the earth and he said,

"Heaven above and earth beneath, I am the Honoured One, the One who liberates all who suffer in the Three Realms."

Prince Siddhartha's Journey to become Buddha

After the birth of the Prince, he was examined by holy men who announced that he would become either a great political leader or a great religious leader. King Suddodhana, his father wanted his son to follow in his footsteps and thus set about providing a life of luxury, sheltered from the world's miseries for the child prince.

When Siddhartha was a young man, he was at last allowed to venture from the palace. In the town he saw four sights: a decrepit old man; a person racked with disease; a corpse and a monk. Thus he learnt of life's inevitable sufferings (old age, sickness and death) and the transience of all worldly pleasures. Siddhartha also recognised that the wise monastic had found peace in spite of all life's ills.

Determined to also find a way to be free from earthly troubles, Prince Siddhartha eventually renounced his crown and left his young wife to embark on a journey to seek the truth.

It was only after years of cultivation that he attained supreme enlightenment and was thence forth known as Sakyamuni (meaning sage of the Sakya clan) Buddha.

With endless compassion, Sakyamuni shared his teachings with many, so that they too could discover the Middle Path to end all suffering and become a Buddha.

Hence a Buddha is not a god, but rather one who, through complete wisdom and compassion, has attained full enlightenment and is thus beyond the cycle of birth, death and rebirth.

  About Buddhism

Buddhism is a philosophy, a moral code, and for some a religious faith which originated over 2,550 years ago in India . It offers a diagnosis of the suffering of mankind and provides guidance for individuals to resolve that suffering. It offers a life based on compassion and meditation in a way to achieve a deeper understanding of nature and the ability to connect with everyday life and with others. Today, an estimated 500 million people practice Buddhism worldwide.

In Australia, Buddhism is the fastest growing religion. Currently there are over 100, 000 Buddhists in Victoria alone.

Humanistic Buddhism

Humanistic Buddhism focuses on integrating spirituality into people's daily lives so that it's a 'practical' way of living, not just a practice for reclusive hermits. It teaches the importance of maintaining one's values and respect in all aspects of life such as relationships; education; the environment; cultural aspects; economics and politics. It highlights the importance of personal peace, family and community harmony. Humanistic Buddhism is part of Mahayana ("Great Vehicle") Buddhism; it encourages self-enlightenment and the enlightenment of all beings .

 

Buddha's Day History

The Buddha's Day and Multicultural Festival is held free of charge and aims to promote an inclusive, peaceful and harmonious society. The founding goals of the festival are two-fold:

In 1996, the festival moved to a location on Lonsdale Street and from 1997 to 1999 was held in Box Hill.

The Buddha's Birthday Festival returned to Melbourne proper in 2000 at John Batman Park . During the 2000 festival, event programming expanded to include community agencies, non-stop multicultural performances and a special children's corner.

In 2001, the festival was held again at John Batman Park again with great success – however, the Executive of BLIA Vic recognized that a more central and accessible location was required to facilitate the growing numbers of the Victorian community coming together in celebration.

It was during this period that BLIA Vic approached Federation Square with the possibility of staging the festival in the then partially completed site in 2002. As a result, the Buddha's Day and Multicultural Festival has grown with Federation Square as it has developed to be Melbourne's central and unifying public space, a true example of Melbourne's vibrant nature.

The 2008 Buddha's Day and Multicultural Festival celebrates its seventh consecutive year at Federation Square . It contributes to the arts, civic culture and cultural dimensions of this great public space.

Since 2002, the Buddha's Day and Multicultural Festival has been proudly supported by the Melbourne City Council and Federation Square; in 2006 they were joined by the Victorian Multicultural Commission.

Fo Guang Shan Melbourne and Buddha's Light International Association of Victoria acknowledges the continued generous support of the Melbourne City Council and Federation Square, its management and staff; and the Victorian Multicultural Commission (VMC).