This piloting exchange program was supported by His Holiness Office and ASEAN Dhammadatu Project, Thailand, started with 4 monks (2 Tibetan Monks and 2 Thai Monks). Though 1 year program ended in 2019, but many learnings are gained. One of the Tibetan monks continued to stay in Thailand to attend Maha Chulalongkorn University and learn Thai and local culture. This eventually form the foundation of the Pali Sanskrit International Bhikkhus Program that happened in December 2022.
Experience this rare Sacred Relic Stupa Exhibition now in Singapore for just 1 week!
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What Are the Activities Onsite?
Attendees can enrich their visit by engaging in various spiritual activities. Visitors are encouraged to offer flowers and lights, and to partake in a meditative walk around the stupa. Additionally, the exhibition offers educational opportunities through materials on the Buddha's life and a relic documentary.
A designated area is also available for brief meditation sessions. For convenience, flowers and lights are available for purchase on-site, and a special blessing session will be conducted by a senior venerable.
Other activities to enjoy in Haw Par Villa.
Show your ticket and enjoy discounts at Hell's Museum, Food & Drinks and more. Click here for details,.
10 Benefits in Circumambulating the Buddha Relics
Taking a walk around Buddha relics is a special experience that can help your spirit and mind feel better. Think of it like a workout for your inner self. This practice, called circumambulation, is about walking slowly and thoughtfully around holy things. As you walk, you’re practicing being mindful, connecting with Buddha’s teachings while basking in a moment of tranquility and reflection.
Purification of Negative Karma
By circumambulating holy objects, Buddhists believe they can purify negative karma accumulated over many lifetimes. This is because the act is done with reverence and devotion, countering the effects of harmful actions.
Opportunity for Reflection
It offers a space for personal reflection on impermanence (since relics signify the Buddha's passing), the nature of existence, and one's own spiritual journey.
Mindfulness and Meditation
Circumambulation can be a form of walking meditation. As practitioners walk mindfully around the relics, they focus their mind and cultivate mindfulness and awareness.
Physical Expression of Devotion
The act of walking around the relics is a gesture of respect and devotion. This physical act reaffirms and strengthens one's commitment to the path of Dharma.
Connection to the Buddha
Relics are believed to retain the spiritual essence of the Buddha. Circumambulating them can help create a closer connection to the Buddha, his teachings, and his enlightened qualities.
Planting Seeds of Enlightenment
Engaging with holy objects, like relics, plants positive imprints or seeds in the mind. These imprints can ripen in the future, aiding one's path toward enlightenment.
Blessings and Inspiration
Being in the proximity of and circumambulating relics is believed to bring blessings. It serves as an inspiration, reminding practitioners of the Buddha's teachings and the potential for enlightenment within all beings.
Cultivation of Positive Qualities
The act, especially when done with understanding and bodhicitta (the wish to attain enlightenment for the benefit of all beings), nurtures qualities like devotion, compassion, and loving-kindness.
Affirmation of the Sangha
Circumambulating relics, often done in groups, reinforces the sense of community or Sangha. It strengthens the collective aspiration towards enlightenment.
Accumulation of Merit
Engaging in any form of veneration, such as circumambulating the relics, is seen as a meritorious act. Merit, in Buddhism, is akin to positive spiritual credit that can be accumulated and can lead to better rebirths and, ultimately, enlightenment.
FAQ - Frequently Asked Questions
- Observing the Buddha’s relics offers an opportunity to purify significant amounts of negative karma, even stretching back a thousand eons. Such an act not only brings blessings but also plants the seed for enlightenment, covering aspects from guru devotion to renunciation, bodhicitta, right view, and the tantric stages. Your offerings and reverence towards these relics bring a sea of benefits, enabling countless beings to witness them. This is a moment to cherish, recognizing the extraordinary chance for beings to move towards enlightenment.
- While we may not directly encounter the Buddha in our lives, his relics serve as a manifestation of his presence. They're a testament to the profound impact and benefit you all contribute.
- The decision stemmed from a Dharma connection established in 2021. This bond was formed during a joint online Sattipattana teaching event that the Tibetan Buddhist Centre (TBC) co-hosted with the Foundation for Buddhist Brotherhood, a Sri Lankan organization that's part of the Relic Council of Waskaduwe Temple.
- The exhibition has been in the works for nearly a year. After extensive deliberation and logistical adjustments, the exhibition's duration was reduced from 4 weeks to just 5 days for this inaugural event. As such, it is such a rare opportunity, making it a must-to-visit for devotees and curious minds alike to seize this moment and experience the exhibition while they can!
- These treasures were unearthed in 1898 at the site of an old Buddhist stupa in Piprahwa, close to the India-Nepal border. The container they were found in suggests that the bone remnants belong to the Sakya family's portion of Gautama Buddha's bone relics, the initiator of Buddhism.
- These bone fragments were handed over to the King of Siam (now Thailand) for distribution to Buddhists worldwide. While the massive stone chest that housed these relics can be seen at the Indian Museum, the gemstones inside have never been showcased. William Claxton Peppé, the individual who stumbled upon these artifacts, was allowed to keep some of the discoveries, limited to items that were duplicates.
Plan Your Visit
Exhibition Venue :
Rise of Asia Museum (ROAM)
Haw Par Villa
262 Pasir Panjang Rd, Singapore 118628
Exhibition Date: 24th to 29th November 2023 (Friday to Thursday)
Exhibition Hours: 10am to 9pm
Getting There
Self Drive
Available at Haw Par Villa (Main Entrance) & Via Zehnder Rd, or at Science Park & Westway Shopping Mall.
Train
Alight at Haw Par Villa Station CC25 (Circle Line)
Public Bus
Bus Service 10, 30, 30e, 51, 143, 188 and 200
Taxi
Taxi Stand J19 Along Pasir Panjang Road
Other activities to enjoy in Haw Par Villa.
Show your ticket and enjoy discounts at Hell's Museum, Food & Drinks and more. Click here for details,.