In South Korea the birth of Buddha is celebrated in the month of May, more precisely on May 5th. For the occasion, millions of faithful participate by parading in commemorative parades and Buddhist temples throughout South Korea are decorated with thousands of colored lanterns creating a unique and magical atmosphere.
It is customary to celebrate a beautiful parade along the streets of Seoul with a procession of gigantic lanterns depicting not only Buddha and the Buddhist religion, but also the many symbols of Korea.
The Birth of BUDDHA
There are many legends about the birth of Buddha and many of them say it took place in Nepal, more precisely in the southern area, in Lumbini, and tell of his conception, with clear signs that the child who was about to come into the world would be a Buddha. His family of origin is said to have been a rich family of warrior lineage that dominated the country and whose progenitor was the famous and legendary King Ikṣvāku.
Siddartha's father, was Raja Suddhodana, who at that time reigned in one of the countries in northern India. The mother, named Maya or Mahāmāyā, is said to have been a beautiful Queen.
King Suddhodana and Queen Māyā had been married for many years but had no children. In the Buddhacarita it is said that Maya dreamed that a white elephant penetrated her body without making her feel any pain and suddenly, upon awakening "without any impurity" she became pregnant with a son, who was called Siddharta and who was born in the Lumbinī forest, where he came into the world on his side without causing her any pain. Siddharta, again according to the story of the Buddhacarita, was born fully conscious and with a perfect and luminous body and after seven steps he announced that this would be his last existence in the world and that he was born to enlighten living beings. During a ceremony that was given to celebrate the birth of Siddhartha, it is said that monks and religious were invited including the old sage Asita who revealed the horoscope of the new born and told the two parents about the power and magnificence of their son, and the extraordinary nature of his destiny: between tears and emotion he explained that Siddhartha could become either a universal Monarch, or an enlightened ascetic and that he would discover the Way that leads beyond death, that is, become a Buddha.
When asked to explain his emotion, the wise old man explained that it was due both to the joy of having discovered the essence and coming into the world of such a special person, and to the awareness that given his too advanced age he would not have been able to listen and benefit from his teachings. However, he made his nephew Nālaka swear that in his place he would follow the Master once he grew up and that he would learn and put into practice all his teachings.
The father was troubled by the idea that his son would abandon him and could not become King, so in the years to come he organized everything in his power to prevent the premonitory event. Siddharta's mother Queen Maya unfortunately died seven days after giving birth and the child was then raised by King Suddhodana's second wife, Pajaphati, a younger sister of the late Māyā, in the most lavish and comfortable life of a prince. Being the son of a Rāja, that is, an elected leader who was entrusted with the responsibility of government, he received the name Siddharta which means "he who has achieved the goal".
Growing up, while his father would have wanted him to be a warrior and sovereign rather than a monk, Prince Siddartha married young, at the age of sixteen, with his cousin Bhaddakaccānā, also known as Yashodharā, with whom he had a son, Rāhula, thirteen years later. However, despite having been raised in the midst of princely comfort and luxury and made to participate in court life as heir to the throne, the prophecy of the wise Asita punctually came true.
At 29, Siddartha one day stepped out of his father's royal palace to see the reality of the world, but unaware of the reality of life beyond the palace walls he saw the cruelty of ordinary life in a way that left him shocked and astonished. Meeting an old man, a sick person and a funeral, he suddenly understood that the real suffering was that of the people and that it united all humanity and that riches, culture, heroism, everything they had taught him at court were ephemeral values. He understood that his was a golden prison and internally began to reject its comforts and riches.
Shortly after meeting a calm and serene mendicant monk, he decided to renounce his family, wealth, glory and power to seek liberation. One night, while the palace was shrouded in silence and everyone was asleep, with the help of the faithful charioteer Chandaka, he mounted his horse Kanthaka and abandoned his family and kingdom to devote himself to an ascetic life. . According to another tradition, he communicated his decision to his parents and, despite their pleas and complaints, he shaved his head and face, put off his rich clothes and left the house. He took a vow of poverty and followed a tormented journey of critical introspection. Tradition has it that he began his quest for enlightenment at the age of 29 in 536 BC. From then on, Siddartha began his life based on the search for inner peace through meditation and the ascent to Nirvana.
From China, it arrived in the Korean Peninsula in the 3rd century during the Goguryeo (Gaya) Kingdom, the Silla Kingdom, and the Baekje Kingdom subsequently established Buddhism at different times. During the Joseon Dynasty era, officials and nobles suppressed Buddhism in favor of Neo-Confucianism. Buddhist temples, which are mostly created in and near mountainous regions, were built in mountainous locations because Korea at that time had a religion based on shamanism, which venerated Gods and nature. Korean officials established Buddha's birthday as an official holiday in 1975.
Photo credit cover seoulsearching.net
Paola Pelissa