The Buddhist Channel, Oct 24, 2016
“A Celebration of Indians Remembering an Indian from the Past”
Bodhgaya, India -- November 11th to 13th this year, at Bodhgaya, in true Indian style and spirit, Indian Buddhist practitioners and students will gather from various traditions to pay homage to the Buddha.
They will be joined by hundreds of other Buddhists from across the globe to take part in this festival of music, culture, dharma and arts. The festival is being organised by an array of diverse sanghas, voluntary organisations and corporate entities.
“This is perhaps the first time in the history of the sub-continent that such a coming together will happen,” says Dzongsar Jamyang Khyentse Rinpoche, a world renowned Buddhist teacher, film-maker and author who encouraged organisers to establish the festival. “This celebration draws from Indian wisdom and culture in a truly creative way, quite distinct from any religious gathering we have seen in the past”.
“With Indian dance, music, arts, discussions, dharma discourses, community lunches, qawwali performances, we want to create recognition of the tremendous spiritual, cultural and socio-economic potential of the Nalanda tradition”, says Prashant Varma of the Himachal-based Deer Park Institute.
One of the highlights of the festival will be the first free public screening of Hema, Hema, Dzongsar Jamyang Khyentse Rinpoche’s most recent feature film which recently premiered at the Locarno International Film Festival and received high praise at the Toronto Film Festival. It is scheduled for the Mumbai Academy of Moving Image (MAMI), Film Festival, among others.
The Siddhartha Festival will feature memorable live performances including: shadow puppetry by Vikramjit Sinha, kathak performance by Maneesha Abhay and vocal music by Vidya Rao among other. There will also be engaging lectures on Dharma topics by Dzongsar Jamyang Khyentse Rinpoche and Venerable Sumati.
The Siddhartha Festival is open to the public and free for everyone who wishes to join. The collaborative organising team includes representatives from: Siddhartha’s Intent, Deer Park Institute, the World Centre for Creative Learning Foundation, Vana Foundation, Antara Senior Living and Khyentse Foundation.
About The Mahabodhi Temple
The Mahabodhi Mahavihara, commonly known as the Bodhgaya Temple was where the Buddha attained enlightenment. Now several centuries old, the Mahabodhi Temple retains its deep spiritual
energy and continues to inspire visitors and pilgrims from Asia and all over the world who come to sit under
the Bodhi Tree. As an offering to the Mahabodhi Temple Committee, the festival’s organisers have conducted a professional survey that led to the making of the first ever architectural map of the Mahabodhi Temple grounds.
About Siddhartha Gautama
Gautama Buddha was a remarkable Indian whose wisdom is perhaps India’s most valuable gift to the world. Siddhartha was born as an Indian prince, but he wasn’t born enlightened. The moment Prince Siddhartha encountered suffering, he dedicated his life to find a way out of it, for himself and everyone else.
He renounced all material belongings, suffered adversity, triumphed over desire and longing, to eventually achieve enlightenment. When he became the Buddha, he laid out the path he followed in a way that any and all humans beings could attain exactly the same enlightenment for themselves. Two millennia later, the Buddha’s wisdom and teachings have spread all over the world and have been integrated into various cultures. The extraordinary path the Buddha chose to walk, now lights the way for those who followed.
Contact details for further information:
Complete itinerary of event is available and High quality photos and B roll will be available after the event at www.siddharthafestival.com
Email: registrations@siddharthafestival.com
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