The Buddha Bathing Ceremony is an annual celebration held on the eighth day of the fourth lunar month. It commemorates the birth of Shakyamuni Buddha, the enlightened teacher whose Dharma guides sentient beings on the path to liberation.
The Buddha’s story began in India over 3000 years ago with his mother, Queen Maya. She dreamt one night of a six-tusked white elephant entering her body from the right side and knew she was pregnant. When the pregnancy came to term, Queen Maya returned to her parents’ house, as was the custom in India long ago. Along the way, she stopped to rest at Lumbini Garden where she saw a grove of fragrant Sala trees. She raised her right arm to hold a branch, and suddenly, the baby was born from her right side. As soon as his soles touched the ground, the baby Buddha took seven steps in each cardinal direction while immaculate lotus flowers bloomed under his feet. Then, with one hand pointed at the sky, and the other to the earth, he said “Heavens above and earth below, I am the one most venerated. The triple realm is suffering from which I will deliver all.”
The whole earth shook then. Devas threw down heavenly flowers; the four Heavenly Kings showered the baby Buddha’s golden body with 12 kinds of fragrant water made from precious blossoms; and the nine celestial dragons gushed two streams of water from their mouths, one hot and one cold, to bathe the baby. All beings in the heavens and earth rejoiced at the Buddha’s appearance.
Buddhist disciples celebrate the birth of Buddha by holding the Buddha Bathing Ceremony. In this ceremony, a statue of the baby Buddha is placed in a fountain flowing with fragrant water and adorned with fresh flowers. After chanting and making offerings, participants take turns ladling the water and washing the Buddha while chanting the Bathing the Buddha Gatha in praise of his merits and virtues. Bathing the Buddha is also to symbolically wash away the greed, anger, and ignorance in our mind, and return to its inherent purity and limitless wisdom.
In the words of Grand Master Weichueh, “When bathing the Buddha, we should bring forth a mind of respect, equality, and gratitude. In this way, celebrating the Buddha’s birthday has immeasurable merits. The Buddha left his wisdom, compassion, and Dharma in the world for all posterity. When we practice according to these teachings, we can liberate ourselves from suffering and achieve true joy, so we must have immeasurable gratitude for the Buddha. By reciting his name, chanting sutras, and bathing the Buddha to celebrate his birthday, we use these practices to express gratitude—to recognize kindness, develop deep appreciation, and repay the actions of others. Through these practices, we purify and calm our minds, perform introspection, and maintain a mind of compassion, equality, and respect. Thus, we inspire ourselves to bring forth the pure self-nature, by “entering the principle through the practice.” This is the significance and purpose of bathing the Buddha.
There are many practices leading to enlightenment, each suiting people with different needs and dispositions. The Medicine Buddha Ceremony is particularly effective for those seeking relief from ailments of body and mind. In the ceremony, participants gather in a buddha hall specifically adorned for the occasion, and chant The Sutra on the Original Vows and Merits of the Medicine Master Lapis Lazuli Light Tathagata. According to the sutra, chanting with single-minded concentration and utmost sincerity brings the following benefits:
First, those who suffer from physical ailments, or are poor and deprived, or who often encounter misfortunes will find relief from suffering, gain material abundance, and increase their blessings. Second, those who have broken the precepts, the rules of conduct set by the Buddha, can alleviate the karma resulting from their transgressions.
When the Medicine Buddha was practicing the Bodhisattva Way, he vowed to help the sick and poor reach enlightenment. He made twelve great vows specifying how he would abate their suffering with expedient means before setting them on the path to buddhahood. Attending the Medicine Buddha Ceremony is an expedient means to increase our blessings and bring relief to bodily illnesses. These, however, are only temporary blessings. To realize the true benefits of the ceremony, we must cultivate the mind to be “undefiled, free of anger, malice and discrimination, and give rise to the wish to bring benefits, peace, and happiness to all sentient beings with kindness, compassion, joy, and equanimity.”
The verse above is how the Medicine Buddha Sutra describes the buddha mind. With the wisdom of emptiness, it no longer attaches to any phenomena; with the compassion and vows to relieve the suffering of others, it is free from anger and malice. When we chant, practice, and live every moment of our lives in abidance with the buddha mind, we will surely attain enlightenment.
In a Blessing Ceremony, participants respectfully invite the Three Jewels to preside over the formal chanting of sutras and mantras as well as other ceremonial activities. Through the compassionate power of the Three Jewels and with a mind of utmost sincerity and respect, we dedicate merits for a harmonious world and to dispel karmic obstacles. Blessing Ceremonies help us and our families achieve longevity, avoid misfortune, increase merits and wisdom, and have our affairs go smoothly, so peace and purity can fill the Dharma realm.
Memorial Services are dedicated to the deceased and karmic adversaries from the past. By dedicating merits to them, participants help remove their karmic obstacles, so they can transcend suffering, experience joy, and be reborn in a wholesome place.
The principle of causality, stating that all worldly phenomena arise from causes and conditions, is a fundamental teaching in Buddhism. Due to unwholesome causes planted in the past, we all face some karmic obstacles in our lives. When bad karma manifest their effects in the present, we experience obstacles that keep us from reaching our hopes and goals.
Karmic obstacles, however, can be abated and removed through the process of repentance. In general, there are two forms of repentance: repentance through practice and repentance through principle. The first is to make offerings to the Three Jewels and sincerely confess and repent our wrongdoings. The second is to abide in the empty nature, to realize that the nature of wrongdoings is empty. When the mind raises not a single thought, it is called the repentance of non-arising. If we abide in the mind of non-arising, then karmic obstacles also cannot arise. Keeping our minds pure, clear, and unmoving in suchness, we will be able to transcend all hindrances.
Once there were two dissenters, King Ajatashatru and Devadatta, who conspired to discredit the Buddha and harm the Dharma. After their plot failed, King Ajatashatru grew malignant tumors all over his body. He pleaded for help from Jivaka, the best doctor in the Buddha’s time, known for his ability to cure any disease. But Jivaka told the king, “I may be the best doctor alive, but I cannot cure your illness, for they are the karmic consequences of your ill will towards the Buddha. The only cure is to repent your wrongdoings in front of the Buddha himself.” The king immediately had his attendants carry him to the Buddha, to whom he confessed and made earnest repentance. His tumors disappeared the next day.
When we face karmic obstacles, we should examine our minds and reflect on our actions, speech, and thoughts. By repenting for our transgressions, vowing to perform wholesome deeds and walk the path of enlightenment, we can transform our karma. Returning to the pure mind is the ultimate repentance for all unwholesome deeds we have committed since time immemorial—the most direct and effective way to remove karmic obstacles.
Guanyin Bodhisattva, whose name means “observer of sounds”, is also known as Bodhisattva Avalokiteshvara. A bodhisattva is one who aims to become a buddha and help all beings reach enlightenment. Though Guanyin had attained buddhahood countless kalpas ago, she manifests as a bodhisattva for the sake of sentient beings. In a distant kalpa, when Guanyin was still cultivating the Way, she heard a chanting of the Great Compassion Mantra. Deeply moved, she immediately vowed to manifest a body with a thousand hands and a thousand eyes to better serve suffering beings. At that moment, her body was adorned with a thousand hands, each with an eye in its palm.
Although Guanyin is already a buddha, she manifests as a bodhisattva because of her unconditional compassion and boundless vows. Guanyin, the observer of sounds, vowed to hear the cries of beings in distress and immediately come to their aide. Depending on the needs of sentient beings, Guanyin can appear in 32 different forms, from man to woman, monk to statesman. Whatever form one resonates with, that is the form Guanyin manifests. The bodhisattva has also vowed that anyone who hears or recites her name will be freed from suffering.
The Universal Gateway of Guanyin Bodhisattva, a chapter in The Lotus Sutra, describes the power of the bodhisattva’s vows. The Great Compassion Repentance liturgy, compiled by the Tiantai Master Zhili in the Song dynasty, is based on the Great Compassion Mantra. In this ceremony, participants chant the Universal Gateway and prostrate to the Great Compassion Repentance liturgy. With a mind of reverence and purity, participants open their hearts and learn from the spirit of Guanyin to care for ourselves and all beings with unconditional compassion.
In the Eighty-Eight Buddhas Repentance Ceremony, participants make amends for their karmic obstacles and draw out their inner wisdom by chanting the names of 88 buddhas.
During the Qing dynasty lived a Dharma Master known as Daopei. He was ordained at a young age and the first time he chanted the 88 buddhas’ names, he experienced a serenity he had never felt before. From then on, even when he became an old man, Daopei would experience the same pure joy each time he chanted the buddhas’ names. He did not know, however, which sutra the names originated from. Seeking an answer, he delved deeply into the sutra treasury and discovered that the first 53 names were from the Sutra of the Medicine King and Superior Medicine Bodhisattvas, and the last 35 names were from the Maharatnakuta Sutra. The master feared that without this knowledge, future chanters might not be able to bring forth right faith or great vows, so he added a preface letting others know the origin of the names. He hoped to deepen the faith and sincerity of cultivators who chant, prostrate, or repent to the names of the 88 buddhas.
The efficacy of this practice was demonstrated by Shakyamuni Buddha, when he was a monk practicing during Suryarashmi Buddha’s Dharma ending age. One day, Shakyamuni heard the 53 buddhas’ names being chanted and immediately felt an indescribably joy. He shared this experience with 3,000 others, who also chanted the 53 names with deep reverence and committed them to memory. These 3,000 people all eventually realized buddhahood over three different kalpas. Because 1,000 of them achieved buddhahood in each kalpa, they are known as the “thousand buddhas of the three periods”.
Through the Eighty-Eight Buddhas Repentance Ceremony, we pay respect to all those who have already attained buddhahood and also the buddha-to-be within each of us. By engaging in this practice with deep sincerity and a mind of gratitude, we clear the obstacles blocking our path to enlightenment and bring forth pure and intrinsic wisdom from within.
The Liang Huang Jeweled Repentance liturgy was compiled in the Southern Liang Dynasty by the Chan Master Zhigong at the request of Emperor Wu for his late wife, Queen Chi.
A few months after the death of Queen Chi, Emperor Wu heard some strange noises outside his bedroom as he was preparing to sleep. Looking outside, he saw a huge python staring at him. Alarmed and frightened, the emperor said, “My palace is heavily guarded. This is no place for a snake. It must be that you are a spirit.” The snake replied, “I am your queen, Chishi. Because I could not help competing for favor in my past life, I was constantly filled with anger and jealously and became a cruel person. I damaged many things and harmed many lives. Now I have nothing to eat, not even a hole to hide in. I am always being bitten by the insects under my scales. It is terrible suffering. The Emperor was fond of me, so I come in this vile form seeking your help. May your Majesty perform some merits on my behalf and help me escape this body.” Then the snake disappeared.
The next day, Emperor Wu recounted the night’s events to Master Zhigong. The Master said, “Karmic obstacles must be cleansed by prostrating and repenting in front of the buddha.” The Emperor asked the Master to compile a list of buddha names and write a repentance text based on the sutras. The liturgy Master Zhigong compiled was ten volumes long. Following this liturgy, the Emperor made repentance on behalf of Queen Chi.
One day, Emperor Wu smelled a sublime fragrance lingering in the repentance hall. He looked up to see a person of grace and beauty standing before him. The person said, “I was once the snake, but because of the merits the Emperor practiced on my behalf, I was reborn in the Trayastrimsha Heaven. I have come to thank your Majesty.” Then the person disappeared.
The Liang Huang Jeweled Repentance has been practiced since the Liang dynasty, for over a thousand years. In this ceremony, participants have the opportunity to repent and reflect on their wrongdoings, and transform them through the power of compassion and wisdom. The courage to practice this way brings peace and blessings to our lives.
The Compassionate Samadhi Water Repentance liturgy was compiled by Imperial Dharma Master Wuda (811-883) after he experienced the inescapable effects of karmic retribution.
During the reign of Emperor Yizong in the Tang Dynasty, Master Wuda was a young travelling monk named Zhixuan who studied at different monasteries. At one he was staying at, he smelled a foul odor coming from the neighboring room. There he found another monk whose entire body was covered with fetid sores. Because of this monk’s smell and appearance, no one in the monastery was willing to go near him. Instead of abandoning the suffering man, however, Zhixuan carefully treated his sores and tended to him until he recovered. Before they went their separate ways, the monk told Zhixuan, “If you have any difficulties in the future, come find me at Mount Jiulong in Pengzhou of Sichuan. When you see the twin pine trees on the left side of the mountain, you will have arrived at the right place.”
Many years later, Zhixuan’s virtuous conduct and exemplary practice earned him the respect of the Emperor. He invited Zhixuan to teach in his palace and bestowed upon him the title of Imperial Dharma Master and the name Wuda (awakened realization). The Emperor also gave him a Dharma seat carved from precious agarwood. When Master Wuda ascended the seat, he thought, “Now I am under one person and above thousands of others.” With this thought of arrogance, a tumor bearing a human face grew on his knee. It caused the Master unbearable pain and the best doctors in China could not find a cure.
In his desperation, Master Wuda remembered the monk he had helped long ago. He immediately set out for Mount Jiulong to seek this man. Finding the twin pines, he saw a magnificent hall where the monk was waiting for him with a smile. The monk consoled Master Wuda and told him that with pure water from the spring below the cliff, the tumor would be completely washed off.
The next day, an attendant led Master Wuda to the spring. As he prepared to wash the tumor, the face said, “Wait. Do not wash me yet. Do you know the story of Yuan Ang and Chao Cuo from the Western Han Dynasty?”
Master Wuda answered, “Yes.”
The tumor continued, “You were Yuan Ang who persuaded the Emperor to kill Chao Cuo. I was Chao Cuo who was cut in half at the waist. Before I died, I swore to take revenge the first chance I got. Unfortunately, you were a pure monk who strictly upheld the precepts for ten lifetimes, so your Dharma guardians gave me no chance. But since you became arrogant upon receiving the Emperor’s gift, your mind was tainted by thoughts of fame and wealth. Thus, I could finally avenge myself. Now with the pure samadhi water blessed by Venerable Kanaka, the enlightened sage you saved, I am liberated from hatred and no longer seek revenge.”
The pure samadhi water cleansed away the tumor and ended the longstanding feud between two enemies. In gratitude to the Venerable Kanaka, Master Wuda compiled a repentance liturgy and chanted it every morning and night. He named it the Compassionate Samadhi Water Repentance liturgy.
This liturgy inspires practitioners to reflect inwards, repent their wrongdoings with a mind of purity and gratitude, and wash away all ignorance with the samadhi water of the pure mind.