Two very rare Buddha relics come to Vancouver from Sri Lanka for the BC Buddhist Festival

THE highlight of this year’s BC Buddhist Festival is the arrival of two very precious relics which are the remains of Buddha’s body from Sri Lanka. A high Buddhist priest will accompany these relics from Sri Lanka, and the festival will also receive a high priest from Thailand among other countries, according to a press release.

Saturday, June 8 marks the 5th year the BC Buddhist Festival will hold its celebration from 9:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. at the top of Queen Elizabeth Park.

The highlight also includes:

– Gather different traditional dharma masters from 16 countries
– Thousand people offering to Sangha.
– Dharma Conference which unites different traditional Buddhist groups with community and share their diverse aspects of wisdom, and carry forward the teaching of Buddhist compassion to keep and promote world peace.

Sixty-five different Buddhist temples across BC co-host this festival at Queen Elizabeth Park, 4600 Cambie Street – parking lot on top of the park.
Twenty-plus artists from various nationalities will have a Buddhist art exhibition.

Live performances will include singing, dancing, instrument performances, martial arts demonstrations, drumming displays, live skits from 17 countries including China, Japan, Vietnam, Korea, Sri Lanka, India, Tibet, Mongolia and Spain.
Classes: Free meditation class, Tai-Chi class, Buddhist dharma lectures from high ranking monks
Dharma Conference: Conference among the leadership group of the 65 temples and visiting monks from other nations
Vendors: 16 vendors selling handmade crafts
Kids’ arts and craft corner: Staff will help children make a lotus lantern so they make take it home
Food: Five different vegetarian food trucks selling a variety of healthy food, drinks, and yummy snacks
Cost: Free
Donations: All proceeds from the BC Buddhist Festival go directly back to the local community:
– 45% to the Children’s Hospital and Vancouver General Hospital’s Palliative Care Unit, and BC Firefighter’s Fund
– 45% to the participating Buddhist communities
– 10% to next year’s festival

The BC Buddhist Festival founder Tsengdok Rinpoche says: “The festival grew like a weed and it’s already our 5th year, which reflects the hunger of the everyday people who want to experience calm and tranquility in their heart. Modern people are suffering from so much loneliness and stress from being busy, acting like a chicken with its head cut off, running around without a clear goal or purpose. Our BC Buddhist Festival is designed to give them a different experience by showcasing the beauty of diversity of our philosophy, so that you can witness many schools of thought in our practice. We want visitors to feel the harmony of our collective desire for a more compassionate world, and more happiness in people’s hearts.”