Wesak Festival Mantra Chanting Ceremony

Join us for an invocation and celebration of the Buddha, as we come together in ceremony at Yoga Together Lincoln. During this Full Moon ceremony, one of the aspects is invoking the Buddha's energy, and receiving the blessings of the Buddha along with Jesus Christ as their energies are showered down upon us throughout the evening. We will play with these energies as we work with chanting, singing, and a sacred water ceremony.

In collaboration with Jason Adams, of MantraWorks, Yoga Together is offering an extended Wesak Festival Mantra Meditation ceremony at the Yoga Together studio.

We will be chanting mantras of all the major religions of the world, throughout the entire evening. You may come and go during the evening, and chant along with us as long as you wish. Towards the end of the evening, we will take a sacred bowl of water (that we will be energizing with mantras throughout the ceremony), and bring it into the moonlight on the back deck. We'll continue chanting in the moonlight, and then as we finish our ceremony, the energized water will be distributed to everyone present. You can use the water as a healing remedy, and either consume it, or create your own healing tinctures or energy sprays with your energized Wesak water.

A Little Background

For the last decade or so, I have followed a similar ceremonial tradition for this evening that Thomas Ashley-Farrand would lead every year, and I was able to attend the final Wesak ceremony that he hosted, before his passing in 2010. I'll share an excerpt from his book Healing Mantras, in which he describes this ceremony in greater detail:

We gather to celebrate the santification by the Christ and the Buddha together of all the spiritual work done on the planet Earth during the past year. This includes work performed by all the religious organizations, supplicants, mendicants, seekers, priests, rabbis, monks, masters, mullahs, swamis, students, teachers, disciples, and others working for the redemption of the human soul and the elevation of humanity. We chant mantras from five of the world's great religions. We also chant the Mani for 2-12 hours. Since 1975, it has become our tradition to accommodate everyone's different schedule while chanting continuously for several hours.

During our first celebration, I had a profound experience. After chanting for about 10 hours, I was wiped out. I could not keep awake any longer. But there were still two hours to go in the 12-hr program, and I wanted to fulfill my self-determined obligation. One of the women offered to complete the final two hours and encouraged me to go to bed. I did so with little resistance.

I lay down for a few moments, and suddenly a huge "hole" opened up in my mind's eye. In place of the blackness just before sleep,an opening similar to the iris of a camera appeared and a shaft of light cme through it into me. It was unlike any light I have ever seen. It was light of every color: there were greens and oranges, blues and yellows, and other vivid colors. It was dazzling in a sense that is impossible to describe. After a moment of bathing me in light, the iris closed. I lay there stunned for a moment. Then I remembered the story and the explanation of the Wesak ceremony on the subtle planes.

In a hidden valley, the masters and teachers of the world's great religions gather. At the front of the valley is a large flat rock. On it is a crystal bowl filled with a divine liquid of some sort. As the full moon approaches, the Buddha can be seen descending in a blaze of light. At the exact moment of the full moon, the Christ appears in back of the crystal bowl and intones a mantra known only to him. He touches the bowl and transmits spiritual energy. The mantra is also a signal to the Buddha to release an outpouring of spiritual energy for the planet. That combination of the Buddha and the Christ simultaneously releasing blessings is known as the Great Outpouring.

As I lay there in my bed in the dark, I realized I had received my "piece" of the Great Outpouring. I knew that spiritual people everywhere also get their "piece" of the Outpouring. The experience and the understanding it conveyed were so deeply satisfying that I remind people every year that they should think of it as a part of Easter--a great renewal.

There is limited space in the studio, so limited reservations are available. If you are interested in reserving a space and chanting along with us, contact Jason of MantraWorks to register for this exciting once a year event:

Cash or send $30 to https://venmo.com/u/mantrapoly You can reach Jason with any questions: mantrapoly@gmail.com or 402.317.2822