The Ceremony of Offering Flowers to 3,000 Monks
The Frontage Road of Mandapa of Phrabuddhabat Temple in Saraburi Province
At 6:00 a.m. on Sunday July 21st, 2013
The Flower Offering Custom
History
The history of this custom appeared in the Buddhist legend that Malakara who had his duty of collecting fresh jasmine to offer King Bimbisara, the King of Rajagriha, everyday. One day, Malakara had gone to collect jasmine in the garden, he met the Lord Buddha and the monks walking past. He became faithful and offered jasmine to the Lord Buddha.
When King Bimbisara knew that the Lord Buddha was walking for the Morning Alms Round near his palace and Malakara met Him and offered jasmine to Him. The king went to pay respect to Him and awarded Malakara because of this offering. Since then, Malakara lived happily because of the fruit of worshipping the Lord Buddha by jasmine. Because of this fruit, Buddhists have offered flowers and established the Flower Offering Custom since the Buddha Time.
The Ceremony of Offering Flowers
Residents in Phrabuddhabat district, Saraburi province have had the Ceremony of Offering Flowers since the past. In the morning, they go to the temple to offer cooked rice to monks in Phrabuddhabat Temple. Then, the adults are going to the hill to collect a kind of flowers which blooms only the Buddhist Lent. Its name is “Dok Khao Pansa” which means the Flower of Buddhist Lent. They will collect the flowers to prepare for the Ceremony of Offering Flowers in the afternoon of the same day.