Spread Religious Values in State

All religious people must collectively spread religious values, not only in their daily lives, but also in the life of the nation-state. Religiosity must be improved, as all religions had noble values such as virtue, excellence, perfection and peace.

KOMPAS/FERGANATA INDRA RIATMOKO

Buddhists release lanterns of peace on Tuesday evening (29/5/2018) to mark Waisak (Vesak), Buddha\'s Day of Enlightenment, at Borobudur Temple in Magelang regency, Central Java. Buddhists from across the archipelago and from various countries attended the Waisak ceremony at the temple.

MAGELANG, KOMPAS – All religious people must collectively spread religious values, not only in their daily lives, but also in the life of the nation-state.

Religious Affairs Minister Lukman Hakim Saifuddin said that religiosity must be improved, as all religions had noble values such as virtue, excellence, perfection and peace.

“With all these noble values, religions can help nurture religiosity as a national character founded upon peace and harmony,” he said in his speech commemorating Waisak (Vesak) 2562/2018 on Tuesday (29/5/2018) at the Borobudur Temple in Magelang regency, Central Java,.

Thousands of Buddhist followers and monks from cities across Indonesia and other countries, as well as domestic and foreign tourists, flocked to Borobudur for this year’s Waisak celebration.

The Waisak ceremony started with the recitation of prayers at Mendut Temple from 4 a.m. to 10 a.m. Afterwards, thousands of Buddhists walked to Borobudur. The ceremony ended with striking a gong, sprinkling holy water and reciting the Paritta prayer 13 seconds after 9:19. p.m.

ANTARA FOTO/ALOYSIUS JAROT NUGROHO

Monks join the Pradaksina procession around Sewu Temple in Prambanan, Klaten, Central Java, on Tuesday (29/5/2018) in commemoration of Waisak (Vesak), Buddha\'s Day of Enlightenment, which was themed "Harmony in Diversity for the Nation".

Lukman said that all religious people must adhere to moderate religious values. Moderation would prevent extremist interpretations of religious teachings from spreading.

Indonesian Buddhists Association (Walubi) chairwoman Siti Hartati Murdaya said that egoism was a source of internal anguish that would only lead to suffering. Egoism led people to crime and would only bring forth jealousy and malice.

In order to free oneself of this, she said, there was no other way than to follow the path of Siddharta Gautama. “By following Buddha’s path, we will gain strength of heart and free ourselves of samsara [a world of suffering],” said Hartati.

In Jakarta, more than 8,000 Buddhists commemorated Vesak at the Ekayana Arama Vihara. A sermon at the vihara called for people to be wary of news on social media, much of which might not be entirely truthful, and of inner turmoil caused by hatred.

Ekayana Buddhist Centre deputy chair Brother YA Dhamavimala Mahathera, also called Bhante Wim, delivered the message in his sermon. He also reminded all Buddhists to follow the path of Buddha and not to be easily manipulated by worldly pleasures at the expense of the struggle for true happiness. All Buddhists must remain vigilant in their struggle.

ANTARA FOTO/ZABUR KARURU

Candles burn around the feet of the Sleeping Buddha at Mahavihara Mojopahit in Trowulan Mojokerto, East Java, during the Waisak (Vesak) celebration on Tuesday (29/5/2018). The Waisak celebration was themed "Harmony in Diversity for the Nation".

This vigilance is a practice of Dharma that will bring forth harmony. Among its manifestations, said Bhante Wim, was vigilance over news that was being spread on social media and vigilance over inner turmoil caused by hatred.

The information on social media may be highly subjective. Consequently, innocent matters may be deemed improper due to differing information that were being spread.

“Almost 2,600 years ago, Buddha taught us not to be convinced immediately by any teaching. Instead, we need to try on our own to discover and comprehend what is good and what is wicked. If something is bad and is harmful toward others, we must abandon it,” said Bhante Wim.

Jakarta Governor Anies Baswedan said at the Waisak ceremony that unity in diversity was uniquely Indonesian. He urged all Indonesians, especially Jakartans, to nurture this unity. “Many countries are diverse, such as India, China, the Philippines and Afghanistan. Therefore, what is unique about Indonesia is not its diversity, but rather its unity. Therefore, we need to take care of this unity together,” Anies said in his speech at the Ekayana Vihara.

He continued, “Sometimes, we are not focused on creating unity. At every observation of a religious holiday, we hope to absorb the religion’s fundamental values. We hope that, at this Waisak celebration, we will be able to absorb the presence of love and compassion so that our kinship can be strengthened.”

(WIN/INA/EGI)