Chinese Buddhist monks pray for world peace in Gaya
Gaya (Bihar), Nov.20 (ANI)
Over 100 Chinese Buddhist monks marched to a Buddhist temple in Gaya, Bihar, on Tuesday, to pray for world peace and participate in the third International Buddhist Water-Land ceremony.
The monks travelled to the temple site where Lord Buddha attained enlightenment.
"This ceremony belongs to the Chinese temple and also this ceremony belongs to China. This is the largest ceremony of Chinese Buddhists. So this is the third International Water-Land Buddhist ceremony in India. This is the third year in India, so we are very happy and we are very lucky because the Buddha attained enlightenment here," said a Chinese Buddhist monk, Bhante Siyaan.
The ceremony would conclude on November 26.
Buddhist scriptures describe the city as the "Navel of the Earth", and 100,000 pilgrims and tourists visit every year, packing the town of Bodh Gaya and it's Mahabodhi Temple.
An ancient Peepal tree grows at the back of the temple, and is said to be a descendant of the tree that Buddha sat under for three days and nights in the sixth century BC to find the answers to life's mysteries under a full moon.