Buddhist monks join Xmas festivities

BANGALORE: It was a Christmas celebration with a difference at Kammanahalli Centre for Juvenile Justice. Run by Empowerment of Children and Human Rights Organisation (ECHO), the centre on Saturday evening, was host to Buddhist monks. The monks and the underprivileged came together to observe prayers and celebrate Christmas. Here, the religion and its rituals took a backseat while the faith of brotherhood won.For the first time, around 60 young monks from Zongchoe Monastery, situated at Hunsur near Mysore, came all the way to ECHO Centre in Bangalore. They came to celebrate Christmas. The celebration was simple. It began with a prayer, chanting by the young monks, on Christmas eve. It was then followed by a mass.Narrating the history behind the event, founder and executive director of ECHO, Dr Antony Sebastian said that he was in regular touch with the monks at Mysore. “Recently, I visited the monastery to give some computers and I invited them to come over for Christmas. It was overwhelming to see all the small little monks mingling with the under-privileged children here at our Centre,” he said. He added that the “combined celebration” strengthened the relationship between the Christian and Buddhist communities and brought to the forefront the underlying spirit of brotherhood in the respective religions. “Both communities have many similarities in its philosophical thoughts and faith. And I have always found a peaceful society among the Buddhist monks,” he said. The Headmaster of Zongchoe Monastery Thupden Nawang accompanied the monks to city. Describing his experience, he said, “This is the first time our monks are taking part in such a big Christmas celebration. Though this is the time for the Christians to unite and celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ, this was something different and amazing.” There was sharing of viewpoints on culture, religious views and teachings during the last two days, they said. Besides prayers, the monks and the children participated in various games and presented cultural programmes. The two-day long Christmas celebration came to an end with distribution of prizes on Sunday.