The Buddhist Kathina Festival

The Buddhist Kathina Festival is a time when the relationship between the monastic and lay parts of the community is celebrated. 2,500 years ago, the Lord Buddha made his monks and nuns materially dependent on the generosity of his lay disciples and this ensured that his teachings would stay alive through the medium of these relationships.

The history of this festival is that in the Lord Buddha’s time the rainy season in India made travel particularly difficult and so the Sangha (the monastics) had to stay in one place. This rainy period lasted three months and became knows as the Vassa or Rains Retreat.

Once, the rainy season caught up with a group of thirty monks and they were forced to stay where they were and at the end of the rains they continued their journey. When they reported this to the Buddha he rewarded them for their endurance by allowing them to gather cloth to make robes and then awarding this to one of the most deserving monks. The frame on which the robes were made and stitched was called a Kathina and this is how the festival got its name.

This year was particularly special as Luang Por Sumedho (at the age of 76 years) is planning retire to Thailand and this year will be his last year attending this festival in this country. Luang Por Sumedho was integral in establishing the Forest Sangha tradition in the United Kingdom. He was central in establishing Amaravati Buddhist Monastery (where he is now Abbott) and Chithurst Buddhist Monastery (where he was the first Abbott.)

The day’s programme was as follows:

9:00 Arrive at the monastery
10:00 Refuges & Precepts in the Dhamma hall
10:30 Rice Pindapat & Meal Offering
1:30 Ceremony of the offering of Kathina cloth
2:30 Farewell Offering to Luang Por
3:00 Dhamma talk by Luang Por
7:30 Evening Puja and Meditation

It was raining lightly when I arrived but that cleared and soon after 10.00 the sun appeared from behind the clouds although it stayed quite chilly as the wind was fresh.
It was a lovely day, great fun as well as being spiritually and emotionally moving.

The Buddhist Way

Years ago, when I first started learning about Reiki, I also became mildly interested in Buddhism. I bought some books - read them, bought some CDs - listened to them but that was about it, I didn't really go any further. Perhaps it was the indecision of which "tradition" to follow or maybe just a lack of direction. Every now and then my interest would be raised but then....nothing further.
There is an annual Thai Food Festival near us which we would visit and there was always a Buddhist monk there to give blessings and receive donations I would always visit him, somehow drawn and fascinated by the philosophy involved.
There are several different "types" of Buddhism which broadly follow geographical locations. For example Mahayana Buddhism (which includes Zen) is practiced mainly in China, Japan, Korea, Singapore, parts of Russia and most of Vietnam. Vajrayana school of Buddhism is found mainly in Tibet, Mongolia and Nepal (this includes Tibetan Buddhism whose leader is the 14th Dalai Lama) and finally the Theravada which is practiced today mainly in Sri Lanka, Burma, Thailand and Cambodia. (This is a very brief, simplified overview of the different traditions).
Anyway, a little while ago, my husband mentioned that a friend of his had a Buddhist Monk staying with him and his wife (who was from Thailand). This sounded interesting, I thought and we duly visited this monk. He looked very out of place in a typical 3 bedroomed house on the border with Hampshire and Surrey but I found his presence fascinating and my interest was renewed. He spoke very little English - luckily an interpreter was on hand and we found out that he was trying to raise funds to help build a temple in Thailand and we asked various questions about Buddhism and about his life. After a short time we left a donation and after having the "string" tied around our wrist, we said goodbye. One other thing we found out was that there is a Monastery in Chithurst, West Sussex.
After a little research, I discovered that this Monastery (called Cittaviveka) was of the Theravada tradition. A lot more research and studying later I decided I would go for a visit. They are very keen that their "lay" community of followers gets involved in what goes on and one can come and go as one pleases - within reason. They are totally dependent on donations (money, requisites or services) which works in two ways. The monastery becomes capable of maintaining itself and therefore remains as a resource for people to visit and draw inspiration from - mutual support. The lay followers provide support for the body and the Monastery provides support for the mind and heart. One can meditate there, eat, listen to talks, work, borrow books, sit and read, join in the group meditation and chanting periods or just sit in the peacefulness and it really is peaceful - set deep in the West Sussex countryside the only external noise is birdsong.
So, my point is that I have now taken the plunge and I can say that I am now a follower of the Buddha and his teachings.