Moonlight and sparkling lanterns bathe a night in bright light – this is the serene beauty of Wesak, reminiscent and symbolic of the enlightenment of Lord Buddha. This religious festival is one of the most significant dates on the Sri Lankan and Buddhist calendar and also marks the birth and passing away of the Enlightened One.

Seenigama Devalaya

Seenigama, which is home to the famous Seenigama Devalaya – in mid ocean, as has been customary marked this Wesak Poya with religious observances. However, of special interest was a ‘Wesak Lantern Competition’ which drew wide interest from participants and viewers alike, to the event at Seenigama’s Victoria Gardens Housing Complex on 19th & 20th May.

Colourful creations on display at the
Wesak Lantern Competition

Making Wesak lanterns requires skill and expertise and depending on the intricacy of the design, preparations to make lanterns begin almost a month in advance. First the design is conceived, then the frame is made ensuring it has a candle holder or bulb socket and finally the frame is creatively covered and decorated with different coloured varieties of paper or indigenous materials, after which it is ready to be hung up, shedding joyous light in the dark.

Proud participants near thir creations

Nearly 1,000 visitors filed by on the two nights to view the Wesak Lanter Competition, which opened each night at 7. Winning the first prize for his exquisite creation was D.M. Madura Prasanna followed by D.G. Chamal Krishantha and Sanidu Madawa in 2nd and 3rd places respectively, all from the Children’s Goodness Club. Speaking on the occassion Kushil Gunasekera, founder/trustee of the Foundation of Goodness (FoG) said this competition has been in place for a long time. “Even before the tsunami struck we used to hold this programme to identify and promote creativity of children, which of course got disrupted due to the tsunami. It’s good to see this programme revived especially for the children of the villages here, many of who belong to FoG’s Childrens Goodness Club. The talent and creativity of these rural children are enourmous and every year they have been producing extraordinarily attractive lanterns, often even using nontraditional materials” Gunasekera explained. All participants agreed that they thoroughly enjoyed contributing to this competion. It was an event that brought out some of the most unique talent in Seenigama and its region. Participants aside, the many numbers that visited to take a look at the beautiful lanterns, were equally if not more filled with delight, at the Victoria Gardens Housing Complex, which was built thanks to the Victorian state government of Australia.

“Living is determined not so much by
what life brings to you,
as by what you bring to life”

2008.06.16