Three workshops will be held at SUNY Fredonia to teach how to make colorful Vesak lanterns, which are lit in Sri Lanka to celebrate the birth, enlightenment and passing away of Buddha. The workshops will set the stage for a campus lantern competition and lighting festival in April. Vesak is an annual holiday traditionally observed by Buddhists in Nepal, Sri Lanka, and some southeast Asian countries.
Nirasha Premaratne, a Sri Lankan graduate student in the College of Education, will conduct workshops on the following dates, times and locations:
- Saturday, March 26, 9 a.m. to noon, Newman Center;
- Wednesday, March 30, 7 to 9 p.m., University Commons residence hall lobby; and
- Thursday, March 31, 6 to 8 p.m., Igoe Hall lobby.
Preregistration is required to insure participants will have access to materials to build lanterns at workshops. To sign up, email Nirasha at premarat@fredonia.edu; call 716-673-4768; or visit E259 Thompson Hall, 8 a.m. to 4 p.m.
The deadline to reserve a spot at a workshop is Tuesday, March 22. Space is limited.
The lantern competition and festival will be staged Friday, April 15, at 7 p.m.
Created in different shapes and sizes, Vesak lanterns light homes, streets and public places in Sri Lanka on the Full Moon Day in May, or Vesak. Illumination signifies the spread of goodness and wisdom and elimination of the darkness of ignorance. Lanterns are beautiful, yet fragile creations. Their short lives signify the impermanent nature of the world and call attention to the importance of living in happiness and harmony.
The workshops, competition and festival are sponsored by International Education Center and Center for Multicultural Affairs to educate and create understanding across world cultures and traditions. Participation is free and open to all students, faculty and community members.
