Identitiy as Art

A few days ago, a huge number of attendants of people fro various cultural backgrounds gather together in the Brisbane city, Australia to watch, share and celebrate with other communities the Buddha's birth.

The celebration took place at the heart of the city as drums, costumes, guests and religious community leaders evoke and revive the essence of that religious and cultural event.

To many the religious content would be irrelevant, despite pf any other believe it goes far beyond the magmatic meaning of the temple and shrine.

As we come to the event a strange feeling and understanding would capture our senses. It is not only the congregation that invites our conscious to be awake, but it is the theatrical presence of the human share.

As anyone would come to hear the story of Buddha and watch the amazing way of the performers and the way that everything is visually created for everyone. That bring us to the idea of making any story which is originally born at another culture to become a part of an entertainment and enjoying aspect, regardless its religious or spiritual context.

The celebration and the story telling at any culture is a meaning of energizing our imagination and take us to a different time and place. I wounder if anyone of you would think that way.

Buddha, Zeus (the ancient god of the Greeks), Ra ( the ancient Egyptian solar deity) symbolizing the harmony, share and peace and all the stories that have been told about them visualize life as cycle of creation and rebirth.

The event bring us back to the ancient and link all our senses to the same meaning that we all share, regardless our religious beliefs or our cultural diversities.

One would ask, what is the use to attend such event or even try to communicate with others that is worshiping Buddha.

Simply, we are all a part of one unifying system in life. Whether you identify yourself as being Muslim, Buddhist, Christian, Distinguished with any sort of religion. All will come to a harmonious and dynamic system of a life cycle. Rituals and stories from the old testimony, the stories of the ancient Greeks god and the ancient Egyptian deity inspire our minds to think and contribute to that one system.

Whether that system defined as Allah (in Islam) or defined by any other means to any other religion or community, rituals and stories remain as part of a deep roots to that community.

Let us back again to the meanings that is conceived and evoked from the Buddha's birthday and think of your personal history, religion and celebrations.

You will find mutual aspects and lots of mechanisms shared. Costumes, performance, sounds, shapes, artifacts, traditional illustrations and lots of more.

The Buddhist community share that event a year after year with many from culturally and religiously diverse communities. It is the wealth and healthy way of expression that Australia give to everyone to express the community.

It is the way that other communities would learn and know about each others and that way of understanding bring them to know that we all share a harmonious system of mechanism of life cycle.

The various methods of understanding and knowledge would diffidently establish the roots for respect. At a far extent, as you teach others about yourself you show them how graceful and meaningful your culture is and how deep and generous your community.

I would say that attending such events is a powerful way to come close to others and bring others near to us. It is a great opportunity that Australia gave to everyone of. Whether you are Australian by birth or come to live to here, is to join and share the privilege of others communities and bridge your culture, rituals, stories, art and traditions to live together and melt with others.

That is one of many, which the Buddha's birthday meaning. To provide us all with a message of oneness, invitation, contribution and strongly engage us to reshape and redesign our attitudes and behavior toward more and deep respect and appreciation to many other communities.

Thanks for the Buddhist community for providing us with such rich and generous experience of living.

You have been given such a great responsibility to make this art project such a wonderful and successful event of inviting other communities to share with you and understand about you to be able to respect and contribute with your generous and valuable culture, tradition and religion.

It is the best that you can all do!!

Thank you

Project Coordinator | Magdy Shiha