Tuesday August 21, 2012
Memorial website a blessing
By CHRISTINA CHIN
sgchris@thestar.com.my
GEORGE TOWN: Prayers and offerings for the dearly departed have gone virtual with the creation of a memorial website, BuddhistSpace.com.
Its creator Alwin Aw said the website was founded in 2008 to give overseas Malaysians a chance to practise filial piety, pay respects to the dead and remember the deceased during festivals such as the Hungry Ghost Festival and Qing Ming.
“When I was studying in Australia, I wanted to be part of the religious and cultural ceremonies conducted by my family in Malaysia. So, I came up with BuddhistSpace.com.
“It’s a way to keep tradition and culture alive and the dearly departed close to your heart,” he said.
The free website, which has some 30 members, was also an alternative to expensive traditional ancestral tablets, said Aw, who is from the Malaysian Buddhist Cooperative Society.
The virtual memorial site lets users upload information such as death anniversary announcements, family trees and videos.
Visitors to the website can also share their prayers, express condolences and offer merits to the departed with a click of the mouse.
Aw said that during the Hungry Ghost Festival, also known as the Ullambana or Yu Lan Pen Festival, the gates of Hell were flung open for the ghosts to be released for a month-long “vacation”.
To pacify them, food, incense, paper money, opera, puppet shows and even pop concerts are presented as offerings.
Ullambana in Sanskrit, said Aw, meant “deliverance from suffering”, which referred to the salvation of anguished souls in hell and wondering spirits.
“This year, the society will celebrate Ullambana Festival on Saturday, with the Amitabha Jang Chok Puja to be conducted by Tibetan Lamas.
“This puja is a Tantric ritual to purify all the deceased’s souls, transfer merits (from devotees) to them and liberate them from suffering.
“Those living abroad or who are unable to attend the puja can create an online memorial and log on to the site to offer virtual candles, flowers and merits.
“The names of the deceased will be read out during the puja so that these souls can benefit from the prayers,” he said.
Plans were also under way for the annual puja ceremony to be streamed live next year, added Aw.
The month-long festival, which started on Friday, will end on Sept 15. The puja will be held at No 15, Jalan SS3/6, Petaling Jaya.
- Kedah stops all logging pending environmental review
- Enforcement officer by day, robber by night
- Student activist arrested for sedition
- Umno probing reports of sabotage by party members during polls
- Guan Eng wants Zahid to retract statement
- Beckham is Star Online readers' pick for best English player
- More tourists to Sabah despite Sulu gunmen intrusion
- No comment on minister post until I’m a Senator, says Wahid
- Ceramah is state function, no permit needed, says Karpal
- Six new faces in Perak exco
- New measures to boost public safety and security
- Cops seek to further reduce crime rate in Klang Valley
- New IGP clocks in early on day one
- Cops need to be more visible and get tough on minor offences
- Community policing reducing crime
- Dow, S&P end at records, stocks mark fourth week of gains
- CEO: Catcha Media won’t be taken private - for now
- Sarawak politically-linked stocks rally
- Jala: GST could add up to RM27b to country’s income
- Analysts say UMW Holdings’ O&G offering was widely anticipated
- Matrix Concepts’ IPO oversubscribed by 11.3 times
- Instacom wins RM200m job?
- SFSS set to be largest shareholder of Bintulu Port
- Northport buys two new quay cranes
- Bursa Malaysia closes on Friday
- Up close and personal with Rod Young
- Well-planned land transport network can boost Greater KL area
- Will MRT Line 2 go on as planned?
- Big challenges for new Cabinet
- Lessons from ‘The Office’
- Cycling: Leader Van Garderen wins California time trial
- Golf: Keegan Bradley maintains Byron Nelson lead
- Golf: Korda seizes lead at Mobile Bay LPGA
- Formula One: Increased venom as F1 tyre war erupts again
- Rugby: It's all I have to play for, says Wilkinson
- Doping battle at breaking point
- Cricket: Haq nets record and a duck in Scotland warm-up
- Cricket: Anderson bowls England back into first Test
- NFL: New York Jets rusher Goodson arrested
- Cricket: Heroes' praise too much for 300-up Anderson
- Tennis: Radwanska out of Brussels to aid French Open bid
- Table tennis: Leading Chinese quartet power into last 16 of world meet
- NBA: Kings sold to group led by India's Ranadive for more than US$535mil
- Golf: China's schoolboy Guan stumbles to 77 at US$6.7mil Byron Nelson
- Rugby: Leinster add to Stade agony with European Challenge Cup win
- DAP MP says sorry to voter
- Ahmad Zahid: My statement in Utusan not racist, just practical
- Penang Government and cops headed for showdown
- Global survey claims Malaysians among the least racially tolerant
- Thousands gather at Pakatan rally in Seremban
- New measures to boost public safety and security
- It was Ahmad Zahid’s personal view, says Khairy
- New IGP clocks in early on day one
- Death of wife inspires man to apply for trip to Mars
- No comment on minister post until I’m a Senator, says Wahid
- DAP MP says sorry to voter
- Tips to consider when picking a business partner
- Ahmad Zahid: My statement in Utusan not racist, just practical
- Well-planned land transport network can boost Greater KL area
- Will MRT Line 2 go on as planned?
- Ghani did not campaign in Singapore, says republic
- It was Ahmad Zahid’s personal view, says Khairy
- Global survey claims Malaysians among the least racially tolerant
- How to choose a home loan
- Instacom wins RM200m job?
RSS
