Devotees with the giant 60m x 12m Thanka to "energise" it with sunlight at the Enlightened Heart Temple, Tambun on Wesak Day, on Thursday (May 4). – RONNIE CHIN/The Star
IPOH: The sunning of the thangka, a canvas painting of Sakyamuni Buddha at the Enlightened Heart Buddhist Centre in Tambun, has been held again for the first time since the Covid-19 pandemic in 2020.
The traditional practice, which is held annually during Wesak Day, saw thousands of devotees carry the canvas out from the temple to be laid on the ground.
The sunning of the painting, which measures about 60m x 12m, symbolises the "drawing of power" from the sun.
As the clock struck noon, devotees carried the canvas from all sides to shake it, while others ran underneath it as a sign of receiving blessings from Buddha.
Devotees also carried statues of deities and performed the circumambulation ceremony to seek blessings.
They also took turns to pour water over statues of Buddha to "bathe" them, commemorating his birth and symbolising the need to purify oneself.
There was also a procession led by temple officials wearing colourful masks and costumes, symbolising the exorcism of evil and getting rid of bad karma.
