พิธีการบวชที่วัดพระธรรมกาย : หน้า 71/120

TUESDAY, April the 25th 1989 was a special day for Wat Phra Dhammakāya. It was the first of several days during the two weeks it will take for all the 500 student trainees (Dhammadāyāda) to be ordained as monks. The ceremony was very strik- ing. Everybody participating in the ceremony knew exactly what to do ; Every participant, carrying robes to offer the ordinands, would circumambulate the Marble Temple three times to pay respect to the quali- ties of the Lord Buddha. They would then enter the Temple each ordinand would beg forgi- veness from his parents for all the wrongs they had committed towards them in the past. The parents would then offer the robes to the ordi- nands and all would depart the Temple. This is the frist group of people present; the participants. A second group were also present in large numbers. They hadn't come to participate in the ceremony. Their duty was to make sure that all aspects of the ceremony were recorded for posterity, for the benefit of those not present. This second group were the photo- graphers and camera-crews, handling the cameras and video equipment. The photographers were conspicuous at the ceremony because while the Dhammadāyāda and their parents were walking in orderly lines, the photographers were leaping through the lines, climbing high on scaffolding to get a better view and trying to move heavy electronic equipment when everyone else was sitting still in meditation. T he photographic journalists of Wat Phra Dhammakāya are well-trained and considerate in their recording of all such cere- monies. They mingle with the crowd and always get the best pictures because they understand the schedule and the meaning of the ceremony. They can be at the right place at the right time. It is the quiet flick of their cemera shutters which brings colour and life to the Mass Media produced at Wat Phra Dhammakāya.f T he high efficiency of the photographers and organizers of the grand ceremonies at Wat Phra Dhammakaya is a fruit of meditation practice. Their minds have an understanding both of the detail of such ceremonies and of the overall direction and purpose of the ceremony. Instead of being caught-up in the detail of single events, these photographers also understand the purpose and meaning of the events and the place of the event in the ceremony as a whole. Captu- ring each event for posterity, they have the chance to make the most of every experience. BY NICHOLAS C. WOODS PRAYER & ADHITTHANA กั ล ย า ณ ม ต ร bar Kalyanamitra.org