1939 Buddhist Initiation Ceremony
Item
-
Title
-
1939 Buddhist Initiation Ceremony
-
Description
-
In 1939, Ralph and Margaret Outerbridge witnessed the annual Buddhist Initiation Ceremony at Wenshuyuan Temple just inside the Chengdu north wall.
-
Commentary
-
Every year on the Anniversary of Buddha’s Enlightenment by the Chinese calendar priests at the Wenshuyuan Temple (文殊院) in Chengdu, Sichuan, initiate a new crop of Buddhist priests. In 1939, Ralph and Margaret Outerbridge were new missionaries attending The Missionary Training School when they were invited to attend the ceremony. It was common for new missionaries in language training to also attend cultural events and visit cultural sites as part of their introduction to the mission field. Thirty students from the Canadian School in West China also attended the initiation ceremony that year. The students were children of missionaries who also from time to time enjoyed excursions into Chinese culture.
Margaret Outerbridge wrote home about the event, describing the religious statues and relics in the Temple Library, to which they were escorted as special guests of the Abbott. All of the Wenshuyuan temple priests, visiting priests, and honored guests assembled in the Hall of Meditation for the initiation ceremony. A huge statue of Guan Yin (Goddess of Mercy) presided over the affair as 190 novitiates of all ages and both genders entered the room, each accompanied by two priest tutors in saffron robes. For the acolytes, this was the third ceremony in a 72 hour ritual. The climax of the ritual was the placing of nine circular pieces of burning incense on their shaven heads with an orchestra of chants and drums in the background. As the incense burnt into their heads, the novitiates repeated The Ten Precepts silently without flinching or crying out. The scars become marks of honor that the priests must shave clean once a month without benefit of a mirror.
-
Event Date
-
1939-01-20 (Anniversary of Buddha's Enlightenment in Chinese calendar)
-
References
-
John Munro. 1990. Beyond the Moon Gate: A China Odyssey, 1938-1950, Adapted from the Diaries of Margaret Outerbridge. Toronto: Douglas & McIntyre, pp. 23-25.
A Buddhist Priest Prepares to Strike the Wooden Fish Gong
Acolytes Endure Burning of Incense Upon Their Heads
Acolytes Gather Inside a Buddhist Temple for Initiation
Buddhist Priests Walk by as Chinese Man Watches
Chinese Man Watches as Priests Walk by in Procession
Crowd in Front of the Wooden Fish Gong
Incense Burning on the Heads of Buddhist Acolytes
Incense Burning on the Heads of Buddhist Initiates
Inside a Buddhist Temple Acolytes Prepare for Initiation
Scene Inside Buddhist Temple Before the Initiation