We invite everyone to join us in the Taiwan Lantern Floating to honour and remember our ancestors and those who have come before us.
The tradition of lantern floating has been passed down in many cultures as a way of remembering one’s ancestors. The third lantern floating ceremony in Taipei was held on April 15 welcoming over 10,000 people from Taiwan and other parts of the world. The event coincided with the month of the Qingming Festival which is a time of remembrance and prayer and an opportunity for celebrants to remember their ancestors at gravesites. The ceremony was held in honor of our forebears and those who have helped to shape Taiwan and the world into what it is today.
The lantern floating ceremony connects with the fundamental spirit embodied in Shinnyo-en by bringing together wisdom and loving compassion. The ceremony inherits the spirit of offering prayers of gratitude to one’s ancestors. But the way to truly cherish the lives of the past is to ensure that we in the present can live our lives to the full in a way that would make those closest to us proud. This means living so as to create a brighter world that instills hope and courage to those in the future. In this way, you can say that Shinnyo-en’s lantern floating ceremony is conducted to give rise to the elements of hope and courage that can be found in all lives in the past, present, and future.
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