Full Flower Moon and Wesak

Tonight is the full moon, my monthly time for action and release: I look again at the “seeds of intention” I planted 2 weeks ago at the new moon and decide on my next steps to take; I take those steps; then I release my expectations in order to clear space for new ideas and new intentions.

The May full moon is called the Flower Moon, because this is a month of blossoming and the promise of abundance. The flowers in my garden are a delicate reminder to me to project a gentle, honest spirit into the world. I open my heart, give my gifts with love, and receive, with gratitude, the bounty of gifts others offer to me.

Today is also Wesak (pronounced way-sak). The full moon in May is the day that Buddhists honor the birth of Gautama Buddha in Lumbini, Nepal, in 623 BCE, and also honor his enlightenment and death.

Buddhists all over the world celebrate this day by pausing to remember the Buddha's virtues, expressing their gratitude and appreciation for his teachings, and by finding ways to be more Buddha-like.

Agenda for today:
1. Altar:

It's time to discern what to put on my altar for the next month. (For my thoughts on altars see About Altars). I generally keep it simple and choose only things that speak to me and feed me, and reveal what I believe in. I ask, what quality of Spirit do I want to invoke? Today I add-

• an orange candle for joy and creativity.
• a picture of the Buddha, to remind me to be compassionate, generous, and open.
• a picture of a lake for joy and truth.
• a nesting doll for motherhood and family.
• azalea for first love.

2. Journal:
Review the intentions I set 2 weeks ago, at the new moon.
Do these goals all still seem vital?
What are my next steps?What do I want to create in my life?

Write about what brings me joy, contentment, serenity, satisfaction, and harmony.
How can I invite more of this into my life?
How can I develop my creative and playful qualities?

3. Practise at my theme:
My theme this month is joy: contentment, serenity, harmony, and living with a wide-open, unbiased attitude of appreciation for life. It’s this childlike quality of joy that supports my spontaneous, innovative, creative spirit. Also, my joyous mood is infectious and brings success with relationships.

Like compassion, joy is a limitless quality. I train in it by noticing the moment it arrives and the moment when I shift away, into disapproval or sorrow. When that happens, I just notice the shift without acting on it or repressing it; I hold my feelings of "not joy" softly so that the barriers to joy might come down.

Besides attention, two other supports for a joyful mind are curiosity and humor. A joyful mind is very relaxed, expansive, and spontaneous.
My practices this month:

• Enjoy time in the garden.
• Don't over-schedule; allow time for spontaneity.
• Play with painting new subject matter.
• Make fun and happy things with my hands.
• Celebrate life and love with joyful preparations for a wedding!

4. Find ways to be more Buddha-like:
Buddhists celebrate Wesak by finding ways to be more Buddha-like: By practicing meditation, visiting monasteries, listening to sermons from venerable monks and nuns, serving free vegetarian meals to poor people, making donations to charities, and distributing gifts.

Today I plan to spend time in meditation, and listen to a tape of my favorite Buddhist writer, Pema Chodron.

5. Lake Meditation:

Settle into meditation, and form a vision in your head of a serene, clear lake, off in the distance. The lake represents true joy, yielding and gentle, but resting on firmness, truth, and strength within the heart.

As you walk (in your mind) to the lake, pick up three stones for three things you want to create in your life.

Now sit by the lake; listen to the birds, and watch the sun sparkle on the surface. Let the peace and contentment enter your soul.

Pick up the first stone, and toss it into the lake. Watch the circles widen and settle again, then look down to the bottom and see what appears. Repeat for each stone, then sit with these images for a few minutes to make them clear.

6. Make a lantern for Wesak:
Many Buddhists in Asia decorate their homes for Wesak with flags and elaborate lanterns. One year I made a tissue paper lantern called an atapattama. They are usually made out of thin pieces of bamboo, but I found a good video demonstration on YouTube showing a simple wire technique. 

(For a view of another year's Wesak lantern look here.)

Supplies: 2 nails and a hammer, piece of scrap wood, ruler, C-clamp, 16 gauge wire, wire cutter, masking tape, thin wire, votive candle, awl, tissue paper, scissors, white glue

Wire squares, ready to go.

1. To make the frame of the lantern you will need six squares of wire. The easiest way to bend the wire into consistent squares is to use nails: Pound two nails into the scrap wood about 6-inches apart and clamp the wood to a table.

2. Bend the wire around the nails, leaving a short 1-inch piece at the start. As you bend each corner, straighten the sides as best you can, and make the corners close to 90º-angles. 

Overlap the fourth side with the short first piece, and cut the wire. Tape the overlapping pieces with a bit of masking tape. Repeat for five more squares.

3. Lay one square down for the base of the lantern. Attach four other squares to the base- corner to corner- with masking tape, to make a checkerboard pattern.

4. Now join the other squares where the arrows indicate, to create triangles between every square. Add the sixth square to the top to complete the shape of the lantern- this cool shape is called a cuboctahedron.

Cuboctahedron with votive suspended in the center. 

5. I decided to suspend my votive candle in the middle of the lantern for safety-

To do this, take the candle out of its little metal holder, and punch four holes around the sides of the holder with an awl.

Thread long pieces of thin wire through the holes and attach the ends of the wires to the four center cross points of the lantern. Replace the candle.

6. Now all you have to do is cover the sides with tissue. I left the top and bottom open.

Cut four squares and eight triangles of tissue, a little bigger than the shapes you need to cover. Brush slightly runny white glue along the edges of the paper and stick it onto the wire.

Add a string at the top for hanging.




5. Cook Hath Maaluwa (Seven Vegetables Curry):
Buddhists all over the world refrain from eating meat on this day, and serve vegetarian meals to poor people. 

Here’s a tasty vegetarian curry from Sri Lanka. You can use any seven vegetables that are in season in your area. The recipe calls for coconut milk, but I left it out because of an allergy.

Ingredients:

• 1/2-c. raw cashews 
• 1 potato 
• 1 small sweet potato 
• 1 small onion 
• fresh ginger 
• 2 cloves garlic 
• 1 tsp. crushed curry leaves 
• 1/2 tsp. cinnamon, turmeric, curry powder, chili powder, black pepper, and salt to taste 
• 1 carrot 
• 1/2 small eggplant 
• fresh green beans 
• 1 can chickpeas
• coconut milk
• 1 Tbsp. oil 
• 1/2 tsp. each cumin, fenugreek, and mustard seeds 

Serves 4-

1- Put the cashews in a large pot, add 2 c. boiling water, and let them soak.

2- Peel and cube the potato and sweet potato. Add to the pot and begin to simmer.

3- Chop the onion and mince the ginger and garlic. Reserve half, and add the rest to the pot, along with crushed curry leaves and powdered spices. Cook on low heat until potatoes are half cooked, about 10 minutes.

4- Peel and chop the carrot, eggplant, and beans and add to the pot. Cook another 10 minutes. Drain, rinse, and add the chickpeas. Add coconut milk, or water if needed, to just cover the vegetables.

Cook until the curry boils and thickens.

5- Meanwhile, heat 1 Tbsp. oil in a small frying pan, and add cumin, fenugreek, and mustard seeds. 

When they start to splutter add the reserved onion, garlic, and ginger. Brown them a bit and add to the curry. Serve hot with naan or rice.