In response to a pandemic that has caused widespread disruption and loss in our local and global communities, our Light It Up Opening Ceremony will launch the 2022 Buddha’s Day & Multicultural Festival by celebrating light overpowering darkness, knowledge over ignorance and hope over despair. The Ceremony will be conducted by Venerable Man Ko, the Chief Abbess of Fo Guang Shan Temples in Australia & New Zealand, together with Venerables of Fo Guang Shan from around Australia.
A dramatic Japanese drum performance and traditional lion dance with crackers will herald a digital activation of the Bodhi Tree Mural and the Life of Buddha digital display. Nearby, the Lotus Flower Sanctuary, comprising twenty sky-high high lotus flowers, will also be illuminated, together with every other installation across the Festival precinct, including the Mindfulness Forest and Lumbini Garden.
Guests of honour at the Light It Up Opening Ceremony will include senior representatives from the Office of the Prime Minister and of the Leader of the Federal Opposition, the Office of the Victorian Premier and of the Leader of the State Opposition of Victoria, City of Melbourne and other local councils, Victorian Multicultural Commission, senior members of Federal and State Parliament, the Taipei Economic & Cultural Office and senior business and community leaders.