Buddha's birthday marked by day of celebration in Vancouver

On Saturday Buddhist monks, nuns and supporters in Vancouver will celebrate Vesak, the Buddha's birthday - - and for the first time they are uniting to hold a city-wide celebration. 

"What we are trying to do is harness positive and wholesome energy in that one room and teach everyone with guided meditation and also guided loving kindness," said Zhihan, a Buddhist monk who is one of the organizers of the event at the Italian Cultural Centre. 

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Saturday's event will be in English, except the chanting from different traditions which will be done in different languages. 

Zhihan considers it an opportunity for people to practice mindfulness because it teaches you how to  focus your mind. 

"The mind is too powerful, but when it is scattered and not concentrated, it can wreak havoc on other people," said Zhihan. "Once one is mindful, one is aware of one's body and mind. Whatever we say, we are more careful. We are less likely to harm others and thereby it actually increases the loving kindness within us."

While it may sound difficult, Zhihan says you just have to try it and experience it for yourself.

"How difficult is it to breathe my question would be? Because in mindfulness we focus on breathing and this is something we do all the time. You focus on the in and out of your breathing and you notice your whole focus becomes single-minded."

To hear the full interview with Zhihan, listen to the audio labelled Practicing mindfulness