“Giving It All Away: Prince Vessantara in Buddhist Thailand”

What: In each of the thousands of villages in today’s Northeast Thailand an annual festival celebrates the penultimate life of the karma that will be reborn as Gotama Siddharta, the man who becomes the Buddha.  Prince Vassantara is successful because he achieved his goal of giving away everything he owns, including his wife and children, to anyone who asked.  This illustrated presentation shows why villagers want to share in Vessantara’s successful life and how this festival enables them to anticipate its benefits for themselves and their communities and its promise of a better life to come.

Who: Professor H. Leedom Lefferts, Jr. is Professor Emeritis, Anthropology of Religion, Drew University

When:  November 1, 2007 ~ 4:15 p.m.

Where: McCook Auditorium on the Trinity College campus

For more information contact the Trinity College Religion Department at 860-297-2472

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