Seattle Ling Shen Ching Tze Temple Celebrates the 82nd Birthday of Living Buddha Grandmaster Sheng-Yen Lu
[News from Seattle Ling Shen Ching Tze Temple]
 
On the beautiful summer day of July 2, 2026, under gentle breezes and clear skies, True Buddha School disciples from around the world gathered at Seattle Ling Shen Ching Tze Temple to celebrate the 82nd Birthday of Living Buddha Grandmaster Sheng-Yen Lu, the Root Lineage Guru of the True Buddha School. Devotees traveled from all five continents to offer their heartfelt birthday wishes and sincerely pray for the Grandmaster to remain in the world and continue turning the Dharma Wheel. The temple was filled with an atmosphere of joy, gratitude, and celebration.
 
That afternoon, Grandmaster's vehicle slowly arrived at the founding temple, where thunderous applause and enthusiastic cheers erupted from the welcoming crowd. The celebration began delightfully with Grandmaster's youngest granddaughter, Lu Yin, who emerged from the residence dressed in a festive lion dance costume, charming everyone with her lively spirit. Adding to the excitement, Grandmaster himself took the drum, while Sister Foqing played the cymbals, performing a traditional lion dance together. The resounding drumbeats and auspicious lion dance instantly ignited the joyful atmosphere throughout the temple grounds.
 
Just as dinner concluded and the birthday gala was about to begin at around 8:00 p.m., a breathtaking spectacle quietly unfolded over Seattle Ling Shen Ching Tze Temple. Across the greater Seattle area within a radius of approximately thirty miles, countless people witnessed a magnificent Double Rainbow stretching across the evening sky. Even more remarkably, some locations observed the rare phenomenon of Supernumerary Rainbows, where multiple delicate rainbow bands appeared alongside the primary rainbow in brilliant layers. This extraordinary event was also reported by major Washington State media outlets, including KIRO 7 News and Yahoo News, confirming that while double rainbows were widely visible throughout the greater Seattle area, exceptionally rare triple, quadruple, and supernumerary rainbow formations were observed in certain locations. The auspicious celestial display seemed to join in celebrating this joyful occasion, filling everyone's hearts with wonder and delight.
 
Following dinner, the birthday gala officially commenced. The evening was hosted by Master Lian-He and Sister Pei-Chun, who respectfully invited Grandmaster to the birthday throne to enjoy a series of carefully prepared performances by disciples. The opening performance featured Sister Cindy's heartfelt rendition of Think of Me. Her crystal-clear, heavenly voice echoed throughout the Grand Hall, creating a deeply moving beginning to the celebration.
 
Next, led by Dharma Instructor Lian-Yi, disciples from Thailand, Myanmar, Mongolia, Indonesia, Malaysia, and Singapore entered the hall dressed in their traditional national costumes, each carrying gifts as they respectfully offered sincere birthday blessings to Grandmaster. Their presentation beautifully demonstrated the unity and harmony of the True Buddha School family across nations and cultures.
 
The evening continued with a rich variety of performances, including an energetic dance by Rainbow Temple, a martial arts demonstration by Jing Yin Temple, the Seattle Ling Shen Ching Tze Temple's "Four Heavenly Fairies" performing Following You to the Ends of the Earth, an entertaining stage play by Ming Zhao Practice Center, the Prairie Song and Dance Group's joyful performance of A Celebration of Wishes Fulfilled, and Brother Fei-Ge's touching saxophone performance. Every presentation expressed the disciples' deepest gratitude, devotion, and birthday wishes to Grandmaster.
 
The most anticipated finale was a musical stage production jointly adapted by Master Lian-He, Master Lian-Chia, and Master Lian-Yen, based on Grandmaster's literary work The Eternal Star — Miss Golden Horse. Through music, dance, and drama, the performance transported the audience back in time, revisiting one of Grandmaster's heartfelt and unforgettable love stories. The touching and beautifully crafted production received prolonged and enthusiastic applause.
 
As the evening drew to a close, Master Lian-Zi and Master Lian-Yang led the entire audience in singing Gratitude to the True Buddha followed by the traditional Happy Birthday song. Amid the warm and heartfelt singing, Grandmaster and Shimu Master Lian-Hsiang were respectfully invited to the center of the shrine to receive the sincere birthday blessings of disciples from around the world.
 
Following the singing, Master Lianhua Cheng-Tsu, President of the True Buddha School Foundation, Master Lian-Yin, Abbot of Seattle Ling Shen Ching Tze Temple, and Master Lian-Ching, Abbot of Rainbow Temple, offered ceremonial gifts to Grandmaster on behalf of all disciples, expressing their boundless gratitude, reverence, and unwavering support.
 
Grandmaster's 82nd Birthday was not only a joyful celebration but also a precious opportunity for disciples to express gratitude for the Buddha's blessings and to cherish the rare affinity of encountering the Buddhadharma.
With sincere devotion, disciples prayed that Grandmaster would enjoy excellent health, longevity, freedom, happiness every day, auspiciousness always, and continue turning the Dharma Wheel for the benefit of countless sentient beings. Above all, everyone joined together in one heartfelt prayer:
"Please remain in this world! Please remain in this world! Please remain in this world!"
 
Amid continuous blessings and joyful celebration, the birthday gala concluded successfully, bringing the magnificent celebration of Living Buddha Grandmaster Sheng-Yen Lu's 82nd Birthday to a perfect and memorable close.
 

Notes:
1. The Double Rainbow photograph was taken in Bellevue by Brother Fo-Chi, who has granted permission for its use in True Buddha School publications.
2. For news coverage and further details about the Double Rainbow and Supernumerary Rainbow phenomena observed across the Greater Seattle area that evening, please visit:
https://www.yahoo.com/news/weather-news/articles/double-triple-quadruple-rainbows-were-052540220.html