One million candles light up Borobudur

One million candles light up Borobudur

The ancient Borobudur temple was lit up by candles on Saturday as
people of all faiths prayed for peace and an end to acts of
terrorism.

The mass prayer meeting, which was held to mark Asadha, a
Buddhist festival, came as fears of further deadly bombings
reverberated around the world. The latest bombings have been in
Egypt and Britain.

"Terrorism must be regarded as the enemy of all religions,"
Syafii Maarif, a former chairman of the country's second largest
Islamic organization, Muhammadiyah, said ahead of the spectacular
two-hour ceremony as quoted by AP.

"In the end, the forces of light, reason and hope must
overpower the forces of darkness, despair and violence."

Organizers claimed there were a record one million candles lit
on the evening.

More than 5,000 people turned out for the event late Saturday
at Borobudur, a massive Buddhist temple built more than 1,100
years ago -- about three centuries before the arrival of Islam.

They prayed for victims of the Dec. 26 tsunami that killed
more than 170,000 people across Asia, and an end to suffering of
all kinds worldwide, from poverty to war.

Though no public mention was made of the car bombings in Egypt
that claimed 88 lives or the suicide attacks two weeks ago in
London that left 56 people dead, many participants said they were
using the opportunity to pray for an end to such violence.

Indonesia has been hit by bomb attacks since 2002, when the
Bali blasts killed 202 people, mostly foreign tourists.

"We are going to pray for peace in Indonesia and the world,"
said Padmadevi, one of the organizers, adding that tolerance
among religious followers was one of the keys to ending terrorism
worldwide.