Ho Chi Minh City youths make animal paintings, sculptures to support wildlife protection
Sunday, March 10, 2019, 21:01 GMT+7
Many young people in Ho Chi Minh City joined hands to create paintings and sculptures as part of a wildlife protection event on Sunday morning.
The event, named ‘Awakening love,’ was organized by Vietnamese non-governmental organization CHANGE, WildAid, an African wildlife foundation, and the Thang Long youth club at the Vinh Nghiem Pagoda in District 3.
Participants were able to take part in a series of activities including virtual reality experience, creating paintings and sculptures of wild animals, and taking photos to help spread the message.
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| Young women make sculptures of wild animals. Photo: Trong Nhan / Tuoi Tre |
“It is very creative of the organizers to link wildlife protection with such interesting activities as well as with the love and kindness of Buddhism,” said Nguyen Minh Anh, a local university student.
Speaking at the event, His Holiness the Gyalwang Drukpa, head of the Drukpa Lineage, underscored that all animals on earth have a certain impact, either directly or indirectly, on human life.
The humankind is considered a luckier species, thus they should spread their love to other animals, he said.
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| Photos with the ‘love animal’ hashtag. Photo: Trong Nhan / Tuoi Tre |
Many people, however, still use their power and advantages to mistreat and murder animals for no good reason, said the Gyalwang Drukpa.
He advised young people to live a kind life, be gentle to other animal species, and add more vegan food to their diet to help protect them.
The event was the final part of the “Cause no torment, that’s salvation” campaign that kicked off in late January, aimed at raising awareness of wildlife protection among Vietnamese residents, especially the young generation.
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| Hashtags with wildlife protection messages at the event. Photo: Trong Nhan / Tuoi Tre |
On January 28, three lifelike statues of a dehorned rhino, a pangolin stripped of its scales, and an elephant with its tusks cut off were put at the Vinh Nghiem Pagoda, which attracted the attention of many people.
The three animals were kneeling as if they were wishing for protection from the Buddhist Goddess of Mercy.
The statues were then brought to the Minh Quang Dang Pagoda in District 2, Khanh An Monastery in District 12, Tay Thien Pagoda in the northern province of Vinh Phuc, and returned to Vinh Nghiem Pagoda.
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| His Holiness the Gyalwang Drukpa claps at the event. Photo: Trong Nhan / Tuoi Tre |
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| His Holiness the Gyalwang Drukpa enjoys a virtual reality video about wild animals. Photo: Trong Nhan / Tuoi Tre |
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| Three lifelike animal statues placed at Vinh Nghiem Pagoda. Photo: Trong Nhan / Tuoi Tre |
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