The 11th Panchen Lama, Erdeni Gyaincain Norbu, presided over a prayer meeting in Beijing Wednesday, in which he prayed for peace in the areas struck by a magnitude 8 earthquake on May 12.
The ceremony began at 7 o'clock in Yonghegong Lama Temple and lasted more than an hour. The 11th Panchen Lama read Buddhist scriptures to ward off disasters and bring good luck for the earthquake victims. Students and teachers from the High-level Tibetan Buddhism College of China and monks from the Lama Temple attended the gathering.
A condolence ceremony was also held in Yonghegong Lama Temple at 14:28 on May 19, when the nation began to observe a three-day mourning for the dead of the Wenchuan quake.
A prayer meeting is an important religious service of the Gelug Sect of Tibetan Buddhists, in which the monks read Buddhist scriptures to avert calamities and bring blessings.
