There was a torrential downpour on the early morning of 18th June 2006 at Than Hsiang Temple where the Malaysian Buddhist Sangha Association (M.B.S.A.) Maha Sanghikadana was to be held. Even then, Than Hsiang's staff and volunteers were at work putting the finishing touches to the preparations for the main event. A number of devotees were seen doing pindapatta (offering of rice to the alms bowl) early in the morning. They were able to do so thanks to Sis. Tan Kim Nai, who was there especially early to set up everything for the pindapatta.

Fortunately, by 7.30am the weather had cleared and Than Hsiang Temple sparkled in the morning sun. There was a big crowd at the pindapatta area and the Sangha members started to arrive for the Maha Sanghikadana. At 9.00am all the Sangha members gathered at the Main Shrine Hall for their Annual General Meeting. Venerable Chek Huang, the Vice Chairman of the M.B.S.A. chaired the Meeting and Venerable Wei Wu, the Hon. Secretary of M.B.S.A. translated into English for the non-Mandarin speaking members of the Sangha.

At 10.30am, the Meeting adjourned and the lay devotees were then allowed into the Main Shrine Hall for the Lamp Lighting Ceremony. The Guests of Honour were YB Dato' Tan Chai Ho, Deputy Minister of Home Affairs Malaysia, and His Excellency Khun Wasin Dhamavasi, Consul of the Royal Thai Consulate General in Penang. Among the dignitaries were Bro. Saw Kok Oon, Chairman of the Working Committee of M.B.S.A. Maha Sanghikadana, Assemblymen Lim Gim Soon and Lee Hack Teik, and State Wanita MCA Chief Ooi Siew Kim.

In his speech to the assembly, Venerable Wei Wu said there were three purposes for holding the Maha Sanghikadana. One was to provide an opportunity for the laity to make offerings (dana) to the to monastic Sangha and to receive the Buddha's teachings in return. The second was to promote the education of the Sangha members as it was essential for them to receive higher education than the general populace and also equip them to spread the Buddha's teachings effectively. The third was the need to educate the public against making offerings to fake monks, as they would not gain any merits in doing so. Venerable Wei Wu also urge strong action be taken against the serious misdeed of false monks putting up newspaper advertisements offering fortune telling services and prediction of four digit numbers.

The Master of Ceremony, Sis. Chan Hui Cheng, announced that the M.B.S.A. had adopted a resolution “to fully support Dato Seri Abdullah Badawi as the Prime Minister of Malaysia and hope that under his leadership, the citizens will coexist peacefully in our beloved country”.

Bro. Saw Kok Oon, next thanked the venerable members of the Maha Sangha for their kind presence to provide the lay devotees an opportunity to practice Dana. He also thanked Dato' Tan Chai Ho for his kind presence and everyone, who directly or indirectly supported the Maha Sanghikadana.

YB Dato' Tan Chai Ho next took the podium. He said bogus monks and nuns had been caught going round with alms bowls collecting money from the public and there would be a dialogue between M.B.S.A. and the authorities to find a solution to this problem. He suggested that M.B.S.A. issue membership cards for all its members to authenticate their status. On the matter of false monks advertising their fortune telling and lottery prediction services, Dato' Tan urged the press to discourage such immoral practices by denying these false monks advertisement space in the papers.

The dignitaries and sponsors of the Maha Sanghikadana then performed the Light Offering Ceremony, after which the bhikkhus of the Theravada Tradition filed down to the Multi Purpose Hall at the 5 th Level of Than Hsiang Temple for the Maha Sanghikadana proper. There they chanted the Mangala Sutta before they partook of the food offering.

Meanwhile in the Main Shrine Hall, the bhikkhus and bhikkhunis of the Mahayana tradition chanted the Ullambana Sutra before going down to the Restaurant at the ground floor for their Maha Sanghikadana.

After both groups of the Maha Sangha had taken their noon meal, they were offered the Requisites, thus ending the Maha Sanghikadana.