HÀ NỘI — Around 10,000 Buddhists set a Vietnamese record by laughing together at the opening ceremony of An Lạc Spring Festival 2017 at Khai Nguyên Pagoda in Hà Nội on Sunday.

On stage, Vietnam Laughter Yoga chairman Lê Anh Sơn shared funny folk tales to encourage people to laugh and guided them on how to breathe and burst into cheerful laughter.

“Laughter yoga helps people destress,” said Venerable Thích Đạo Thịnh, chairman of Khai Nguyên Pagoda, which is located in Sơn Đông Commune in Sơn Tây Town. “When people laugh, they feel happier. It suits the spirit of Buddhism to help bring happiness and more meaning to people’s lives. We decided to join with Vietnam Laughter Yoga to organise the event on the first day of the spring festival.”

Laughter yoga is part of the three-day festival organised jointly by Happy Entrepreneur Community, the Hà Nội Martial Arts Association and Việt Nam Laughter Yoga.

The An Lạc Spring Festival, which began on February 5, features traditional martial arts, Buddhist music and dragon dances.

Around 1,000 vegetarian hot-pots will also be cooked at the pagoda and offered to visitors at the event, who will be briefed on the benefits of eating vegetarian food, such as leading a healthy lifestyle and protecting nature and one’s environment. The festival will have around 60 small businesses selling vegetarian and handmade products.

Laughter yoga has become a popular phenomenon, and Việt Nam Laughter Yoga has centres in 38 provinces and cities across the country. This is the first time that a laughter yoga session has been held on such a large scale.

Both laughter yoga and vegetarian hot-pots will receive certificates from the Việt Nam Book of Record on Tuesday, at the festival’s closing ceremony.

Khai Nguyên Pagoda, located at a scenic spot in Sơn Đông Commune, has been offering classes to students to let them experience how it feels to live the life of nuns several days a month for the past two years.  — VNS