Friday 15 March 2019

Buddha pournima

Buddha's birthday is a holiday traditionally celebrated in most of East Asia to commemorate the birth of the Prince Siddhartha Gautama, later the Gautama Buddha and founder of Buddhism. It is also celebrated in South and Southeast Asia as Vesak which also acknowledges the enlightenment and death of the Buddha. According to the Theravada Tripitaka scriptures[which?] (from Pali, meaning "three baskets"), Gautama was born c. 563/480 BCE in Lumbini in modern-day Nepal, and raised in the Shakya capital of Kapilvastu, which may have been either in what is present day Tilaurakot, Nepal or Piprahwa, India.[2][3] At the age of thirty five, he attained enlightenment (nirvana) underneath a Bodhi tree at Bodhgaya (modern day India). He delivered his first sermon at Sarnath, India. At the age of eighty, he died at Kushinagar, India.[4]

Date:
The exact date of Buddha's Birthday is based on the Asian lunisolar calendars and is primarily celebrated in Baisakh month of the Buddhist calendar and the Bikram Sambat Hindu calendar, and hence it is also called Vesak. In modern-day India and Nepal, where the Historical Buddha lived, it is celebrated on the full moon day of the Vaisakha month of the Buddhist calendar. In Theravada countries following the Buddhist calendar, it falls on a full moon Uposatha day, typically in the 5th or 6th lunar month. In China and Korea, it is celebrated on the eighth day of the fourth month in the Chinese lunar calendar. The date varies from year to year in the Western Gregorian calendar, but usually falls in April or May. In leap years it may be celebrated in June. In Tibet, it falls on the 7th day of the fourth month of the Tibetan calendar (in May).

South and Southeast Asia and Mongolia:
In South Asian and Southeast Asian countries as well as Mongolia, Buddha's birthday is celebrated on the full moon day of the Vaisakha month of the Buddhist calendar and the Hindu calendar, which usually falls in April or May month of the Western Gregorian calendar. The festival is known as Buddha Purnima, as Purnima means full moon day in Sanskrit. It is also called is Buddha Jayanti, with Jayanti meaning birthday in Sanskrit Language.

Buddha's statue located
Near Belum caves, Andhra Pradesh, India
The corresponding Western Gregorian calendar dates varies from year to year:

2017: May 10
2018: April 29 (Sri Lanka, Cambodia, Myanmar, Bangladesh), April 30 (Nepal, India), May 29 (Singapore, Thailand, Malaysia and Indonesia)[5]
2019: May 19

East Asia:
In many East Asian countries Buddha's Birth is celebrated on the 8th day of the 4th month in the Chinese lunar calendar (in Japan since 1873 on April 8 of the Gregorian calendar), and the day is an official holiday in Hong Kong, Macau and South Korea. The date falls from the end of April to the end of May in the Gregorian calendar.

The primarily solar Gregorian calendar date varies from year to year:

2017: May 3
2018: May 22
2019: May 12

2020: April 30

Taiwan
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In 1999 the Taiwanese government set Buddha's birthday as the second Sunday of May, the same date as Mother's Day.[6][7]

Japan
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As a result of the Meiji Restoration, Japan adopted the Gregorian calendar in lieu of the Chinese lunar calendar in 1873. However, it took approximately until 1945, the end of World War II, for religious festivities to adopt the new calendar. In most Japanese temples, Buddha's birth is now celebrated on the Gregorian calendar date April 8; only a few (mainly in Okinawa) celebrate it on the orthodox Chinese calendar date of the eighth day of the fourth lunar month.

Bangladesh
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In Bangladesh the event is called বুদ্ধ পূর্ণিমা or Buddho Purnima. On the day of proceeding Purnima Buddhist monks and priests decorate temple in colourful decorations and candles. On the day of the festival the President and Prime Minister deliver speeches about the history and importance of Buddhism and religious harmony in the country. From noon onwards large fairs are held in and around temples and viharas selling bangles, food (largely vegetarian), clothes, toys and conducting performances of Buddha's life, Buddhist music teaching about the Dharma and the 5 precepts. Later on Buddhists attend a congression inside the monastery where the chief monk would deliver a speech discussing the Buddha and the 3 jewels and about living the ideal life after which a prayer to the buddha would be conducted and people would then light candles and recite the three jewels and 5 precepts.[8][9]

Cambodia
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In Cambodia, Buddha's Birthday is celebrated as Visak Bochea and is a public holiday where monks around the country carry flags, lotus flowers, incense and candles to acknowledge Vesak. People also take part in alms giving to the monks.[10]

China
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Maybe in China, celebrations may occur in Buddhist temples where people may light incense and bring food offerings for the monks.[11] In Hong Kong, Buddha's birthday is a public holiday. Lanterns are lit to symbolise the Buddha's enlightenment and many people visit the temple to pay their respects. The bathing of the Buddha is a major feature of Buddha's birthday celebrations in the city.[12] The festival is also a public holiday in Macau.[13]
India
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India is the land where the Buddha attained enlightenment (nirvana) at Bodhgaya and established Buddhism. Buddha spent majority of his life in what is now modern day India. Some of the holiest sites associated with Buddha's life include Bodhgaya (place of enlightenment), Sarnath (site of first sermon), Sravasti and Rajgir (site where Buddha spent the greater part of his monastic life and delivered majority of his discourses), and Kushinagar (site where Buddha attained Parinirvana and passed away)[14][15] Under Emperor Ashoka, Buddhism spread from India to other nations.[4] Buddha Purnima or Buddha Jayanthi in South India or Tathagata is a public holiday in India.The public holiday for Buddha purnima in India was initiated by Bhimrao Ramji Ambedkar when he was the minister of social justice [16] It is celebrated especially in Sikkim, Ladakh, Arunachal Pradesh, Bodh Gaya, various parts of North Bengal such as Kalimpong, Darjeeling, and Kurseong, and Maharashtra (where 73% of total Indian Buddhists live) and other parts of India as per Indian calendar. Buddhists go to common Viharas to observe a rather longer-than-usual, full-length Buddhist sutra, akin to a service. The dress code is pure white. Non-vegetarian food is normally avoided. Kheer, a sweet rice porridge is commonly served to recall the story of Sujata, a maiden who, in Gautama Buddha's life, offered the Buddha a bowl of milk porridge. Informally called "Buddha's Birthday", it actually commemorates the birth, enlightenment (nirvāna), and death (Parinirvāna) of Gautama Buddha in the Theravada tradition. Tibetans in exile remember Buddha's birthday on the 7th day of the Saga Dawa month (fourth month of the Tibetan calendar), which culminates with Buddha's parinirvana celebrations on the full moon day.

It is said that the Buddha originally followed the way of asceticism to attain enlightenment sooner, as was thought by many at that time. He sat for a prolonged time with inadequate food and water, which caused his body to shrivel so as to be indistinguishable from the bark of the tree that he was sitting under. Seeing the weak Siddhartha Gautama, a woman named Sujata placed a bowl of "Kheer" in front of him as an offering.[17] Realizing that without food one can do nothing, the Buddha refrained from harming his own body. Thereafter, he would go on to attain nirvana.

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