Festivals

• Kathina is what ends Vassa
• Vassa

  • annual three month retreat - usually from July to October - of the Theravada tradition
  • monks stay in monasteries/the grounds of a temple
  • giving up meat/smoking is another way of observing Vassa
• Wesak - Theravada Buddhism

  • Wesak Day is the celebration of the birth, enlightenment, and death of The Buddha
• Wesak can be celebrated in numerous ways

  • Buddhists arrive at their temple before sunrise in order to raise the Buddhist flag and sing hymns to the Three Refuges
  • Flowers, candles, and incense are given as offerings
  • People avoid killing, so eat vegetarian food
  • Some concentrate on the Noble Eightfold Path by staying in the temple all day and wearing white clothes
  • Monks recite verses by the Buddha for peace and happiness for all
• Kathina - in Thailand

  • parades and ceremonies for offerings
  • offerings can take place for up to one month at the end of the Vassa period
  • monks are offered new, saffron robes and people often give the monks basic items and food
  • villages sometimes collect donations which are then hung on the money tree, which is typically then paraded into the temple
• Kathina marks the end of Vassa. In Thailand, there are parades and ceremonies for offerings. It is one month.
• Uposatha days

  • days of observance in Theravada Buddhism
  • Budda said these days were to cleanse the 'defiled mind'
  • effort is made to keep the five precepts
  • people attend the temple to make offerings, meditate, and listen to talks given on the Dhamma
  • happens typically once a week in Theravada countries, aligned with the quarters of the moon
• Hanamatsuri and Obon

  • Hanamatsuri - Japanese festival - celebrates the birth of the Buddha
  • people bathe the Buddha by pouring tea made from hydrangea on small Buddha statues. Tradition of 'lion dancing'
  • Obon - festival lasting 3 days - honours the spirits of the ancestors
  • many return to the graves of their family members and use it as a time to unite
• Lama Tsong Khapa Day - in Tibet

  • celebrates the anniversary of Lama Tsong Khapa's parinibanna
  • happens on the 25th day of the 10th month in the Tibetan calendar
  • offerings are made typically of lights, flowers, incense, food, and water
• Parinibanna Day

  • celebrated in Mahayana Buddhism, East Asia, on either 8th or 15th of February
  • marks the point at which Buddha achieved Parinibbana, complete Nibbana
  • passages from the Nibbana Sutra are read in temples and monasteries which people visit
• On Uposatha days effort is made to keep the five precepts, offerings are made at the temple and people listen to talks given on the Dhamma.
• Vassa is a retreat celebrated in the Theravada tradition. Giving up meat or smoking is another way of observing Vassa.
• Why is Wesak important to Buddhists?

  • It commemorates major events in the Buddha's life
  • It is a chance for Buddhists to honour and remember the life of the Buddha
  • It symbolises light over darkness, and enlightenment.
  • It is a symbol of freedom and liberation from Anicca (impermanence)