As a person who has friends with different religious backgrounds, I am able to observe the different holidays they experience. In Islam, there is Ramadan, Hinduism has Diwali, Christianity has Christmas, and so on. Every religion I come across consists of holidays except for Buddhism. Although I am a Buddhist myself, I have never been interested until now. Because of finals, I did research the easiest way possible: Google.
So, I was able to discover the website: buddhanet.net. It is a wonderful resource for anyone who is interested in Buddhism. There is a section that is dedicated to the various Festivals and Special Days for followers of Buddhism around the world.
It seems there are many holidays observed by Buddhists everywhere, and many are different because of the varying forms of Buddhism. Nevertheless, some are universal. The most important holiday celebrated by everyone is Vesak, or Buddha Day. It is held on the day of the first full moon in May, except in leap years, when it is in June. On this day, a festival is assembled to commemorate the birth, enlightenment, and death of Buddha.
Another day is known as the Buddhist New Year. It is held on different days among several ethnicities based on the calendar they follow. For example, the Chinese, Koreans, and Vietnamese follow the lunar calendar.
There is a holiday called Magha Puja Day, which takes places on the day of the full moon of the third lunar month. It commemorates an important event in the life of the Buddha. This event occurred early in the Buddha’s teaching life.
According to Buddhanet, ‘After the first Rains Retreat (Vassa) at the Deer Park at Sarnath, the Buddha went to Rajagaha city where 1,250 Arahats (Enlightened saints), who were the Buddha’s disciples, without prior appointment, returned from their wanderings to pay respect to the Buddha. They assembled in the Veruvana Monastery with the two chief disciples of the Buddha, Ven. Sariputta and Ven. Moggalana.’
Buddhanet also mentions, ‘The assembly is called the Fourfold Assembly because it consisted of four factors: all 1,250 were Arahats, all of them were ordained by the Buddha himself, they assembled by themselves without any prior call, it was the full moon day of Magha month (March).’
A fourth festival is the Festival of the Tooth. Every year, a special procession is held for a relic of Buddha: his tooth. The tooth is located in Kandy, Sri Lanka. It can never be seen, and a temple is built for this memory of Buddha.
Even among these holidays, there are many more types and versions. If anyone is interested in finding out more about, Buddhanet is recommended for anything related about Buddhism.
