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Buddha Purnima
(Buddha's Birthday)
Buddha
Jayanti or also known as Buddha Purnima is the most sacred festivals
of Buddhist. Buddha Purnima (Buddha Birthday) is celebrated in
remembrance Lord Buddha. Lord Buddha is the founder of Buddhism.
This day is the birth anniversary of Lord Buddha. It falls on the
full moon of the fourth lunar month (month of Vaisakh) i.e. April or
May. This day commemorates three important events of Buddha's life
1 - His birth
in 623 BC.
2
- His enlightment i.e. attainment of supreme wisdom, in 588 BC.
3 - His attainment of Nirvana i.e. the complete extinction of his
self at
the age of 80
in
483 BC.
The occasion marks three most important events in
the life of Buddha-his advent, enlightenment and nirvana-about 2,500
years back
This day is
a thrice blessed day. Gautam Buddha "lived and died in about the
fifth century before the Christian era". Buddha means "enlightened
one" - someone who is completely free from all faults and mental
obstructions.
Gautam Buddha was not a god and the philosophy of Buddhism does not
entail any theistic world-view. The teachings of the Buddha are
solely to liberate human beings from the misery and sufferings of
life.
According to the Buddhism, sorrow and desire are the main cause of
all the evil and suffering of this world. Lord Buddha advocated the
Eightfold Path consisting of precepts like right conduct, right
motive, right speech, right effort, right resolve, right livelihood,
right attention and right meditation to gain mastery over suffering.
It is only after following this path one can reach the ultimate aim
of Nirvana. Nirvana is the transcendental state of complete
liberation. Gautama Buddha lived and taught in northern India in the
6th Century B.C.
Buddha travelled far and wide teaching hundreds of followers. Even
after death his disciples continued to spread his teachings.
Rich and poor alike were attracted by the simplicity of Buddha’s
teaching and his emphasis on complete equality of all, a notion
antithetical to the existing Hindu caste system. The Mauryan Emperor
Ashoka espoused the Buddhist religion in the 3rd century B.C. and
helped in spreading it far and wide. Sarnath and Bodhgaya are two of
the most important pilgrimage centers for the Buddhists.
Buddha Purnima (Buddha Jayanti) 2009
Buddha Purnima will fall on
8th May on Friday in year 2009
Date 2010,
May 27
Date 2011,
May 17
On this day,
Buddhists all over the world commemorate three great events: The
Birth, Enlightenment and the Passing Away of Gautama Buddha.
As Buddhism spread from India to all parts of the world, the
teachings were readily assimilated with the cultures of the people
who accepted the teachings. On this day all Buddhists are expected
to reaffirm their faith in the Buddha Dharma and to lead a noble
religious life. It is a day for meditation and for radiating
Loving-Kindness.
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