Buddha's Birthday in Macau in 2024


  How long until Buddha's Birthday?
Buddha's Birthday
  Dates of Buddha's Birthday in Macau
2025 Macau Mon, May 5 Public Holiday
2024 Macau Wed, May 15 Public Holiday
2023 Macau Fri, May 26 Public Holiday
2022 May 8, May 9
MacauMon, May 9Government Holiday (in lieu)
MacauSun, May 8Public Holiday
2021 Macau Wed, May 19 Public Holiday
  Summary

Marks three key events in Buddhas life - his birthday, the enlightenment and his achievement of Nirvana

  Buddha's Birthday in other countries
Buddha's Birthday internationally

Buddha's Birthday in Macau

In Macau lantern parades are held for Buddha's Birthday which is celebrated on the 8th day of the 4th lunar month.

When is Buddha Purnima?

Buddha Purnima is the most sacred day in the Buddhist calendar. It is the most important festival of the Buddhists and is celebrated with great enthusiasm.

The exact date of Vesak is the first full moon in the fourth month in the Chinese lunar calendar. The date varies from year to year in the Gregorian calendar but is typically in May.

Followers of Buddhism have been celebrating Buddhist festivals for centuries, but the decision to celebrate this day formally was only taken at the first conference of the World Fellowship of Buddhists held in Sri Lanka in 1950. 

Although Buddhists regard every full moon as sacred, the moon of the month of Vaisakh has special significance because on this day the Buddha was born, attained enlightenment (nirvana), and attained parinirvana (nirvana-after-death of the body) when he died.

Traditions of Buddha Purnima

Shakyamuni Buddha, the historical founder of Buddhism, was born in what is present-day Nepal over 3,000 years ago. There are various opinions concerning the exact dates of his birth and death, but according to Buddhist tradition, he is said to have been born April 8, 1029 BC and died on February 15, 949 BC, although other Buddhist scholars place his birth five hundred years later.

Shakyamuni Buddha was the son of the king of the Shakyas, a small clan whose kingdom was located at the foothills of the Himalayas, south of what is now central Nepal, fifteen miles from Kapilavastu. Shakya of Shakyamuni is taken from the name of this tribe and muni means sage or saint. His family name was Gautama (Best Cow) and his given name was Siddhartha (Goal Achieved) though some scholars say this is a title bestowed on him by later Buddhists in honour of the enlightenment he attained.

Even though many Buddhists observe Buddha's historical birth on 8th April, the exact date remains in question. Although modern archaeological and historical research confirms that Prince Siddartha Gotama lived around this time.

On Buddha Purnima, people dress in white clothes and give out kheer (a rice pudding) as, according to legend, a woman named Sujata once offered Gautam Buddha kheer on his birthday and it has since become a tradition.

The dharmacakra or dharma wheel is a symbol often seen during Vesak. It is a wooden wheel with eight spokes. The wheel represents Buddha's teaching on the path to enlightenment. The eight spokes symbolize the noble eightfold path of Buddhism.


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