37. Magha Puja Day
Magha Puja Day is one of the most important Buddhist celebrations
which falls on the full moon day of the third lunar month (about last week ofFebruary
or early of March).
38. This day marks the great four events that took place during Lord Buddha's
lifetime, namely;
1. 1250 Buddhist monks from different
places came to pay homage to Lord Buddha at
Valuwan Vihara in Rajgaha, the capital of
Magaha State, each of his own initiative and
without prior notification or appointment.
2. all of them were the enlightened monks (or Arahantas)
39. 3. all of them had been individually ordained
by Lord Buddha himself (Ehi Bhikkhu)
4. They assembled on the full moon day of the third lunar month.
40. On the evening of that day, Lord Buddha gave the assembly a discourse "Ovadha
Patimokha" laying down the principles of His Teachings summarised into three acts,
i.e. to do good, to abstain from bad action and to purify the mind.
45. Visakhapuja Day
Recognized as most important memorial day in Buddhism, The Visakhapuja Day reminds
Buddhists the important of Lord Buddha's teachings, both spiritually and socially. The day marks the
same day - the full moon night of the sixth lunar month
- when Lord Buddha was born into this world, attained enlightenment 35 years later, and
passed away when he was 80.
46. Visakhapuja Day is recognized by the UNESCO on December 13, 1999 as
"World Heritage Day".
VISAKHA BUCHA (Vesak) means the worship of the Buddha on the full moon
day of the sixth lunar month. It usually falls in May. In the case of a year with an
extra eighth lunar month—Adhikamasa (there are 13 full moons in that year)-- the
Visakhapuja Day falls on the full moon day of the seventh lunar month.
48. BIRTH-ENLIGHTENMENT-PASSING AWAY
The Vesak full moon day (The full moon day of Sixth lunar month)
Visakhapuja Day is one of the most important days in Buddhism because of
three important incidents in the life of The Buddha, i.e. the birth, the
enlightenment and the passing away, miraculously fall on the same month and
date, the Vesak full moon day. So each year, Buddhists throughout the world
gather together to perform the worship to recollect the wisdom, purity and
compassion of the Buddha.
54. After The Lord Buddha enlighten on the full moon day of the sixth lunar month
(Visakha), he spent seven weeks near by the Bodhi Tree. Afterward, he decided to
teach the Dhamma to the others, even though there were difficulties for ordinary
people to understand. His former teachers were dead, the next group of people he
thought of were five ascetics called "Pancavaggi", group of five, who, at that time,
lived in a forest named "Isippatanamarukatayawan", the deer park near Baranasi.
56. On the day before the full moon day of the eighth lunar month,Asalaha, there
he was. The next day, the full moon day, The Lord Buddha gave them his FIRST
SERMON called "Dhamma-cakkappavattana Sutta" or the Discourse on Setting the
Wheel of Dhamma in Motion. Not long after that, the head of the Five Ascetics,
named "Kondanna" got "The Eye of Dhamma" and asked for ordination from The
Lord Buddha. He became the FIRST MONK in Buddhism. The full moon day of the
eighth lunar month became the day that honored the Sangha, or the community of
the monks.
