M?gha P?j? (Burmese: ?????????????????; Khmer: ???????, ; Lao: ????????; Thai: ???????; Sinhalese: ???? ?????) is an important Buddhist festival celebrated on the full moon day of M?gha in Cambodia, Laos, Thailand, Sri Lanka and on the full moon day of Tabodwe in Myanmar. The spiritual aims of the day are not to commit any kind of sins; do only good; purify one's mind. M?gha P?j? is a public holiday in Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar and Thailand and is an occasion when Buddhists tend to go to the temple to perform merit-making activities. In Sri Lanka this full moon day is called Navam Poya.
Video Magha Puja
Etymology
The third lunar month is known in the Thai language as Makha (Pali: M?gha); Bucha is also a Thai word (Pali: P?j?), meaning "to venerate" or "to honor". As such, Makha Bucha Day is for the veneration of Buddha and his teachings on the full moon day of the third lunar month.
Maps Magha Puja
Alternative names
- Boun Khao Chi, official name in Lao.
- Full Moon of Tabodwe, official name in Burmese.
- Makha Bucha, official name in Thai.
- Meak Bochea, official name in Khmer.
- Navam Poya, official name in Sinhalese.
- Sangha Day
- Fourfold Assembly
Origin
M?gha P?j? day marks the four auspicious occasions occurring at the Ve?uvana bamboo grove, near R?jagaha in northern India ten months after the enlightenment of the Buddha. On that occasion, as recorded in the commentary to the Mah?samayasutta (DN 20) four marvellous events occurred:
- 1,250 disciples came to see the Buddha that evening without being summoned.
- All of them were Arahants, Enlightened Ones, and
- All were ordained by the Buddha himself: Ehi-bhikkhus.
- It was the full-moon day.
On this occasion the Buddha gave those Arahants the principles of Buddhism, called "The ovadapatimokha". Those principles are: To cease from all evil; To do what is good; To cleanse one's mind. In Thailand, this teaching has been dubbed the "heart of Buddhism".
Celebrations and Observances
Burma (Myanmar)
In Burma, Magha Puja, called the "Full Moon of Tabaung" or "Tabodwe Full Moon Day" (?????????????????), is a traditional merit-making day for Buddhists. Tabottwal is the month before last month of the year in the traditional Burmese calendar. The country's largest pagoda festival, the Shwedagon Pagoda Festival, begins during the new moon of the month of Tabodwe in the traditional Burmese calendar and continues until the full moon. The festival begins with a nakyake shitsu ceremony for offerings to the 28 Buddhas (from Ta?ha?kara to Gotama), followed by a 10-day, nonstop recital of the Patthana, Buddhist scriptures on the 24 causes of worldly phenomena.
Other pagoda festivals are held on this day, including the Shwe Settaw Pagoda Festival in Magwe Region's Minbu Township and the Alaungdaw Kathapa Pagoda Festival, near the Alaungdaw Kathapa National Park in Sagaing Region.
The Full Moon of Tabaung also coincides with the Pa-O National Day, traditionally set on the day of King Suriyachanda's birth.
Thailand
- On the evening of Magha full-moon day, each temple in Thailand holds a candlelight procession called a wian thian (wian meaning to circle around; thian meaning candle). Holding flowers, incense and a lighted candle, the monks and congregation members circumambulate clockwise three times around the phra ubosot (ordination hall), once for each of the Three Jewels: the Buddha, the Dharma, and the Sangha.
- tham bun: Making merit by going to temples for special observances and join in the other Buddhist activities.
- rap sin': Keeping the Five Precepts. Practice of renunciation: Observe the Eight Precepts, practice of meditation and mental discipline, stay in the temple, wearing white robes, for a number of days.
See also
- List of Buddhist festivals
References
External links
- Text and Translation of Mah?samayasutta
- Dictionary
- Makha Bucha Day, Festivals of Thailand
Source of the article : Wikipedia
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