CREATED BY : Connecting Classroom Club.Anula Vidyalaya,
Nugegoda.
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BUDDHIST FESTIVALS HINDU FESTIVALS Vesak ThaipongalVesak
Thaipongal Poson DeepavaliPoson Deepavali Esala Maha SivaratriEsala
Maha Sivaratri ISLAMIC FESTIVALS CHRISTIAN FESTIVALS Milad Un Nabi
ChristmasMilad Un NabiChristmas Ramazan EasterRamazan Easter
hajj
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Vesak
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Vesak day is the most important day for Buddhists all around
the world. It is the day that commemorates the birth, the
enlightenment, and the passing away of the Lord Buddha. Widely
celebrated in many parts of Asia, Vesak day is an official public
holiday for Buddhists to celebrate it as a festival. What is Vesak
?
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On this day, I will go to the temple with my family to pay our
respects to the Buddha, Dhamma and Sangha (Triple Gem). The temple
will be beautifully decorated with bright cloths, lights and
lanterns. Once there, we will offer candles, incense and flowers as
gifts to Lord Buddha to show our respects and gratitude for his
teachings.
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POSON
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This year on Vesak day we celebrated the 2600th year of
enlightenment of Lord Buddha. Two hundred and eighty-two years
after the death of Lord Buddha, Arahat Mahinda came to Mihintale to
introduce Buddhism to Sri Lanka. King Devanampiyatissa was the king
of Anuradhapura. On a full moon day when the king was out hunting,
chasing a deer at Mihintale rock, he heard the words of Arahat
Mahinda, Tissa! Tissa! Come to me. He was shocked and shouted, Who
dared to call me by my name. We are disciples of Lord Buddha,
Arahat Mahinda replied calmly.
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The King was pleased by the words of Arahat Mahinda. Arahat
Mahinda wanted to test the king if he was wise enough to understand
Lord Buddhas Dhamma. He asked some intellectual questions and the
king answered very wisely. The king and his group dropped their
arms down and sat to listen to the bana Mahinda Thero preached
them. Upon listening, all of them embraced Buddhism and surrendered
to the Triple Gem. King Devanampiyatissa was the first Buddhist
king of Sri Lanka.
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ESALA PERAHERA
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The Kandy Esala Perahera is the most beautiful pageant in Sri
Lanka. This perahera was started by King Kirthi Sri Rajasinghe. The
starting event of the Esala Perahera is the planting of the kap or
the kap situvima. The first item in the perahera is the sound of
whip crackers. It is followed by the flag bearers. The
Peramune-rala is the one who sits on the first elephant in the
perahera.
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After that so many groups of dancers and drummers, beautifully
dressed, add beauty to the perahera. The tusker carrying the casket
walks majestically on the pavada. The Diyavadana Nilame and other
nilames follow the tusker. There are hundreds of elephants that can
be seen in the perahera.
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Pongal is a Tamil harvest festival. It is same as Thanksgiving
Day. In an agriculture based civilization, harvest plays an
important role. The farmer cultivating the land depends on his
cattle, timely rain and the Sun. Once a year, he expresses his
gratitude to everything which symbolizes the harvest celebration.
With the end of the wet month of Margazhi (mid December to mid
January) the new Tamil month of Thai heralds a series of festivals.
The first day of this month is a festival day known as "Pongal
Day". Pongal means the "boiling over" of milk and rice during the
month of Thai.
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DEEPAVALI
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Diwali is a widely celebrated festival of Hindus. It marks the
return of Lord Rama to his kingdom after an exile of fourteen
years. The victory of Rama over Ravana is a victory of the forces
of good over the forces of evil People light up their house with
earthen lamps known as ''Diyas'' and Candles. Sweets are
distributed among friends and relatives on this day. Men, women and
children wear new and colourful clothes on the day of Diwali. They
greet on another and wish each other the blessings of Diwali
Children let off crackers, the noise of which, continues till late
into the night.
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People keep their houses neat and clean. Some people believe
that Lakshmi, the goddess of wealth, visits a clean and well-lit
houses on the night of Diwali.
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Mahasivaratri
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Maha shivaratri is celebrated on the night of (Maha) Vad 14 as
it is believed that this is the day when Lord Shiva transformed and
appeared as the Shivalinga. The ritual is traced back to ancient
times when a hunter sat atop a bilitree waiting to hunt a deer. He
kept a constant watch and kept dropping the leaves on the ground.
They fell on the Shivalinga that was below the tree. When he
finally captured a deer, it requested the hunter to let him go to
see its family. The deer promised that it would return.
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The hunter agreed and he kept himself awake by plucking the
bili leaves and dropping them on the Shivalinga. Thus he
unknowingly performed the puja. When in the morning the deer
returned, the hunter could not kill it. As he was purified of all
the evils and sins due to the puja he did at night. The hunter and
the deer were blessed by Lord Shiva. From that day onwards Maha
Shivaratri has been celebrated by fasting and being awake all
night. Hindus perform puja of Shiva all through the night.
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Milad-un-nabi
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Milad un Nabi is a public holiday in most Muslim nations. It is
common for Muslims to gather in public and listen to religious
leaders talk about the Prophets deeds, telling stories about his
infant and his adult lives. Milad un Nabi is the birthday of the
Prophet Muhammad. While many Muslims dont celebrate birthdays.
Milad un Nabi is a joyous occasion, as the birth of the Prophet is
considered a great blessing for humanity.
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The Prophets memory is also praised with songs and salutations,
and people often decorate their homes and mosques with lights and
flags. It is also common for families to donate to charity and
prepare food for the impoverished and sick. While Milad-Un-Nabi is
a happy occasion, celebrations are relatively low-key, as it also
marks the anniversary of Mohammads death.
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Ramazan
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During Ramadan, people of Islamic faith fast during daylight
hours. They usually wake up before sunrise for a small meal and
then do not eat again until the sun sets at night. The word
"Ramadan 'itself means "parched thirst" and "sun-baked ground" Some
families have their children participate in the fast anyway or they
find other ways to teach their kids about devotion, generosity,
goodwill and self-control. After 30 days of sacrifice, Muslims hold
a three-day celebration of fast- breaking called Eid al-Fitr.
Oftentimes, Muslim kids receive gifts and indulge in treats during
that festival.
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Christmas
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Christmas is the most important festival of the Christians. It
is celebrated on the 25th December every year with great pomp and
show. This festival is celebrated as the birthday of Lord Jesus
Christ. Christ was the founder of Christianity. It is believed that
he was sent to this world to save mankind. Great preparations are
made for the occasion. All houses and churches are cleaned and
white washed. The Christmas tree is decorated with artificial
stars, flowers, lights, toys etc. on this day.
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At night, all sing Christmas carols, songs and offer prayer to
God who sent his son, Christ to earth to remove all sins and
sufferings. After the prayer, exchange of gifts happen between all
the members of the house, friends and the guests. Any person
disguised as Santa Claus distributes sweets among the children. Big
feasts are arranged. Delicious dishes, cakes and puddings are
served. After the feast, all members dance & sing.
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Easter
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Easter is the celebration of Jesus Christ's rising from the
dead after His crucifixion which took place on what we now term
Good Friday. Easter is usually celebrated on the first Sunday after
the full moon following the Vernal or Spring Equinox on March 21st.
This can be any Sunday between March 22nd and April 25th. It is the
most sacred of all the Christian holidays or celebrations.
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Christ's return (or rising) from death is called the
Resurrection. According to the scriptures, Christ's tomb was empty
three days after His death, which is commemorated on Good Friday.
His followers saw Him and talked to Him after this. Christians
therefore believe that they have the hope of a new life (an
everlasting life in Heaven) after their earthly death.
