Buddhist Rituals and Observances1234
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The Birth of the Prince/ Aurora Foundation Collection, Taiwan

A. The Buddha's Birthday
  2,500 years ago (ca. 6th century BCE), Sakyamuni Buddha, the founder of Buddhism, was born as a prince in Kapilavastu, India. When he saw human sufferings of old age, sickness and death, and realized the impermanence of life. He decided to renounce his worldly life in search for the Truth. Finally, while, sitting under a bodhi tree (the Tree of Enlightenment), he attained Enlightenment. He began to speak the Dharma, taught and transformed his disciples, and established the Sangha community.。
  After the Buddha's parinirvana, how is he remembered on his birthday as Buddhists around the world celebrate his birth?
(A) Celebrating the Buddha's Birthday in Taiwan
  April 8th of the lunar calendar marks the Buddha's Birthday, the day on which Sakyamuni Buddha, the founder of Buddhism, was born and it is celebrated as a national holiday in Taiwan every year. According to Buddhist legend, when the Buddha was born, heavenly dragon bathed him with streams of fragrant water pouring from the sky; thus gave rise to the occasion known as “Bathing the Buddha Festival.”
  On the Buddha's Birthday, most of the temples in Taiwan will conduct the “Bathing the Buddha Ceremony.” Besides making offerings of flowers, candles, fruits and tea, a bathing pavilion is built for devotees to bathe the statue of the young prince inside with scented tea and fragrant broth, making use of the opportunity to rid themselves of greed, anger and worries. People are offered an herbal brew, together with Dharma services, charity events, and float parade. All for encouraging them to speak good words, do good deeds, and think good thoughts as they celebrate the Buddha's Birthday.
devotees celebrate the Buddha's Birthday by participating in the “Bathing the Buddha Ceremony”

(B) Celebrating the Buddha's Birthday Around the World
1. China, Japan, and Korea (Northern School of Buddhism)
  In addition to the activities mentioned above in celebrating the Buddha's Birthday—sutra chanting, offering making, charity work, and float parade—Korean Buddhists often begin their preparation right after the New Year's holiday by volunteering at their temples. They would go in groups to make thousands of paper lotus lanterns to be hung during the celebration, creating a sea of unmatched splendor.

2. Southeast Asia
  In Southeast Asia, the “Vesak Festival” or “Buddha Day” on the full moon of the 5th lunar month (May) celebrates the Birth of the Buddha, his Enlightenment, and Parinirvana. It is a day for Buddhists to pay reverence to the Buddha and show their gratitude as they remember him with chanting and prayer services, bathing the Buddha ceremony, donations, charity work, and releasing trapped animals.

In Tibet, the annual “Unveiling of the Great Thangka” is the most anticipated event of the year./
Jokang Temple, Lhasa, Tibet

3. Tibet
  For Tibetans, the eighth day of April is the holiest day of the year as it commemorates the birth of Sakyamuni Buddha. Besides Dharma lectures, a very special event, the “Buddha Unfolding Festival,” is held annually for people to admire and pay homage to the Buddha, and at the same time, to focus their minds and introspect. It is a great opportunity for cultivating both merits and wisdom.

B. An Auspicious and Joyful Act—Paying Homage to the Buddha
(A) Revering the Buddha
  Besides the practice of giving and making offerings, the act of paying homage is very significant for Buddhists. The objects of reverence are the sacred objects of faith, such as the stupa, the pagoda, the Buddha's relics or the Buddha image. It is a way for Buddhists to express their deference to the Buddhas by action—chanting the Buddha's name, reciting the sutras or be firm in their resolve to learn and practice the Buddha's teachings.
(B) Making the Pilgrimage—Following the Buddha's Footsteps
  There are Buddhists who make the journey to India to visit the eight holy sites of Buddhism, places of the Buddha's life events and his teachings to transform the minds of sentient beings. There are the Buddha's birthplace in Lumbini on the boarders of India and Nepal, the site of the Buddha's Enlightenment in Buddha Gaya, the site of the Buddha's first turn of the Dharma Wheel in Isipatana (Deer Park), sites of his subsequent teachings, and the site of his Parinirvana in Kusinagara. Therefore, making the pilgrimage to the eight holy sites of Buddhism is considered an act of unsurpassed merit, auspiciousness, and joyfulness.
site of the Buddha's first teaching
site of the Buddha's birth

(C) Symbols of Reverenc
1. The Buddha's Footprint
  By following the Buddha's footsteps on their pilgrimages, Buddhists often paid homage to a set of large footprints. Whose footprints are they? Why do Buddhists have so much respect for them? They are, in fact, representations of the Buddha's presence before the development of Buddha iconography. Therefore, by paying homage to the footprints, Buddhists are indeed showing reverence to the Buddha.
2. The Bodhi Tree and the Diamond Throne
  Similarly, people had been depicted in carvings and paintings of temple architectures as paying homage to trees and platform-like diamond thrones. Why are these objects given so much respect? First of all, the Buddha was born in India as a prince 2,500 years ago (ca. 6th century BCE) and decided to renounce his householder's life after he realized the impermanence of life in old age, sickness, and death—the sufferings of human life. While sitting under a bodhi tree, he finally attained enlightenment and became the “Enlightened One.” Thereafter, the Buddha began to teach the Dharma, transform the minds of his disciples, and establish the Sangha community.
  Since the Buddha was enlightened under a bodhi tree, the tree became the symbol of the Buddha's wisdom and the diamond throne which he sat upon that of his presence. Therefore, paying homage to the Buddha's footprints, his relics, the bodhi tree or the diamond throne is like paying homage to the Buddha himself.
3. The Origin and Significance of Circumambulating and Paying Homage to the Stupa
  It is quite common for Buddhists to circumambulate a temple's stupa from the right while paying homage to it. What are placed in the stupa? After the Buddha's parinirvana, stupas were built to house the Buddha's relics. As Buddhists behold the Buddha's wisdom and virtues in their minds, they see the stupa as the Buddha himself, as if the Buddha is still present in this world. Thus, they practice circumambulating and paying homage to the stupa.

Footprints of the Buddha/Peshawar, Pakistan
The Bodhi Tree/Buddha Gaya, India
Elapattra, the Naga King, pays homage to the Bodhi Tree and the Diamond Throne/Calcutta National Museum Collection/Calcutta, India