Mahayana Buddhists celebrate the new year by honoring and praying for Buddha and other deities. Every Buddhist is expected to visit a nearby temple to light candles which are believed to bring happiness and good luck for the commencing year. Songs are sung as an offering to deities while statues of Buddha are washed as […]
Mardi Gras is a Christian holiday and popular cultural phenomenon that dates back thousands of years to pagan spring and fertility rites. Also known as Carnival or Carnaval, it’s celebrated in many countries around the world—mainly those with large Roman Catholic populations—on the day before the religious season of Lent begins. Brazil, Venice and New […]
Shrove Tuesday, the day immediately preceding Ash Wednesday (the beginning of Lent in Western churches). It occurs between February 2 and March 9, depending on the date of Easter. Shrove, derived from shrive, refers to the confession of sins as a preparation for Lent, a usual practice in Europe in the Middle Ages. Although the day is sometimes still used for self-examination and introspection, […]
Ash Wednesday is one of the most popular and important holy days in the liturgical calendar. Ash Wednesday opens Lent, a season of fasting and prayer. Ash Wednesday takes place 46 days before Easter Sunday, and is chiefly observed by Catholics, although many other Christians observe it too. Ash Wednesday comes from the ancient Jewish […]
Magha Puja is an important religious festival celebrated by Buddhists on the full moon day of the third lunar Month for more than 2,600 years. It marks the four auspicious occasions in the Buddha time as follows: 1. It was the full-moon day of the third lunar month, 2. There were 1,250 Arahants, the enlightened […]
The Persian phrase “Ayyam-i-Ha” – which simply means “the days of Ha” – describes the four or five intercalary days in the annual Baha’i calendar when Baha’is rejoice, do charitable work and prepare for the nineteen-day Baha’i fast that always follows Ayyam-i-Ha. In the Arabic alphabet, the letter “Ha” has several spiritual meanings, and one […]
Bahá’u’lláh designated a nineteen-day fast period each year during which adult Bahá’ís fast from sunrise to sunset each day. This period coincides with the Bahá’í month of Alá—meaning Loftiness—from 2 to 20 March, which immediately precedes the Bahá’í new year. It is a time of prayer, meditation, and spiritual rejuvenation. Sourced from https://www.bahai.org/beliefs/life-spirit/devotion/fasting
Khordad Sal is the birthday of Zoroaster (Zarathustra), the prophet and founder of Zoroastrianism. The holiday usually falls sometime after Nowruz and is often called “Greater Nowruz.” Celebrants pray, hang fresh flowers in their home, and make vibrant drawings (rangoli) on the floor. Sourced from https://www.vanderbilt.edu/isss/khordad-sal
Maundy Thursday, the Thursday before Easter, observed in commemoration of Jesus Christ’s institution of the Eucharist during the Last Supper. The name is thought to be a Middle English derivation taken from a Latin anthem sung in Roman Catholic churches on that day: “Mandatum novum do vobis” (“a new commandment I give to you”; John 13:34). In most European countries, Maundy Thursday is known as Holy Thursday; other […]
Laylat al-Qadr, (Arabic: “Night of Power”) Islamic festival that commemorates the night on which God first revealed the Qurʾān to the Prophet Muhammad through the angel Gabriel (Jibrīl). It is believed to have taken place on one of the final 10 nights of Ramadan in 610 CE, though the exact night is unclear. The date of the annual commemoration thus varies throughout the Islamic world but is most commonly observed on […]
© 2024 Interaction Traction, Inc. All rights reserved.
