Have you ever heard of Obon? It’s a Japanese festival, similar to Mexico’s Day of the Dead. Celebrated for centuries, it’s a time to clean graves and create home altars as families welcome their much-beloved ancestors. While celebrating Obon is generally associated with Buddhism, it also includes elements from the more indigenous Shinto tradition, as …
Vesak is probably the most important holiday in the Buddhist tradition – celebrated around the world by both branches of Buddhism (Theravada and Mahayana). Many faith traditions pride themselves on specific rituals practiced by all followers on roughly the same day. In contrast, Vesak – like most Buddhist holidays – is highly influenced by culture. …
Thailand celebrates three New Years: The Gregorian, The Chinese, and Songkran (or Thai New Year). When it comes to the first two New Years, I want nothing more than to sleep through the celebrations -or I would if I wasn’t systematically woken up by the crowds lighting rockets and dime-store fireworks, playing Russian roulette with their …
Songkran: Happy Thai New Year! {Multilingual Mama} Read More »
