ASALHA PUJA DAY, THAILAND ~ Thailand2Hotels

Monday, July 22, 2013

ASALHA PUJA DAY, THAILAND

ASALHA PUJA DAY, BUDDHIST

Asalha Puja Day is one of the most sacred days in Buddhist. It is observed on the fifteenth day of the waxing moon of the eight lunar month (July). This year it is celebrated at Wat Tampa on Sunday, July 21, 2013.

Asalha Puja Day is the anniversary of the day on which Lord Buddha delivered his first Sermon to his five Disciples at the Deer Park in Benares, over two thousand five hundred years ago. The day also marks the beginning of the worship of the Triple Gems, namely: the Lord Buddha, His Teachings and His Disciples.

The Buddhist Lent starts on the first day of the waning moon of the eighth lunar month. The tradition of Buddhist Lent or the annual three-month Rains Retreat, known in Thai as "PHUN SAA", dates back to the time of early Buddhism in ancient India. All holy men, mendicants and sages spent three months of the annual rainy season in permanent dwellings. They avoided unnecessary travel during this period when crops were still new for fear they might accidentally step on young plants. In deference to popular opinion, Lord Buddha decreed that his followers should also abide by this ancient tradition, and they began to gather in-groups of simple dwellings.

Many Thai people will return to their ancestral homes to worship in their local temple and to bring offerings for the monks. In the evening they will often perform a wian tian, where they walk clockwise around the main shrine of the temple carrying a candle, three incense sticks and a lotus bed. During the day, monks chant mantras or repeat the first sermon of the Buddha.

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