Buddha Purnima Trivia

Buddha Purnima Trivia

Go through these little bits of information related to Buddha Purnima and enlighten yourself about this auspicious occassion:

• Buddha Purnima commemorates the birth, enlightenment and death of the Buddha.
• Lord Buddha is reported to have lived for eighty years (560 B.C. - 480 B.C.).
• The Eightfold Path advocated by Lord Buddha consists of eight right actions that every man and woman must follow to be liberated from the cycle of birth and death. These are right conduct, right motive, right speech, right effort, right resolve, right livelihood, right attention and right meditation.
• The Mauryan Emperor Ashoka, who lived in the 3rd century B.C, renounced his violent actions to embrace Buddhism and helped in spreading the religion far and wide.
• Buddha Purnima is known in India and abroad by various names as Visakha Purnima, Visakah Puja, Vesak or Buddha Jayanti.
• The Sri Lankan Buddha Purnima celebrations witness the setting up of electrically lit structures called 'toranas' in various locations in Colombo and elsewhere. Each of these closed structures represent a story from the 550 tales of Jataka (or stories from the past life of the Buddha) and are mostly sponsored by individual donors, religious societies and welfare groups.
• Colourful lanterns called 'Vesak koodu' are hung along streets and in front of homes in various regions in and around Colombo during Buddha Purnima. These signify the light of the Buddha, Dharma and the Sangha.
• In Japan, the general populace celebrate Buddha Purnima by pouring ama cha, a tea made of Hydrangea, on the statue of baby Buddha. This is considered an act of worship or paying respect to the Buddha.
• On Buddha Purnima, pious Buddhists wear only white clothes.
• The Chinese scholar, Fa-Hien has recorded the celebration of Buddha Purnima in Bodh Gaya as a divine experience.
• Buddha Purnima falls on May 27 in 2010 and on May 17 in 2011.