Other Buddhist Prayer Days and Events

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Upavasatha Days

On Upavasatha or new and full Moon days (the first and fifteen days of the lunar month), many Buddhist assemble in temples to meditate, make offerings, recite sermons and perform acts of veneration to the Triple Gem.

Many also take vegetarian meals on these days as they observe the Eight Precepts.

Ullambana Day

Ullambana is an expression of Buddhists' respect for their ancestors and their Compassion for all beings suffering in the realms of misery. The observance of Ullambana on the fifteenth day of the seventh lunar month is based on the incident of Venerable Mogallana, a disciple of the Buddha who discovered through his meditative powers that his mother had been reborn in one of the realms of misery.

Distressed, he approached the Buddha for help, who then advised him to make offerings to the Sangha, as their merit of doing so would help to relieve the suffering of his mother and that of other beings in the realms of misery.

Making offerings to relieve the sufferings of departed and other beings in the realms of misery thus became a popular communal of observance.

Ullambana is observed by making offerings of necessities to the Order, reciting sermons and performing acts of charity. The merit from these deeds is then shared with all beings.

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