Buddhist New Year Facts
The origin of the holiday can be as old as the start of the religion itself.
Buddhist new year facts. Just like in other religions new year is a big celebration for mahayana buddhists. However the date of celebration may vary by tradition or by country. As mentioned above the theravada new year is always celebrated on the first full moon of april ever year.
The other main branch of buddhism is theravada. Mid january marks the celebration of mahayana buddhist new year celebration although many mahayana buddhist such as japenese zen celebrate the new year on december 31st. Mahāyāna and theraveda buddhism differ in a few ways.
Others celebrate it on the 31st of december or the 1st of january. In mahayan countries new year celebrations starts on the first full moon day in january. Mahāyāna is also a term that refers to buddhist philosophies and practices.
Ever since the start of the religion theravada buddhists have celebrated the theravada new year every year on the first full moon of april. New year in theravadin countries thailand burma sri lanka cambodia and lao is celebrated for three days from the first full moon day in april.