Buddha Purnima 2024: Buddha Purnima or Buddha Jayanti commemorates the birth of Lord Gautam Buddha. The holiday, also known as Vesak, is a yearly celebration observed on the first full moon of the Hindu calendar month Vaishakha.
Buddha Purnima 2024: The auspicious festival of Buddha Purnima marks the birth of Prince Siddhartha Gautama, who became the Gautama Buddha and founded Buddhism. The sacred festival is also known as Buddha's birthday, Buddha Day or Buddha Jayanti. Primarily a Buddhist festival, the day is celebrated in most of South, Southeast and East Asia, including India, Sri Lanka, Nepal, Bhutan, Tibet, Thailand, Tibet, China, Korea, Laos, Vietnam, Mongolia, Cambodia, Indonesia, and more. It is observed on the full moon day of the Hindu month of Vaisakha, which falls in April or May. Buddhists celebrate the day with great devotion and joy, participating in various religious ceremonies and rituals. Know the date, history, significance, and more about the festival inside.
Buddha Purnima 2024 Date:
This year, Buddha Jayanti falls on Thursday, May 23. This year marks the 2586th birth anniversary of Gautam Buddha.
Buddha Purnima Timings:
Purnima Tithi Begins: 6:47 pm on May 22, 2024
Purnima Tithi ends at 7:22 pm on May 23, 2024
Buddha Purnima 2024 History and Significance:
While the precise dates of Buddha's birth and death are unknown, historians typically estimate his lifespan to be between 563-483 BC. Gautam Buddha was born in Lumbini, Nepal, and attained Nirvana at 35. Buddha Purnima is observed as a day for reflection on the core principles of Buddhism: peace, compassion, and enlightenment. In some parts of South and Southeast Asia, the festival coincides with Vesak - a celebration of Buddha's enlightenment and his passing into Nirvana. The festival offers a chance to spread the message of peace and harmony.
Meanwhile, the full moon holds significance in Buddhism as three significant events in Gautam Buddha's life took place on this day. The full moon in May is especially important as Prince Siddhartha was born at Lumbini Grove. Secondly, Prince Siddhartha Gautam attained enlightenment under the shade of the Bodhi tree and became Gautama Buddha at Bodh Gaya after six years of hardship. Thirdly, after 45 years of teaching the Truth, when he was eighty, at Kusinara, he passed away to Nibbana (Nirvana) - release from the cycle of rebirth.
Buddha was born around 563 BC in Lumbini (present-day Nepal) as Prince Siddhartha Gautam. Buddhists worldwide celebrate Buddha Purnima with great fervour. This year, the festival will be observed today, on May 23 (Thursday).
Notably. Buddha Purnima is a gazetted holiday and hence all government offices, schools, post-offices and banks will remain closed today.
We take a closer look at what is closed on Buddha Purnima and what's open.
What's Closed?
- All government offices closed: Since Buddha Purnima is a gazetted holiday, all government offices in most states are closed for a holiday today.
- All schools closed: All schools also remain closed for gazetted holidays.
- All post offices closed: Post offices constitute as government offices and will this also be closed on the occasion of Buddha Purnima.
- All banks closed: The Reserve Bank of India (RBI), determines and creates a schedule listing all bank holidays for the calendar year in conjunction with declared state government holidays. Besides this, bank holidays are also based on national/state holidays, cultural or religious observances, operational needs, government announcements, and coordination with other banks. The central bank shares this schedule through official channels such as its website and notifications to banks and other financial institutions.
However, not all regional customs and religious festivals are celebrated across India and thus may be working days in some states. So, you must confirm all holidays and days off with your nearest branch to avoid any inconvenience.
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What's Open?
- Markets open today: The BSE and NSE are open for trading. Equities and derivates segment will be open for trading on May 23 for Buddha Purnima, as per the BSE website. The markets were last closed for voting on account of the 2024 Lok Sabha Elections in Mumbai on May 20.
