Without a doubt the full Moon is the most dramatic sights in the night sky.
For millennia the full Moon fascinates us as many lovers well know
and draw inspiration to artists and poets and humans have used the
movement of the moon to kept track of the changing seasons and set
schedules for harvesting and planting.
Ancient cultures over the world have given distinctive names to the
recurring full Moons, so different full moon names can be found among
the Native American, Celtic, Old English, Buddhist and Chinese to name a
few, based on the behavior of the weather, plants and animals during
that month and their names were applied to the entire month in which
each occurred.
So the next full Moon on June 4 having many names around the world.
Strawberry Moon was the name gived by the Native American Algonquian
tribes because the relatively short season for harvesting strawberries
comes each year during this month and now this is the most popular name
of June full Moon in North America and used also by people of the United
Kindgom countries although the most popular name in English is Flower
Moon.
Other names are Rose Moon, Honey Moon, Planting Moon and Hot Moon, reflecting a specific feature of the nature in June.
Full Moon days are sacred according to Buddhist tradition and called
Uposatha (Buddhist Sabbath) in Pali, which is a lingua franca in the
Buddhist community.
The Vesak Moon date varies according to the various calendars used in
different Buddhist tradition. So many Buddhists who not already have
celebrated the Vesak in the May, will celebrate in the June full Moon.
The Vesak (or Vesākha, in Pali language from Sanskrit but also Buddha
Purnima, Vaishaka) is a holy day for all Buddhists communities.
Also informally called the Buddha’s Birthday the Vesak day celebrate the birth, enlightenment and dead of the Buddha.
Some Buddhist countries have the traditional Vesak relate holy day in
other months of the year, although most of the Vesak Moon falls in the
5th or 6th lunar month. So the holy day was celebrated on May 5 and 6,
in countries such Nepal, India, Sri Lanka, Laos, Cambodia, Myanmar,
Malaysia and Indonesia and it will be celebrate on June 4 in countries
such Thailand where the people know the same day as “Visakha Bucha Day”
(“Visakha Puja Day”) and it means the worship of the Buddha on the full
Moon day of the sixth lunar month.
The celebration in Thailand provides abstinence from alcoholic drinks
and all kinds of immoral acts (Rub Sil), practice of renunciation and
mental discipline observing the Eight Precepts wearing white clothes,
going to temples from Buddhists rituals (Tum Boon) and offering food to
the monks (Tuk Bard), and attending the Candle Light Procession (Vien
Tien) in the evening of the Vesak Day.
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