In Buddhism there are many common festivals that are celebrated throughout the year. These festivals vary depending on which Buddhist country one is looking at. For example, many of the common festivals in China may differ from those in India or Sri Lanka. Still, there are many festivals and ceremonies that are universal to all countries in which Buddhism is present.

In China, many festivals were dedicated to important people from Chinese Buddhist history (Eliade 347). At these festivals, there were often vegetarian feasts. At the same time that Buddhis

The coming of Buddhism to Tibet is celebrated as the Buddhist defeat of the indigenous Tibetan demons (Eliade 347). In Tibet, there were great festivals sponsored by the local monasteries (Eliade 347). As in China, Tibetan ceremonies often honor Tibetan Buddhist heroes but they also honor Buddhist deities (Eliade 347). Again, Buddhism combined with local religion when many rituals combined Buddhist and Shamanistic elements (Eliade 347). Here, Buddhism became associated with the life cycle rites as well, those being rites of passage like male initiation into adulthood and death.

Many Buddhists follow the concept of three-fold service (Eliade 371). Three-fold service involves first, the confession of sins, then rejoicing at others gaining merit, and finally, a request that all Buddhas remain in the world to help suffering sentient beings (Eliade 371). This ritual must be performed three times in the day and three times at night (Eliade 371). In three-fold service, confession and the dedication of merit play a central role (Eliade 371). Merit is a very important concept in Buddhism. Merit is what is required to continue on the path to enlightenment. Only by gaining merit can you move forward in your journey.

An extremely important part of Buddhism is meditation. Meditation is the thing most commonly associated with Buddhism in the modern world. In Buddhism, there is an emphasis on the importance of discipline and an emphasis on meditation (Eliade 371). The biggest sect of Buddhism today is the Mahayana and they see Buddhism as “The first feelings of compassion for other sentient beings, formulating the vow, including the expression of a strong desire to save all sentient beings and share one’s merit with them followed by the cultivation of the analysis of all existence, reaching a pinnacle in the experience of emptiness but culminating in the dedication of these efforts to the salvation of others (Eliade 371).”

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