Full Moon Day of Waso 2023: Date, History, Facts about Buddhist

Full Moon Day of Waso is observed on the fourth month of the Burmese calendar, on the full moon day of Waso. Typically, it occurs in July or August according to the Gregorian calendar. It will be observed on August 1 this year. Similar to other holidays observed in other nations, it commemorates the first sermon delivered by Lord Buddha in the Deer Park of Sarnath, India over 2,500 years ago. This day also marks the beginning of Buddhist Lent, which lasts three months. During this time, Buddhists will refrain from eating flesh, drinking alcohol, and smoking. They convene at pagodas to offer flowers and provide monks with new robes.

The background of Full Moon Day of Waso

Siddhartha Gautama was a member of the aristocratic Shakya dynasty during the reign of Magadha ruler Bimbisara. He was born in Lumbini, India. When the sheltered young man ventured outside the walls of his palace, he witnessed the reality of suffering beyond aristocratic opulence. As a result, he renounced his position in society and became an ascetic. He is believed to have attained enlightenment after many years of meditation and mendicancy, gaining knowledge and understanding of the cycle of life and death and how to live a ‘good existence’ of moderation. He embarked on a journey across the Gangetic plain to disseminate his message of the Middle Way.

Gautama delivered his first sermon more than 2,500 years ago in the Deer Park of Sarnath, India. In this discourse titled “Setting the Wheel of Dhamma in Motion,” Gautama outlined the Four Noble Truths and the Noble Eightfold Path. According to the sermon, there are four universal Noble Truths: the existence of suffering, the cause of suffering, the possibility of ending the cause of suffering, and the path to ending suffering. He asserted that human suffering can be ended by adhering to the Middle Path, also known as the Noble Eightfold Path, which consists of right view, right thought, right speech, right action, right livelihood, right endeavour, right mindfulness, and right concentration. Following this path would enable one to escape suffering and achieve nirvana.

After his demise, Gautama became known as the Buddha, which means “The One Who Has Awakened.”

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