Festivals & Significant Dates

Every year, the Advent period is marked by colourful special calendars and evergreen (fir, holly and/or ivy) wreaths adorned with four or five candles. Churches hold special services, often known as Christingle services, and members of the clergy will usually wear royal blue or purple...

Marking the beginning of the astronomical summer and the middle of the 'ancient' summer, Midsummer's Day, the Summer Solstice, or Litha (also known as Midsummer, Gathering Day, Alban Heffyn or Feill-Sheathain) will, here in the northern hemisphere, occur on the 20th of this month (June...

Buddhists around the world will be celebrating the birth of Buddha either this month or in May. The traditional date this important event is celebrated on is April the 8th, although the precise date may vary according to region (April 8 or May 8 in Japan; second Sunday in May in Taiwan; 8th day of the 4th lunar on the East Asian mainland, and the official date set for this year is the16th of May). While most people are aware of how Prince Siddhartha Gautama became the ‘holy man’ he is today known and revered as, few (especially non-Buddhists) are aware of the fact that his life’s path was accurately predicted by astrology shortly after his birth in 563 BC.

 Buddha’s Birthday and Astrology

The Prediction According to legend, an astrologer by the name of Asita visited King ?uddhodana, Prince Siddhartha Gautama’s father, and predicted that the young prince would either turn out to be a great king or, if allowed to see what life outside palace walls was really like, renounce wealth and the material world in general and become a holy man. The Fulfilment of the Prediction Determined that his son would one day be king, ?uddhodana subsequently prevented the prince from venturing out of palace grounds. In spite of his father’s efforts, Gautama managed to leave the palace several times at the age of 29.

‘Tis the season to be merry, as they say; but in between the merry-making and gift-giving, the festive season carries many superstitions and ancient beliefs. Some are relatively well-known, while others are almost forgotten; some you may have never even heard of before! Festive Luck Traditions As...