Buddhist traditions
Buddhist traditions are found across Asia and increasingly worldwide, in the forms of Theravada in Sri Lanka and Southeast Asia, Mahayana in East Asia and Vajrayana in Tibet and Mongolia.
Buddhist traditions are found across Asia and increasingly worldwide, in the forms of Theravada in Sri Lanka and Southeast Asia, Mahayana in East Asia and Vajrayana in Tibet and Mongolia. They include the festival of Vesak, the Poya days, almsgiving to monks, the Kathina robe offering, the pilgrimage to Lumbini and Bodh Gaya, temple festivals and the rites of the Tibetan year. At their heart are meditation, compassion and the Buddha's teaching, and many customs are acts of generosity. These pages describe them with respect.
Monks, merit and giving
Laypeople support monks and nuns with food, robes and shelter, and in return receive teaching and blessings. Giving, dana, earns merit, and many festivals centre on it: the morning alms round in Laos and Thailand, the Kathina ceremony at the end of the rains retreat, the free meals of Vesak in Sri Lanka. Temples are also community centres, schools and places for funerals.
Festivals and the year
Vesak marks the birth, enlightenment and death of the Buddha with lanterns and lights. In Thailand, Songkran and Loi Krathong, in Japan Obon, in Tibet Losar and Saga Dawa, and in Korea the Lotus Lantern Festival are among the major events. Each blends Buddhist meaning with local custom, and many include the remembrance of ancestors and a cleansing of the old year.
About this page
Written by the EveryParampara desk with AI assistance. Background on Buddhist (faith). Customs differ from place to place and family to family. If this is your tradition and we have it wrong, tell us.
RegionSouth AsiaSoutheast AsiaEast AsiaCentral Asia and the CaucasusMiddle EastNorth AfricaSub-Saharan AfricaEuropeNorth AmericaLatin America and the CaribbeanOceania
🇺🇸 United States and 5 moreMother's Day
A worldwide annual celebration dedicated to mothers, maternal bonds and family careHome
🇮🇳 Ayodhya, India and 7 moreDiwaliदीपावली (Dīpāvalī)
A five-day festival of lights celebrated across India and its diaspora to mark the victory of light over darkness.Festival · Feasts and festival meals
🇯🇵 Tokyo, Japan and 1 moreBonsai盆栽
A Japanese craft of keeping small trees in shallow pots, shaped for contemplationCraft
🇮🇳 India and 1 moreKailash Mansarovar Yatraकैलाश मानसरोवर यात्रा (Hindi); ཀཱའི་ལ་ཤ་མན་ས་རོ་ཝར་ཡ་ཏྲ། (Tibetan)
A high-altitude pilgrimage to Mount Kailash and Lake Manasarovar in TibetSpiritual
🇨🇳 China and 2 moreChinese knotting中國結 (Zhōngguó jié)
A folk craft of cord tied into lucky shapes, made in China and given as charmsCraft
🇱🇦 Laos and 1 moreBaciບາສີ (Lao)
A Lao rite that calls the soul home and ties a thread on the wrist for good luckSpiritual
🇱🇰 Kandy, Sri LankaKandyan danceඋඩරට නැටුම්
The sacred dance of Sri Lanka's hill country, kept in temple and on the stagePerformance
🇲🇲 Yangon, MyanmarThadingyutသီတင်းကျွတ်
A Burmese celebration and calendar month marking the completion of Buddhist Lent.Seasonal
🇲🇲 Mandalay, Myanmar and 2 moreSand pagodaသဲပုံစေတီ (Burmese), พระเจดีย์ทราย (Thai)
Temporary sand or mud structures built by Theravada Buddhists to cultivate merit and honor the Buddha.Spiritual
🇯🇵 Kyoto, JapanIkebana生け花
The Japanese art of arranging cut branches and flowers in a vesselPerformance
🇮🇳 India and 5 morePretaप्रेत
Offerings and rites for spirits enduring deep hunger across Asian traditions.Spiritual
🇨🇳 China and 3 moreButter lampདཀར་མེ (Tibetan)
A lit candle made from clarified yak butter, kept in Tibetan Buddhist temples to aid meditation and symbolize enlightenmSpiritual
🇯🇵 JapanPindapata𑀧𑀺𑀡𑁆𑀟𑀘𑀸𑀭
A Buddhist almsround where monks walk through towns to receive food and necessities from laypeople.Spiritual
🇯🇵 JapanOmikujiおみくじ
Paper fortunes drawn at Japanese shrines and temples to consult divine guidanceSpiritual
🇮🇳 India and 4 moreWater lantern
Small lamps floated on water to honour the dead and ask for good fortuneFestival
🇰🇷 South KoreaJesa제사 (Jesa)
A Korean ancestral memorial ceremony held on death anniversaries and major holidays.Spiritual · Feasts and festival meals
🇯🇵 JapanOmamori御守 (omamori)
Japanese protective amulets sold at shrines and temples for luck and safety.Spiritual
🇨🇳 China and 5 moreLion dance舞獅
A dynamic ritual dance featuring costumed lions, drums and martial acrobaticsPerformance
🇯🇵 JapanEma絵馬
Small wooden plaques left at Japanese shrines and temples for prayers and wishes.Spiritual
🇲🇲 Bagan, MyanmarNat worshipနတ်
Veneration of guardian spirits and nature deities alongside Buddhism in MyanmarSpiritual
🇲🇦 Marrakesh, Morocco and 5 moreGnawa musicڭْناوة or كْناوة
A spiritual musical tradition of Morocco that blends West African rhythms with Islamic ritual to heal and connect communPerformance
🇹🇭 Bangkok, ThailandCoronation of the Thai monarchพระราชพิธีบรมราชาภิเษก
A consecration ceremony blending Hindu and Buddhist rites to formally install the King of Thailand.Ceremony
🇰🇷 South Korea and 2 moreNajeonchilgi나전칠기
A Korean craft of inlaying mother-of-pearl onto lacquered wood to create decorative objects.Craft
🇰🇷 South KoreaHanji한지
The Korean craft of making durable paper from mulberry fiber and root mucilage.Craft
🇷🇺 Russia and 4 moreHousewarming party
A gathering held soon after moving into a new home to celebrate the space and welcome guests.Home
🇹🇭 Phon Phisai, Thailand and 1 moreNaga fireballsบั้งไฟพญานาค (bang fai phaya nak)
A festival of glowing orbs rising from the Mekong River, attributed to a mythical serpent.Festival
🇳🇵 Nepal and 1 moreTibetan prayer flagLung ta / Darchog
Colorful cloth banners printed with mantras, hung in high places to spread blessings on the wind.Spiritual
🇳🇵 Kathmandu, NepalKumariकुमारी
A living goddess tradition in Nepal where a young girl embodies the divine feminine.Spiritual
🇳🇵 Nepal and 1 moreMani stone
Inscribed stones placed along trails in Tibetan Buddhist regions as devotional offerings.Spiritual
🇯🇵 Tokyo, JapanRakugo落語
Japanese solo comic storytelling told from a cushion using a fan and a clothPerformance
🇰🇷 Seoul, South KoreaTemplestay템플스테이
A program that invites visitors to live in South Korean Buddhist temples and join the daily routines of monastic life.Spiritual · Dinner
🇯🇵 Japan and 2 moreKyūdō弓道
The Japanese martial art of archery, practiced with an asymmetrical longbowGame
🇹🇭 ThailandThai solar calendarปฏิทินสุริยคติไทย
The official solar calendar of Thailand, numbered in the Buddhist EraSeasonal
🇨🇳 China and 1 morePrayer wheelའཁོར་ལོ།
A cylindrical wheel spun in Tibetan Buddhist practice to accumulate merit and wisdomSpiritual
🇯🇵 Kyoto, JapanTorii鳥居
A traditional Japanese gate marking the entrance to a Shinto shrine and separating the sacred from the mundane.Spiritual
🇲🇳 Mongolia and 3 moreOvooовоо (Cyrillic Mongolian); ᠣᠪᠤᠭᠠ (Traditional Mongol)
A stone cairn on a peak or pass, circled by travellers and honoured in sky worshipSpiritual
🇧🇹 Thimphu, BhutanArchery in Bhutanམདའ (da)
Bhutan's national sport, played with bamboo bows at targets 145 metres awayGame
🇱🇰 Colombo, Sri Lanka and 5 moreVesakVisakha Bucha (Thailand), Visakha Bouxa (Laos), Full Moon Day of Kason (Myanmar)
A day to honor the birth, awakening, and passing of the Buddha, kept by Buddhists across Asia.Festival
🇮🇳 IndiaNamasteनमस्ते
A respectful greeting made with joined palms, spoken in South Asia and beyondEtiquette
🇷🇺 Russia and 2 moreMaslenitsaМасленица
A seven-day Eastern Slavic festival of pancakes and bonfires marking the end of winter before Lent.Festival · Breakfast
🇨🇳 China and 5 moreQingming Festival清明节
A spring custom of sweeping family graves and honouring ancestors across East Asia.Spiritual
🇮🇳 India and 6 moreBuddha's Birthday佛诞 (Fódàn)
A festival marking the birth of Siddhartha Gautama, observed across Asia with temple rituals and community gatherings.Festival
🇺🇸 United States and 5 moreRite of passage
A ceremony that marks leaving one group and entering another, with a new statusRite of passage
🇮🇳 Prayagraj, India and 6 moreMakar Sankrantiमकरसङ्क्रान्ति (Makarasaṅkrānti)
A mid-winter harvest festival marking the sun's northward journey, celebrated across South and Southeast Asia with fairsFestival · Feasts and festival meals
🇹🇭 Chiang Mai, Thailand and 5 moreLoy Krathongลอยกระทง
A Thai festival of floating leaf baskets on rivers to honor water and release negativity.Festival
🇧🇹 Bhutan and 4 moreLosarལོ་གསར་
The Tibetan Buddhist New Year festival of renewal, offerings, and family feastsSeasonal · Feasts and festival meals
🇨🇳 China and 5 moreGhost Festival中元節 / 中元节 (Zhōngyuán jié)
A full-moon night in the seventh lunar month for feeding ghosts and guiding souls homeSpiritual
🇮🇪 Ireland and 2 moreWake
A gathering before a funeral, where family and friends keep watch over the deadRite of passage
Photo credits on this page
The small pictures above come from Wikimedia Commons under free licences. Some are cropped to fit.
- Diwali: Kalli navya, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Water lantern: 松岡明芳, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Makar Sankranti: Saloni Desai, CC BY-SA 2.0, source
- Losar: Unknown author, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Vesak: ผู้สร้างสรรค์ผลงาน/ส่งข้อมูลเก็บในคลังข้อมูลเสรีวิกิมีเดียคอมมอนส์ - เ, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Loy Krathong: John Shedrick, CC BY 2.0, source
- Mother's Day: Dave Parker, CC BY 2.0, source
- Ghost Festival: Chong Fat, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Qingming Festival: Jacklee ., CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Archery in Bhutan: muddum27, CC BY 2.0, source
- Ikebana: Joe Mabel, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Maslenitsa: Лобачев Владимир, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Ovoo: Bouette ., CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Bonsai: Ragesoss, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Kailash Mansarovar Yatra: micknik, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Chinese knotting: Ucla90024, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Kandyan dance: PIERRE ANDRE LECLERCQ, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Chuseok: by Joseph Steinberg (Baltimoron in Korea) at Flickr, CC BY-SA 2.0, source
- Baci: Dalbera, CC BY 2.0, source
- Namaste: Ms Sarah Welch, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Rite of passage: Rogier van der Weyden, Public domain, source
- Wake: Julio Romero de Torres, Public domain, source
- Preta: Temple, Richard Carnac, Sir, Public domain, source
- Rakugo: Yuya Tamai, CC BY 2.0, source
- Hanji: Arghun, Public domain, source
- Nat worship: Emily Khine, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Torii: JordyMeow, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Omikuji: C121749n, Public domain, source
- Kyūdō: Unknown author, Public domain, source
- Prayer wheel: David Abián, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Thadingyut: Aungzawtoo, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Lion dance: Alfresco24, CC BY 3.0, source
- Templestay: (c)한국불교문화사업단, culturalcorpsofkoreanbuddhism, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Gnawa music: Lucyin, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Kumari: Nirmal Dulal, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Naga fireballs: J A Forbes, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Housewarming party: State Library of Queensland, Australia, No restrictions, source
- Tibetan prayer flag: Wotan, CC BY 2.5, source
- Coronation of the Thai monarch: Tris_T7, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Pindapata: Suhendro winarso, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Ema: No machine-readable author provided. Fg2 assumed (based on copyright c, Public domain, source
- Sand pagoda: Chainwit., CC BY 4.0, source
- Butter lamp: Chris Fynn, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Mani stone: John Hill, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Najeonchilgi: Unknown author, CC0, source
- Omamori: Leongboy1, Public domain, source
- Buddha's Birthday: User: (WT-shared) Manoj nav at wts wikivoyage, Public domain, source