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.
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.
🇨🇳 China and 5 moreLion dance舞獅
A dynamic ritual dance featuring costumed lions, drums and martial acrobaticsPerformance
🇲🇳 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
🇨🇳 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
🇯🇵 Tokyo, JapanRakugo落語
Japanese solo comic storytelling told from a cushion using a fan and a clothPerformance
🇯🇵 JapanOmikujiおみくじ
Paper fortunes drawn at Japanese shrines and temples to consult divine guidanceSpiritual
🇨🇳 China and 5 moreDouble Ninth Festival重陽節
An autumn festival of mountain walks, chrysanthemum wine and ancestor remembranceSeasonal · Tea-time and snacking customs
🇨🇳 China and 5 moreJoss paper金紙 (jīnzhǐ)
Paper money burned for ancestors and gods, folded and offered in Chinese worshipSpiritual
🇯🇵 JapanKintsugi金継ぎ
Mending broken pottery with lacquer and gold, so the repair stays visibleCraft
🇨🇳 China and 5 moreAncestor veneration
Honouring dead relatives with offerings, meals and prayers, kept in cultures worldwideSpiritual
🇨🇳 China and 5 moreAncestor worship
Honouring dead relatives with offerings and prayers, kept in many cultures worldwideSpiritual
🇯🇵 Takasaki, JapanDaruma doll達磨 (daruma)
A round Japanese wishing doll: fill one eye to set a goal, the other to mark it done.Folklore
🇨🇳 Meizhou Island, China and 5 moreMazu媽祖
A sea goddess of the Chinese coast, asked for calm water and a safe returnSpiritual
🇨🇳 China and 5 moreMoon rabbit月兔
A hare seen in the Moon's dark patches, pounding rice cakes or the elixir of lifeFolklore
🇨🇳 ChinaChinese funeral rituals
Traditional rites of mourning, vigils, offerings, and ancestor veneration across ChinaRite of passage
🇨🇳 China and 1 moreTaiyin Xingjun太陰星君
The Chinese moon goddess, honoured at Mid-Autumn with incense, mooncakes and prayersSpiritual · Sweets given and shared
🇨🇳 China and 1 moreChinese patchwork
A needlework craft joining fabric scraps into protective clothing, quilts and folk artCraft
🇲🇳 Ölgii, MongoliaGaridгарьд
A top wrestling title in Mongolia, named for Genghis Khan's eagle and the mythical bird Garuda.Game
🇨🇳 China and 1 moreFive Grains五穀
A sacred grouping of staple crops honoured as the bedrock of East Asian civilizationFolklore
Photo credits on this page
The small pictures above come from Wikimedia Commons under free licences. Some are cropped to fit.
- Five Grains: Kurt Stüber [1], CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Garid: hu:Burumbátor, Public domain, source
- Ovoo: Bouette ., CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Chinese knotting: Ucla90024, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Rakugo: Yuya Tamai, CC BY 2.0, source
- Omikuji: C121749n, Public domain, source
- Lion dance: Alfresco24, CC BY 3.0, source
- Kintsugi: Daderot, CC0, source
- Ancestor veneration: Thang Nguyen, CC BY-SA 2.0, source
- Ancestor worship: Lyn Gateley, CC BY 2.0, source
- Daruma doll: Crisco 1492, Public domain, source
- Mazu: Prince Roy, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Double Ninth Festival: Sgerbic, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Moon rabbit: An artist, Public domain, source
- Taiyin Xingjun: Unknown author, Public domain, source
- Chinese patchwork: Unknown author, CC0, source
- Chinese funeral rituals: Salzmann, E.v., CC BY-SA 3.0 de, source
- Joss paper: Vmenkov, CC BY-SA 3.0, source