Explainer | Buddha’s birthday: what you need to know and how it is celebrated in Hong Kong
- Buddha’s birthday is celebrated on the eighth day of the fourth lunar month, which this year lands on May 15 – a public holiday in Hong Kong
- Events to celebrate the festival will take place across the city, including Buddha bathing rituals, lantern lighting, and the Cheung Chau Bun Festival
In Hong Kong, Buddha’s birthday is celebrated on the eighth day of the fourth lunar month, which this year lands on May 15.
Hong Kong declared it a public holiday in 1998; Buddhism is a major religion in the city, with more than 1 million followers among the population of roughly 7.5 million.
To mark the occasion, thousands of worshippers visit Buddhist temples and monasteries throughout Hong Kong, with some eating only vegetarian meals as a way to “cleanse” their digestive systems.
Lanterns are lit to symbolise the Buddha’s enlightenment, while altars are decorated with incense and offerings.
Who was the Buddha?
Buddha’s birthday, marked on different days around the region, is a celebration of Siddhartha Gautama, who was born in a kingdom just below the Himalayan foothills sometime during the sixth or fifth century BC.
