page_title: Buddha's Birthday
section_title: Japan
hierarchical_section_title: Buddha's Birthday / Celebrations in each country / Asia / Japan
caption_attribution_description: English: Hana-matsuri (Flower Festival) on the birthday of the Buddha at Kanpuku-ji in Katori City, Japan. Visitors to the temple can pour water over the figurine of baby Buddha with a ladle to re-enact the bathing of the newborn. Français&#160;: Lors d'Hana-matsuri (festival des fleurs) dans l'anniversaire du Bouddha dans le temple de Kanpuku à Katori au Japon. Les visiteurs au temple peuvent verser à la louche de l'eau sur la statuette de l'enfant Bouddha, en faisant semblant de lui donner un bain. 日本語: 千葉県香取市の観福寺で花まつりを祝う参拝客 中文: 佛誕花祭在日本千葉県香取市觀福寺。遊客可用個小勺在幼佛的雕像上倒水以代表浴佛。
context_page_description: Buddha's Birthday is a Buddhist festival that is celebrated in most of East Asia commemorating the birth of the Prince Siddhartha Gautama, later the Gautama Buddha, who was the founder of Buddhism. According to Buddhist tradition and modern academic consensus, Gautama Buddha was born c. 563–483 BCE in Lumbini and raised in the Shakya capital of Kapilavastu.
  The exact date of Buddha's birthday is based on the Asian lunisolar calendars. The date for the celebration of Buddha's birthday varies from year to year in the Western Gregorian calendar, but usually falls in April or May. In leap years it may be celebrated in June.
  In South and Southeast Asia, the Buddha's birth is celebrated as part of Vesak, a festival that also celebrates the Buddha's enlightenment and death. In East Asia, the awakening and death of the Buddha are observed as separate holidays.
context_section_description: In Japan, Buddha's Birthday is known as  Kanbutsu-e (Japanese: 灌仏会) or Hanamatsuri (Flower Festival) (Japanese: 花祭り) and is held on April 8. Buddha's birth is also celebrated according to the Buddhist calendar but is not a national holiday. On this day, all temples hold 降誕会 (Gōtan-e), 仏生会 (Busshō-e), 浴仏会 (Yokubutsu-e), 龍華会 (Ryūge-e) and 花会式 (Hana-eshiki). Japanese people pour ama-cha (a beverage prepared from hydrangea serrata, a variety of hydrangea) on small Buddha statues decorated with flowers, as if bathing a newborn baby. The tradition of bathing the Buddha originated in China and was introduced to Japan where it was first held in Nara in 606. Lion dancing is also a major tradition practiced during Buddha's Birthday and has become associated with the festival in Japan.
caption: Hanamatsuri in Japan
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