Ulaanbaatar
Buddha Day - public holiday falls on May 26 this year
Society
Ulaanbaatar /MONTSAME/. On June 5, 2020, Mongolia celebrated the Buddha Day (Buddha Purnima) as an official public holiday for the first time. In 2021, the Buddha Day is to be celebrated on May 26, Wednesday. This day, which falls on the 15th day of the first month of summer every year, according to the Buddhist calendar, is dedicated to mark three momentous events in Buddha's life – his birth, enlightenment, and his departure from the human world.
The State Great Khural, parliament of Mongolia, made an amendment to the Law on Public Holidays in December 2019, making the Buddha Day a nationwide public holiday, and some parliament members pointed out that the Buddha Day should be celebrated as a day to encourage compassion, empathy and kindness and promote love for mother nature, parents and family.
On this day of last year, chanting and praying sessions, Buddhist rituals and ceremonies, awarding events and exhibition and competitions are held mostly at Buddhist monasteries and institutions.
