On April 8th, the prince urinated? What are the traditional customs on April 8th?

On April 8th, the prince urinated? What are the traditional customs on April 8th?
Introduction: "The eighth day of the fourth lunar month is the day when the prince urinates" is a weather proverb. The eighth day of the fourth lunar month is the day when the Buddha was born. April 8th is a special day because there are many festivals on this day and the festival culture is rich and colorful. Let’s take a look at the specific content below! April is also known as Mengxia, Yinyue and Meiyue, so the fourth month in the lunar calendar should belong to the early summer season, allowing you to experience every day of April wonderfully and spend it with beautiful happiness.

Prince Urine on April 8th

"The prince urinates on the eighth day of the fourth lunar month" is a weather proverb. The eighth day of the fourth lunar month is the day when the Buddha was born. The Buddha is Sakyamuni, who was originally the prince of Kapilavastu in northern ancient India (in present-day Nepal). The eighth day of the fourth month of the lunar calendar was the ancient Buddha Bathing Festival, also known as the Buddha Washing Festival, Buddha's Birthday and Longhua Festival. There are many customs in old Beijing on Buddha's Bathing Day. Buddhist temples hold memorial ceremonies, bathe the Buddha, and hold fasting parties. People also have the custom of releasing animals and eating beans to establish a bond on this day. Before and after the Buddha's Bathing Festival, there are also folk activities such as worshipping Guanyin to pray for children and worshipping Medicine King.

Introduction to April 8th

The eighth day of the fourth lunar month is also known as the Buddha's Bathing Festival, Buddha's Birthday and Longhua Festival. It is a religious festival that emerged after Buddhism was introduced to China, but it also has the characteristics of traditional Chinese culture. Bathing the Buddha, fasting, making connections, releasing animals and praying for children were all popular in the past.

What are the traditional customs on April 8th?

Bathing Buddha
According to legend, the eighth day of the fourth lunar month is the birthday of Sakyamuni. On this day, monks and nuns burn incense, flowers, and candles, place a bronze Buddha in water, and bathe the Buddha. Ordinary people compete to donate money, release animals, pray for children, and pray for Buddha's blessing. Various temple fairs take place. On the eighth day of the fourth lunar month, Buddhist temples across the country hold incense-burning ceremonies to celebrate Buddha's birthday. In the northern region, it is said that the 18th day of the fourth lunar month is the birthday of the Goddess of Mount Tai, Bixia Yuanjun, and the Miaofeng Mountain Temple Fair is held there. In the southern region, Longhua, Jiuhua, Gusu and other places also have grand temple fairs. There are also activities of pagoda stacking during the temple fair. It can be seen that China's temple fairs are diverse. There are Buddhist temple fairs, Taoist temple fairs, and temple fairs that combine Buddhism, Taoism and Confucianism. The Miaofengshan Temple Fair in Beijing has both Taoist content and many Buddhist elements, but its flower fair is common in all temple fairs.
Fasting meeting
A vegetarian meeting, also known as a vegetarian gathering or a charity meeting, is convened by monks and invites devout men and women to attend the meeting on the eighth day of the fourth lunar month to recite Buddhist scriptures and eat vegetarian food. Since participants need to eat, they must pay "meal money". The meals include noodles, vegetables, wine, etc.
During the Buddha Bathing Festival, people ask for water for bathing the Buddha.
One of the festival foods is "Bu Luo Jia", which is the Mongolian word for rice dumplings. There is also a kind of black rice, which is made by soaking rice in black vegetable water and then steaming it to make black rice. This kind of food was originally an offering to Buddha, and later evolved into food for Buddha Bathing Festival. At that time, there was also a custom of releasing boats to distribute porridge.
Establish a bond
There is also a kind of affinity activity during the Buddha Bathing Festival. It is a form of alms, praying for a bond in the next life. Ordinary people give beans to establish connections, and temples and palaces are no exception. In the palace, green beans would be cooked and distributed to palace maids, eunuchs and ministers, which was called "eating edge beans".
Release
Buddhism advocates not killing, and the custom of releasing animals is popular during the Buddha Bathing Festival. The tradition of releasing animals into the wild has a long history, with records of it dating back to the Song Dynasty. In ancient times, there was the legend of Chengmei releasing animals into the wild, and among the people, there was the legend of releasing hawksbill turtles into the wild.
Summary: The content introduced in the above article is a specific analysis of such a special day as April 8th. I hope this article can provide you with a reference and help!

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