Full listings of the 2015 Religious Holiday festivals,helping you plan for the new year.
Hindu |
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|---|---|
| 14 Jan | Makar Sankranti This winter festival celebrates the Sun-God’s entry into the Northern Hemisphere. |
| 17 Feb |
Maha Shivarati Devotion and thanks are shown to Lord Shiva, who danced his cosmic dance this night. Many Hindus fast. |
| 6-7 Mar |
Holi Holi is a festival that welcomes the spring, which also celebrates Krishna, and the legend of Holika and Prahalad. Bonfires are lit to celebrate. |
| 21 Mar |
Varsha-Pratipada The Hindu Spring New Year – a good day to start new ventures. It symbolises renewal. |
| 28 Mar | Rama Navami The birthday of Rama, an incarnation of Vishnu and the hero of the Ramayana. |
| 29 Aug | Raksha Bandan “Raksha Bandan” means “a thread for protection”. Sisters tie a thread bracelet around their brothers’ wrists, and receive gifts in return. |
| 5 Sep | Janamashtami/Krishna Jayanti The birthday of Krishna. Many Hindus forego sleep for the 48 hours, and some fast. |
| 13-21 Oct | Navaratri/Durga Puja/Dusserah Navaratri (nine nights) is a festival in which God is adored as Mother. |
| 11 Nov |
Diwali (Deepvali) Diwali, the festival of light, extends over five days and celebrates the triumph of light over darkness, good over evil, and knowledge over ignorance.
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Muslim |
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| 15 May |
Lailat-Al-Miraj The night journey and ascent of the Prophet Muhammad, celebrated by the telling of the story of how he was visited by two archangels. |
| 1 Jun | Lailat-Al-Bara’ah “The Night of Freedom from Fire”, in which Muslims are graced with divine mercy and blessings. |
| 18 Jun – 17 Jul |
Ramadan A month of dusk to dawn fasting, in which the gates of heaven are open and the gates of hell are closed. |
| 13 Jul |
Lailat-Ul-Qadr The Night of Power, when the Qur’an was first revealed to the Prophet Muhammad. Muslims spend this time in study and prayer. |
| 17 Jul |
Eid-Ul-Fitr Muslims celebrate the end of fasting for Ramadan, with processions through the street and a celebratory daytime meal – their first for a month. |
| 23-24 Sep |
Eid-Ul-Adha A major festival marking the end of Hajj, it remembers the Prophet Ibrahim’s willingness to sacrifice his son to Allah. Most Muslims will abstain from work. |
| 14 Oct |
Al-Hijra/Islamic New Year The new year, which marks the Prophet Muhammad’s migration from Mecca to Medina where he set up the first Muslim state. |
| 23 Oct | Ashura A day of fasting marking the day Noah left the ark and Moses was saved by the Egyptians. For some, it is also a day of mourning.
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Sikh |
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| 5 Jan | Birthday of Guru Gobindh Singh The tenth and last Guru, who created the order of Khalsa and instituted the Five ‘Ks’. |
| 14 Apr | Baisakhi The Sikh New Year festival, which also commemorates Sikhism being born as a collective faith in 1699. |
| 16 Jun | Martyrdom of Guru Arjan Dev Guru Ajan compiled the Sikh scriptures for the first time, and on this day was executed. |
| 11 Nov |
Diwali A Sikh festival as well as Hindu. Sikhs celebrate the release from prison of Guru Hargobind Singh during this time. |
| 24 Nov | Martyrdom of Guru Tegh Bahadu A champion of religious freedom, executed for refusing to convert to Islam.
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Christian |
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| 6 Jan | Epiphany Epiphany remembers the wise men visiting Jesus. |
| 1 Mar | St. David’s Day Celebration of the patron saint of Wales. |
| 18 Feb – 2 Apr |
Lent The season of preparation before Easter, in which Christians often surrender a particular vice – such as chocolate or smoking. The sacrifice represents Jesus’ deprivation in the wilderness. |
| 17 Mar | St. Patrick’s Day Celebration of the patron saint of Ireland. |
| 29 Mar |
Palm Sunday The last Sunday of Lent marks Jesus’ entry into Jerusalem, where the people waved Palm branches at him. |
| 3 Apr | Good Friday A day to commemorate the execution of Jesus on the cross. |
| 5 Apr |
Easter Sunday Celebration of the Resurrection of Jesus Christ. The most important Christian festival and the one celebrated with most joy. |
| 23 Apr | St. George’s Day Celebration of the patron saint of England. |
| 24 May |
Pentecost The festival where Christians celebrate the gift of the Holy Spirit, 50 days after Easter. Regarded as the birthday of the Christian church. |
| 1 Nov | All Saints Day A day to honour all saints and martyrs of the church. |
| 30 Nov | St. Andrew’s Day Celebration of the patron saint of Scotland. |
| 25 Dec | Christmas Day The day celebrating the birth of Jesus.
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Rastafarian |
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| 7 Jan | Ethiopian Christmas A celebration of Jesus, marked by a large feast. |
| 23 Jul | Birthday of Emperor Selassie A celebration of the birth of Emperor Haile Selassie I, who Rastafarians recognise as Messiah and God, with music, song and prayer. |
| 11 Sep | Ethiopian New Year Celebrated as Rastafarians believe Ethiopia to be their spiritual homeland. Its history is remembered through biblical passages. |
| 2 Nov | Anniversary of the crowning of Selassie The high priest reads biblical passages and initiates singing to remember Emperor Selassie.
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Pagan |
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| 2 Feb | Imbolc Celebrates the land’s awakening and the growing power of the sun. |
| 20 Mar | Spring Equinox Celebrates the renewed life of the Earth. |
| 1 May | Beltane A fire festival, celebrates the coming of summer with maypole dances. |
| 21 Jun | Summer Solstice (longest day) A time to celebrate growth and life but recognise the oncoming decline of the sun. |
| 1 Aug | Lughnasadh-Lammas The beginning of the harvest season. |
| 23 Sep | Autumnal Equinox A time to reflect on the past season. |
| 31 Oct | Samhain/Halloween The Feast of the Dead. A time to remember and honour the dead. |
| 21 Dec | Winter Solstice Yule, when the sun child is reborn.
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Buddhist |
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| 8 Feb | Parinirvana The Buddha’s death, celebrated because he attained total Enlightenment, or Nirvana. |
| 4 May | Vaishaka Puja/Wesak A celebration of the Buddha’s birthday, celebrated with much colour. In some countries there are special Wesak lanterns made, and caged birds are released. |
| 12 Jul | Asalha/ Dharma Day The beginning of the Buddha’s teaching, celebrated with readings of scriptures. |
| 8 Dec | Bodhi Day A day when some Buddhists celebrate Gautama reaching enlightenment under the Bodhi tree.
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International Days |
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| 19 Feb | Vietnamese/Chinese New Year The start of the year on the Chinese calendar, also know as Tết in Vietnam. |
| 26 Mar | Bangladesh Independence Day Commemorates the declaration of independence in 1971. |
| 14 Jul | Bastille Day The French national holiday, celebrating the uprising of the modern French nation, particularly the storming of the Bastille. |
| 14 Aug | Pakistan Independence Day Commemorates the creation of Pakistan when India was partitioned, |
| 15 Aug | Indian Independence Day Commemorates the independence of India, as it left the British Empire.
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Secular |
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| 14 Feb | Valentine’s Day Based on legends of Saint Valentine, who performed secret marriages while they were banned by Emperor Claudius II. Another legend tells of an imprisoned Valentine signing secret letters to the jailer’s daughter as “your Valentine”. |
| 15 Mar | Mothering Sunday A traditional time for children to celebrate and thank their mothers, giving them cards, gifts and flowers. |
| 21 Jun | Father’s Day A more recent parallel to Mother’s day for fathers, established in the early 20th Century by a daughter who wanted to express her appreciation for her single father.
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Jewish |
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| 4 Mar | Purim Commemorates the time when Persian Jews were saved from extermination by a woman called Esther. |
| 3-11 Apr | Passover (Pesach) A festival celebrating the Israelites’ exodus from Egypt, led by Moses, and a general celebration of freedom. |
| 24-25 May |
Shavuot Marks the time when the Jews received the Torah. Prayers are said, especially at dawn, to thank God for the five books of Moses. |
| 25 July |
Tisha B’Av A fast day commemorating several calamities that have occurred on this same day in the Jewish calendar. Known as “the saddest day in Jewish history”. |
| 14-15 Sep | Rosh Hashana Jewish New Year, commemorating the creation of the world. |
| 22 Sep |
Yom Kippur The Day of Atonement, when God decides how the next year will be for each person. Those who have repented for their sins will be granted a happy New Year. |
| 27 Sep – 4 Oct |
Sukkot Sukkot celebrates the Jews’ years in the desert on the way to the Promised Land, and is celebrated by building huts. |
| 5 Oct |
Shemini Atzeret Shemini Atzeret is the final day of festivities at the end of Sukkot. |
| 6 Oct |
Simchat Torah Meaning “Rejoicing in the Torah”, this day marks the end of the yearly cycle of weekly Torah readings. |
| 7-14 Dec | Hanukah The Jewish Festival of Lights, celebrated for eight days. It commemorates the Jews’ struggle for religious freedom. During Hanukkah, Jews light one more candle each night. |