Indian Buddhist community is still going through a discovery and development phase trying to figure out what is the right thing to do regarding certain days /festivals /rituals. Many try to justify celebrating /not celebrating, to fit their personal agendas and views.
On the day of Karthik Amawassiya in the Buddhist calendar, the enlightened monk, Ven Maha Moggallana was murdered. He was one of the two most respected Bhikkhus (the other being Ven. Sariputta), highest in seniority only after the great Buddha himself.
Celebrate Karthik Amawassiya in any form and you'll be celebrating the murder of a great Bhikkhu. ALL INDIAN BUDDHISTS NEED TO KNOW.
Many will still find excuses (factual or not) to continue celebrating.
Could the day of Karthik Amawassiya be chosen to celebrate Diwali in order to overshadow /cover-up murder?
No reference of Buddhists CELEBRATING this day of murder is found in any of the Asoka edicts either; although in 'Asoka Vamsa', it is said that there is mention of Asoka paying tributes to this great monk in the form of lighting deepas on Buddhist historical places.
The celebrators also say that on Karthik Amawassiya the Buddha first visited his pre-enlightenment family home, which to the Buddhist world outside India, is hardly of any significance so as to warrant a big celebration.
Before the mass revival of Buddhism in 20th century India (and today in parts of East India), Buddhists believed that this event happened in the month of 'Phalgun' around March. Then why in the last few years have some people started believing that the Buddha returned to his pre enlightenment home in the winter months. We know Buddhism wasn't completely wiped out in India. It survived in the Eastern regions. In these areas, Buddhist communities do traditionally celebrate the return of Buddha to his ancestral home in the form of 'FALGUNI POORNIMA' but that celebration is during the month of "Phalgun" (around March). This too is overshadowed by another Brahminic festival, Holi.
https://en.banglapedia.org/index.php/Falguni_Purnima
Should we celebrate Karthik Amawassiya, the day the Buddha first returned to his pre-Buddhahood ancestral home, as Deepdan Diwas even though Ven Moggallana was murdered that day? This is just like asking should we celebrate 6th December the day Babasaheb Dr Ambedkar left us? What if that tragic day (6th Dec) fell on Karthik Amawassya? Would you still then find an excuse to celebrate the return of Buddha to his ancestral home in the form of Dipdanutsav.
Furthermore, if anyone has any reference of Babasaheb celebrating this day, please forward it to me. If not, then please share this post.
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