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Cultural and Religious Observances title with an image of a man smiling, a religious stained glass window, a woman wearing a hijab and colorful Indian art made with sand and flower petals

Cultural and religious observances-August 9-15, 2021

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Muharram

A turquoise and yellow image with the outline of an Islamic temple and lanterns hanging from the top with Happy Isalmic New Year text in the center. Image credit: createcustomwishes.comCulture/religion: Islamic
Date: August 10

Muharram, one of the four sacred months of the year for Muslims, is the first month of the Islamic calendar and marks the beginning of the Islamic New Year.

Muharram means “forbidden” and because it is holy, many Muslims use this as a time of prayer and reflection. Many Muslims consider this a solemn time and do not take part in any joyous events. The new year is celebrated by visiting the mosque to pray for well-being and by spending time with family and loved ones.

Sources:

What is Muharram? Five Things You Need to Know about Islamic New Year, Times of India

Obon

Lanterns at Higashi Honganji Buddhist Temple Dietmar Rabich / Wikimedia Commons / “Los Angeles (California, USA), -Little Tokyo- -- 2012 -- 4908” / CC BY-SA 4.0
Lanterns at Higashi Honganji Buddhist Temple in Los Angeles, CA. Photo credit: Dietmar Rabich, Wikimedia.org

Culture/religion: Buddhist
Date: August 13-15

An annual Japanese festival honoring one’s ancestors. The three-day festival has been celebrated for more than 500 years and it is believed that ancestors’ spirits return during this time to visit their relatives.

During Obon, lanterns are hung on houses to guide the ancestors’ spirits, Obon dances are performed, graves are visited and food offerings are made to altars and temples. At the end of Obon, the lanterns are placed in rivers, lakes and seas to guide the ancestors’ spirits back to their world.

Sources:

Bon Festival, Wikipedia

Obon, Japan Guide

Qixi Festival

A painting of women at a Qixi festivalCulture/religion: Chinese heritage
Date: August 14

Also known as Chinese Valentine’s Day, the festival is based on a romantic legend about a weaver girl and an ox herd. The festival is also known as Double Seventh Festival because it is celebrated on the 7th day in the 7th month of the Chinese lunar calendar.

Pronunciation: ‘Chee-she’

Sources:

Double Seventh Festival, China Highlights