New Year's Eve


 










The Sinhala New Year and the Tamil New Year are different rituals and celebrations, and are celebrated in South and Southeast Asian New Years such as the New Year and the Bengali New Year.

The holiday is officially recorded in the Sri Lankan calendar as the Sinhala and Hindu New Year.



This New Year is culturally celebrated in the month of April or Bak and has been a major art festival in Sri Lanka since ancient times. Various beliefs are associated with the Sinhala Hindu New Year. These include beliefs, customs, and religious beliefs related to agricultural activities. The introduction of Buddhism to Sri Lanka around 300 B.C. led to the celebration of New Year in a Buddhist environment. Since the majority of the country is Buddhist, the Sri Lankan people are still accustomed to observing Sinhala New Year, giving priority to Buddhist philosophy.


On the other hand, when considering Hinduism, it can be identified as a religion that has existed in parallel with Buddhism since ancient times. Therefore, New Year rituals developed among Hindus in accordance with Hinduism. Buddhism and Hinduism have been historically intertwined. Therefore, it is not possible to identify major differences in New Year rituals between Buddhists and Hindus.

According to superstitions and legends, the New Year's Eve is definitely connected to Hindu literature. The New Year's Eve is considered to be a confirmation of the peace and prosperity of 'Indra', who is considered the prince of peace in Hinduism. The New Year's Eve descends to the earth in a white chariot and wears a seven-cubit high crown decorated with white flowers. There is a myth among the villagers that he first breaks the gravitational force of the earth and immerses it in the Kiri Sayura or the sea of ​​milk and is then raised.

Nowadays, the rituals of the New Year are traditionally performed according to the auspicious times given by astrologers. Therefore, the celebration of the New Year's Eve can be considered a complex combination of indigenous, Hindu and Buddhist traditions.

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