Festivities - Birthdays
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Birthdays in cultures and religions:
Ancient Rome - The Romans enthusiastically celebrated birthdays with hedonistic parties and generous presents.
China - Chinese birthday traditions reflect the culture's deep-seated focus on longevity.
Christianity - Early: Origen wrote that Christians should not only refrain from celebrating their birthdays, but should look on them with disgust.
Christianity - Orthodox: Still prefers the celebration of name days only.
Christianity - Medieval: Ordinary folk celebrated their saint's day (the saint they were named after), but nobility celebrated the anniversary of their birth.
Christianity - Modern: Some groups refrain from celebrating birthdays. They believe that birthday celebrations are portrayed in a negative light in the Bible and have historical connections with magic, superstitions, and Paganism.
Witchcraft - Many (if not all) of our Birthday traditions stem from the 'Candle Magic' Rituals of Paganism and Witchcraft. (SEE - Candle Magic for more info).
Judaism - In the Hebrew Bible, the one single mention of a celebration being held in commemoration of someone's day of birth is for the Egyptian Pharaoh which is recorded in Genesis 40:20.
The bar mitzvah of 13-year-old Jewish boys, or bat mitzvah for 12-year-old Jewish girls, is perhaps the only Jewish celebration undertaken in what is often perceived to be in conjunction with a birthday.
(Despite modern celebrations where the secular "birthday" element often overshadows the essence of it as a religious rite, the essence of a bar mitzvah or bat mitzvah celebration is entirely religious in origin.)
Islam - Some clerics consider the celebration of a birthday to be a sin, as it is considered an "innovation" of the faith, while other clerics have stated that the celebration of a birthday is permissible.
Hindus - Hindus celebrate the birth anniversary day every year when the day that corresponds to lunar month or solar month of birth. (Sun or Star Signs / asterism).
Buddhism - Many monasteries celebrate the anniversary of Buddha's birth, usually in a highly formal, ritualized manner. They treat Buddha's statue as if it were alive, bathing, and "feeding" it.
(NEXT PAGE - Candle Magic)
China - Chinese birthday traditions reflect the culture's deep-seated focus on longevity.
Christianity - Early: Origen wrote that Christians should not only refrain from celebrating their birthdays, but should look on them with disgust.
Christianity - Orthodox: Still prefers the celebration of name days only.
Christianity - Medieval: Ordinary folk celebrated their saint's day (the saint they were named after), but nobility celebrated the anniversary of their birth.
Christianity - Modern: Some groups refrain from celebrating birthdays. They believe that birthday celebrations are portrayed in a negative light in the Bible and have historical connections with magic, superstitions, and Paganism.
Witchcraft - Many (if not all) of our Birthday traditions stem from the 'Candle Magic' Rituals of Paganism and Witchcraft. (SEE - Candle Magic for more info).
Judaism - In the Hebrew Bible, the one single mention of a celebration being held in commemoration of someone's day of birth is for the Egyptian Pharaoh which is recorded in Genesis 40:20.
The bar mitzvah of 13-year-old Jewish boys, or bat mitzvah for 12-year-old Jewish girls, is perhaps the only Jewish celebration undertaken in what is often perceived to be in conjunction with a birthday.
(Despite modern celebrations where the secular "birthday" element often overshadows the essence of it as a religious rite, the essence of a bar mitzvah or bat mitzvah celebration is entirely religious in origin.)
Islam - Some clerics consider the celebration of a birthday to be a sin, as it is considered an "innovation" of the faith, while other clerics have stated that the celebration of a birthday is permissible.
Hindus - Hindus celebrate the birth anniversary day every year when the day that corresponds to lunar month or solar month of birth. (Sun or Star Signs / asterism).
Buddhism - Many monasteries celebrate the anniversary of Buddha's birth, usually in a highly formal, ritualized manner. They treat Buddha's statue as if it were alive, bathing, and "feeding" it.
(NEXT PAGE - Candle Magic)
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