holidays-and-observances

"Magen David Adom said Saturday its paramedics treated 2,842 people across Israel during Yom Kippur, including three lightly hurt by the force of a rocket that exploded in the Western Galilee. Another 12 people were hurt while running to shelters amid , the ambulance service added. Some 320 projectiles were fired or launched into Israel by Hezbollah from Lebanon, the Israel Defense Forces said, while two rockets were fired from the Gaza Strip."

"The moment you ask a child in Israel what Yom Kippur means to him, and he answers the Yom Kippur War, or a fun day on a bicycle — then I don’t know if that is Zionism or whatever you call it, but it has certainly become bankrupt"

"Speaking to “Bitter Winter” on World Poetry Day, [Uyghur poet Aziz Isa] Elkun urged the world to remember the more than five hundred Uyghur poets sentenced to lengthy jail terms for their “crime of writing poems,” and the “severe extrajudicial persecution endured by Uyghur poets at the hands of the Chinese [Communist Party] government.” “Their only crime was writing poems in their God-given mother language, ,” he said."

"[2024’s] World Poetry Day appears to offer little to celebrate across a region where popular reverence for poets sits uneasily with the censorship and repression of ruling communist and military governments that are hostile to free expression and political activism. But the bleak environment is not stopping poets from trying to play their historic roles in movements for freedom and social justice, poets told Radio Free Asia ahead of World Poetry Day, established in 1999 by UNESCO."

"At this occasion, Muslims sacrifice animals like camels, cow, and small ruminants. Small ruminants are more in demand because of their price and cost of their feed ritual."

"“I felt I was walking through a post-apocalyptic neighbourhood,” said Atish Saha, a Dhaka-based artist.“To be honest, I was scared. It was an image of mass violence that shouldn’t ever be experienced.” Particularly jarring was said to be the sight of families, including infants, wading into the flood in celebratory “Eid day” moods. “It made me speechless,” he said."

"It is the duty of every free Muslim arrived at the age of maturity to offer a sacrifice, on the ‘Idu’l-Azha’, or ‘Festival of the Sacrifice’, provided he be then possessed of a Nisab (i.e., sufficient property), and be not a traveller. This is the opinion of Abu Hanifah, Muhammad, Zufar, and Hasan, and likewise of Abu Yusuf, according to one tradition. According to ash-Shafi’i, sacrifice is not an indispensable duty, but only laudable. At-Tahawi reports that, in the opinion of Abu Hanifah, it is indispensable, whilst the disciples hold it to be in a strong degree laudable. The offering of a sacrifice is incumbent on a man on account of himself, and on account of his infant child. This is the opinion of Abu Hanifah in one tradition. In another he has said that it is not incumbent on a man to offer a sacrifice for his child..."

"PETA organises peaceful animal protection awareness programmes for Christmas, Easter, Diwali, Janmashtami and other holidays, as well as Eid…it is shameful that in working to stop violence, our volunteers were made to suffer violence."

"In traditional Muslim countries herders and farmers can sacrifice their own animals. Others may go to the marketplace, where an animal can be bought and sacrificed, though prices are often higher than normal,..."

"This is heartbreaking Animals don’t need to die for you to celebrate Eid al-Fitr. Have a #vegan holiday."

"The story is connected with the Buddha, and with a happening in His life which left Him in the position wherein (following the dictates of His heart) He determined to return once a year from the high place in which He dwells and works, to bless the world. The two great Sons of God, the Buddha and the Christ, are one the custodian and the other the recipient of this blessing. Both of Them hold it in trust for transmission to a needy world, and both of Them act as transmitters of this spiritual energy to humanity. p. 7"

"The dream, the legend, the fact can be described as follows: There is a valley, lying at a rather high altitude in the foothills of the Himalayan-Tibet ranges. It is surrounded by high mountains on all sides except towards the northeast, where there is a narrow opening in the mountain ranges... At the time of the full moon of Taurus, pilgrims from all the surrounding districts begin to gather; the holy men and lamas find their way into the valley... There, so the legend runs, there gathers a group of those great Beings Who are the Custodians on Earth of God's Plan for our planet and for humanity. By what name we call these Beings does not greatly matter... This group of knowers of divinity are the main participants in the Wesak Festival... Just a few minutes before the exact time of the full moon, in the far distance, a tiny speck can be seen in the sky. It comes nearer and nearer, and grows in clarity and definiteness of outline, until the form of the Buddha can be seen... bathed in light and colour, and with His hand extended in blessing... A great mantram, used only once a year, at the Festival, is intoned by the Christ, and the entire group of people in the valley fall upon their faces... Thus, so the legend runs, the Buddha returns once a year to bless the world, transmitting through the Christ renewed spiritual life. p. 9-10"

"Once a year, at the Wesak Festival, the Lord Buddha, sanctioned by the Lord of the World, carries to the assembled humanity a dual stream of force, that emanating from the Silent Watcher, supplemented by the more focalised energy of the Lord of the World. This dual energy He pours out in blessing over the people gathered at the ceremony in the Himalayas, and from them in turn it flows out to all peoples and tongues and races. Ch XI ...takes place in the Himalayas at the full moon of May. It is said that at this festival, at which all the members of the Hierarchy are present, the Buddha, for a brief period, renews his touch and association with the work of our planet. Ch XIX"

"Today, we recognize the contributions Buddhism has made to human spirituality and culture for more than two and a half millennia. All of us, Buddhists and non-Buddhists alike, can find inspiration in the Buddha’s message of honesty, compassion and respect for all living things... On this Day of Vesak, let’s resolve to build lives of peace and dignity for all on a healthy planet."

"Jill and I extend our warmest wishes to Buddhists in the United States and around the world as they celebrate Vesak, a day honoring the birth, enlightenment, and passing of the Buddha. The ceremonial lighting of a lamp, the symbol of this holiday that has been celebrated for over 2,500 years, reminds us of Buddhism’s teachings of compassion, humility, and selflessness that endure today. On this day, we also commemorate the many contributions of Buddhists in America who enrich our communities and our country as we all work together toward brighter days ahead."

"For Buddhists everywhere it is indeed a felicitous opportunity, while commemorating the birth, enlightenment and passing away of Guatama Buddha, to celebrate his message of compassion and devotion to the service of humanity. This message is today perhaps more relevant than ever before. Peace, understanding and a vision of humanity that supersedes national and other international differences are essential if we are to cope with the complexities of the nuclear age. This philosophy lies at the heart of the Charter of the United Nations and should be prominent in all our thinking, especially during this International Year of Peace"

"Vesak is one of the most important Buddhist festivals. It is also known as Wesak or Buddha Day. It is a celebration of Buddha's birthday and, for some Buddhists, marks his enlightenment (when he discovered life's meaning)... The date of Vesak changes each year as it take places at the time of the first full moon of the ancient lunar month of Vesakha, which usually falls in May or early June."

"(First lady) Jill and I extend our best wishes to Muslim communities here in the US and around the world on the beginning of the blessed month of Ramadan. Communities come together to practice forgiveness and resilience, to show compassion and generosity of spirit to those in need, of giving and to celebrate the many blessings of life with loved ones."

"The month of Ramadan carries enduring moral values: humanity, compassion, mercy."

"Tomorrow (2 April 2022), Muslims in Canada and around the world will mark the start of Ramadan. One of the five pillars of Islam, this month-long spiritual journey is a time of fasting, charity and prayer. At the end of each day, families and friends will traditionally gather to enjoy iftar – the meal that breaks their fast at sunset. Ramadan is a special time to show gratitude for the many blessings we share, and reflect on values of peace, compassion and generosity. These same values have helped us all through challenging times these past two years, and will continue to help us as we recover from the pandemic and look ahead with optimism and hope. Ramadan is also an opportunity to recognize the many contributions Muslim Canadians have made and continue to make to our country. Every day, they help build a better Canada by giving back to those less fortunate with zakat contributions, by volunteering to serve important causes, and through their consistent acts of kindness for their communities and neighbors."

"If this life of ours be a good glad thing, why should we make us merry Because a year of it is gone? but Hope Smiles from the threshold of the year to come Whispering ‘It will be happier"

"Make New Year's goals. Dig within, and discover what you would like to have happen in your life this year. This helps you do your part. It is an affirmation that you're interested in fully living life in the year to come. Goals give us direction. They put a powerful force into play on a universal, conscious, and subconscious level. Goals give our life direction. What would you like to have happen in your life this year? What would you like to do, to accomplish? What good would you like to attract into your life? What particular areas of growth would you like to have happen to you? What blocks, or character defects, would you like to have removed? What would you like to attain? Little things and big things? Where would you like to go? What would you like to have happen in friendship and love? What would you like to have happen in your family life? What problems would you like to see solved? What decisions would you like to make? What would you like to happen in your career? Write it down. Take a piece of paper, a few hours of your time, and write it all down - as an affirmation of you, your life, and your ability to choose. Then let it go. The new year stands before us, like a chapter in a book, waiting to be written. We can help write that story by setting goals.”"

"I want to wish everyone a happy and healthy New Year. This is always a hopeful time, as we celebrate the end of one year and the beginning of another. And while 2009 was difficult for many Americans, we must also look back on this year with the knowledge that brighter days are ahead of us – that although our challenges are great, each of us has the courage and determination to rise up and meet them."

"On New Year’s Eve, we pause to reflect on the moments over the year that brought us joy, and the people in our lives who made them special. Although this year has brought more than its share of challenges to our country, we have also been reminded that we are fortunate to be part of one extraordinary, generous, and caring nation. We are strongest when we are united, when we look out for each other, and when we take care of each other."

"We spend January 1st walking through our lives, room by room, drawing up a list of work to be done, cracks to be patched. Maybe this year, to balance the list, we ought to walk through the rooms of our lives...not looking for flaws, but for potential."

"Ring out the old, ring in the new, Ring, happy bells, across the snow: The year is going, let him go; Ring out the false, ring in the true."

"As the old year retires and a new one is born, we commit into the hands of our Creator the happenings of the past year and ask for direction and guidance in the new one. May He grant us His grace, His tranquility and His wisdom!"

"May 2021 be the year of awakening and real bold change. And let's all continue the never-ending fight for the living planet."

"The Lord bless you and keep you. The Lord make his face to shine upon you and be gracious to you. The Lord lift up his countenance upon you and give you peace. There is no more meaningful time than the beginning of a new year to hear these words of blessing."

"It’s important that, as we begin the New Year, look forward... We should project our intention ahead, so that we make this year a meaningful one.... When you look back… how would you think about the year that you have spent? Would you have a sense of contentment, saying that ‘I have lived that year well. I have served the purpose of that year.’? Or would you be looking back with a sense of regret for all the troubles you have caused?"

"The object of a New Year is not that we should have a new year. It is that we should have a new soul and a new nose; new feet, a new backbone, new ears, and new eyes. Unless a particular man made New Year resolutions, he would make no resolutions. Unless a man starts afresh about things, he will certainly do nothing effective."

"2020 leaves behind much debris — pain, fear, broken lives, smashed dreams... Governments have stupendous powers that they hitherto chose not to use, deferring to the exorbitant power of Big Business. Yes, the money-tree does exist after all. Except, of course, that is only harvested by the powerful on behalf of the oligarchy: Money created by the rich for the rich. Solvency is a political decision because power-politics, not markets, decide who is bankrupt and who is not. Wealth has nothing to do with hard work or entrepreneurship. America’s billionaires made 931 billion dollars from the pandemic. They got richer in their sleep... Yes, 2020 was a vintage year for capitalists, but capitalism died! Liberated from any remaining competition, colossal platform companies like Amazon own everything. Now, it is up to us to make 2021 a year of radical change in the interests of the many. Happy New Year and carpe diem..."

"I pray you to forgive Both bad and good. Last season's fruit is eaten. And the fullfed beast shall kick the empty pail. For last year's words belong to last year's language And next year's words await another voice. And to make an end is to make a beginning."

"New Year's Day--Now is the accepted time to make your regular annual good resolutions. Next week you can begin paving hell with them as usual. Yesterday, everybody smoked his last cigar, took his last drink, and swore his last oath. Today, we are a pious and exemplary community."

"On June 19, 1865 — nearly nine decades after our Nation’s founding, and more than 2 years after President Lincoln signed the Emancipation Proclamation — enslaved Americans in Galveston, Texas, finally received word that they were free from bondage. As those who were formerly enslaved were recognized for the first time as citizens, Black Americans came to commemorate Juneteenth with celebrations across the country, building new lives and a new tradition that we honor today. In its celebration of freedom, Juneteenth is a day that should be recognized by all Americans. And that is why I am proud to have consecrated Juneteenth as our newest national holiday... I call upon the people of the United States to acknowledge and celebrate the end of the Civil War and the emancipation of Black Americans, and commit together to eradicate systemic racism that still undermines our founding ideals and collective prosperity."

"I went to Galveston, Texas, in part, because I wanted to spend time with people who were the actual descendants of those who had been freed by General Gordon Granger’s General Order No. 3. And it was a really remarkable moment, because I was in this place, on this island, on this land, with people for whom Juneteenth was not an abstraction. It was not a performance. It was not merely a symbol. It was part of their tradition. It was part of their lineage. It was an heirloom that had been passed down, that had made their lives possible. And so, I think I gained a more intimate sense of what that holiday meant."

"Juneteenth marks both the long, hard night of slavery and subjugation, and a promise of a brighter morning to come. This is a day of profound — in my view — profound weight and profound power. A day in which we remember the moral stain, the terrible toll that slavery took on the country and continues to take — what I’ve long called “America’s original sin.” At the same time, I also remember the extraordinary capacity to heal, and to hope, and to emerge from the most painful moments and a bitter, bitter version of ourselves, but to make a better version of ourselves. You know, today, we consecrate Juneteenth for what it ought to be, what it must be: a national holiday."

"Over the course of decades, she has made it her mission to see that this day came. It was almost a singular mission. She has walked for miles and miles, literally and figuratively, to bring attention to Juneteenth, to make this day possible...when I think about someone like Miss Opal Lee, part of what I think about is our proximity to this period of history, right? Slavery existed for 250 years in this country, and it’s only not existed for 150. And, you know, the way that I was taught about slavery, growing up, in elementary school, we were made to feel as if it was something that happened in the Jurassic age, that it was the flint stone, the dinosaurs and slavery, almost as if they all happened at the same time. But the woman who opened the National Museum of African American History and Culture alongside the Obama family in 2016 was the daughter of an enslaved person — not the granddaughter or the great-granddaughter or the great-great-granddaughter. The daughter of an enslaved person is who opened this museum of the Smithsonian in 2016. And so, clearly, for so many people, there are people who are alive today who were raised by, who knew, who were in community with, who loved people who were born into intergenerational chattel bondage. And so, this history that we tell ourselves was a long time ago wasn’t, in fact, that long ago at all."

"I did something good: I made Juneteenth very famous. It’s actually an important event, an important time. But nobody had ever heard of it."

"The bugle echoes shrill and sweet, But not of war it sings to-day. The road is rhythmic with the feet ⁠Of men-at-arms who come to pray. The roses blossom white and red ⁠On tombs where weary soldiers lie; Flags wave above the honored dead ⁠And martial music cleaves the sky. Above their wreath-strewn graves we kneel, ⁠They kept the faith and fought the fight. Through flying lead and crimson steel ⁠They plunged for Freedom and the Righteousness. May we, their grateful children, learn ⁠Their strength, who lie beneath this sod, Who went through fire and death to earn ⁠At last the accolade of God.In shining rank on rank arrayed They march, the legions of the Lord; He is their Captain unafraid, The Prince of Peace . . . Who brought a sword."

"If and when America and American freedom are really threatened, I have no doubt that American men and women will rise to the occasion and show the kind of nobility and heroism that was evident in the Revolution and the Civil War. But in the meantime, we need to stop glorifying all these wars that were criminal, or that could have been avoided. Memorial Day should be a day to demand peace, a day to demand an end to a military-industrial complex that claims nearly half of the nation’s general funds, a day to focus on the real threats to American’s “cherished ideals,” most of which are purely domestic, and a day to celebrate what those ideals are: , freedom of speech and assembly, freedom from government intrusion in our lives, the right to be considered innocent until proven guilty by a jury of our peers, and the right to stand up and say that our political leaders are, for the most part, crooks, charlatans and even war criminals."

"Out of the blood of a conflict fraternal, ⁠Out of the dust and the dimness of death, Burst into blossoms of glory eternal ⁠Flowers that sweeten the world with their breath. Flowers of charity, peace, and devotion ⁠Bloom in the hearts that are empty of strife; Love that is boundless and broad as the ocean ⁠Leaps into beauty and fulness of life. So, with the singing of pæans and chorals, ⁠And with the flag flashing high in the sun, Place on the graves of our heroes the laurels ⁠Which their unfaltering valor has won!"

"Memorial Day has the tendency to conjure up old arguments about the Civil War. That’s understandable; it was created to mourn the dead of a war in which the Union was nearly destroyed, when half the country rose up in rebellion in defense of slavery."

"(..)Working for the United Nations for many years I have seen the huge contribution NGOs have made to further the development, peacebuilding and humanitarian goals of the international community and, most importantly, to the lives of people in need. Personally, I believe that a World NGO day is an excellent opportunity to recognize and celebrate the successes of the sector, and also to provide a focus for new ideas."

"Helen Clark: (..)UNDP is pleased to join the Government of Finland, UNESCO, UNOPS, the European Commission, and other partners in celebrating the tremendous work of NGOs, and of all the dedicated people working for them in countries around the world. NGOs and civil society networks are powerful forces in advancing development agendas and protecting the rights of poor and marginalized people."

"NGOs are necessary part of landscape of today(..)"

"It is only right that, on just one day, the world should celebrate NGOs and thank them for the tremendous work that they do."

"(..)World NGO day serves all of us to reflect and take a good resolution for the future. Let’s engage, let’s connect to each other to build solidarity across the world, to stop polarisation and to build a cohesive society and a cohesive Europe."

"NGOs today are important partners in all works of life(..)"

"Federica Mogherini (2019): On World NGO Day, we celebrate the relentless and invaluable role of civil society organisations in protecting and fighting for fundamental human rights, democracy, and sustainable development for all. Their continuous commitment to these fundamental values makes their contributions indispensable to the construction of resilient, inclusive and diverse societies."