Lunar New Year of Vietnam, Korea, China and Japan occurs on the first day of the Lunar calendar. Tibetan New Year, Losar also occurs around the same time. Activities held in honor of this event include: Vietnamese dragon on parade, Tai Chi, a Korean rope tug, and more! All those countries and cultures have their own names for the Festival and variation abounds in how it’s observed.

Nowrooz (Persian for “New Year”, “New Day”, and originally “New Light”) has been observed for thousands of years by the ancient cultures of Persia (present-day Iran), at the Spring Equinox and is today celebrated by peoples and faiths in (but not limited to) Afghanistan, Azerbaijan, Georgia, Iraq, Iran, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia, Syria, Tajikistan, Turkey, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, as well as by the Uyghurs in northwestern China and the worldwide Kurd, Bahá’í, Sufi, and Zoroastrian communities (including the Parsi in India).

The festival name has many spelling variants depending on the country and language such as Nauryz, Navroz, and Nawruz.

Both festivals occur close to each other during the summer and so become a joint celebration in downtown Brattleboro.

Tanabata, meaning “Seven Evenings” is a Japanese star festival––originating in an astronomical observance––is a day of poetry and crafts. In present-day Japan, people generally celebrate this day by writing wishes, sometimes in the form of poetry, on small pieces of paper and hanging them on bamboo, sometimes with other decorations.

Obon is related to ancient Shinto observances respecting one’s ancestors with music and dance featured. It is a time to clean house, to decorate family altars with flowers and paper lanterns, and to offer vegetables and fruit to the spirits of one’s ancestors.

Mid-Autumn Moon Festival, (also known as Zhongqiu Jie / Chuseok / Tet Trung Thu) is celebrated in China, Korea, and Vietnam. After Lunar New Year it is the second most important festival of the year. This is a traditional time for families to gather and give thanks for the harvest and for harmonious unions. Offerings may be made to Chang’e, the Moon Goddess of Immortality. This is the festival for carrying lanterns and sharing mooncakes (and other refreshments) while watching the harvest moon rise.

Two festivals of India, one following the other in the span of about a month are combined into one afternoon’s observance. The nine (nava) nights (ratri) of this annual autumn festival of dancing from India are devoted to destroying all our impurities and vices, increasing in wealth, and gaining wisdom.

Navaratri is celebrated in different ways in different parts of India, featuring both feasting and fasting, with a focus often in honor of the divine feminine. This festival observance includes learning about the meaning of Navaratri for us today, practicing a fun group dance, and gathering to talk and eat.

Diwali is the festival of lights and joy, celebrating the victory of good over evil and the return of the hero(ine). Activities include arts and crafts, potluck refreshments, practicing how to wear a sari, finding out about bindi dots on the forehead and what a rangoli (sand painting) is.