India’s 66th Independence day

Karmapa International Buddhist Institute gladly invite the public to celebrate India’s 66^th Independence day on August 15^th for gathering prayer and lamp offering for bringing peace, and prosperity in the country. The program will be held in KIBI temple hall at 4pm to 5pm. The gathering puja (wishing prayer) will be led by H.H. Gyalwa Karmapa.
Significance of the day: August 15^th, 2013 marks the 66^th anniversary of the creation of a free and independent India. Under British rule since 1757, the former British India was split into two nations — India and Pakistan — in 1947. The Indian Independence Movement began in 1885 with the first meeting of the Indian National Congress (INC). In 1920, Mohandas K. Gandhi assumed the helm of the INC and launched the Non-Cooperation Movement against the British Raj. After a long struggle for independence, the British Viceroy Mountbatten transferred power to Indian rule at midnight on August 14^th, 1947 with Jawaharlal Nehru as the first prime minister of India. India’s Independence day celebrations include a flag-raising ceremony at the historic Red Fort followed by a speech by the Indian President and a parade. Singing the national anthem and kite flying are common Independence day activities. The birthplace of two major world religions and the second most populated country in the world, Indians have plenty to celebrate this Independence day.