Monday's Madonna & Child Celebrates Buddha's Birth

ALPHA OMEGA ARTS NEWS
By TAHLIB

"Maya Devi and Buddha's Birth." Tibetan Thankga painting.

Queen Māyā of Sakya (Māyādevī) was the birth mother of Gautama Buddha, the sage on whose teachings Buddhism was founded, and the sister of Mahāpajāpatī Gotamī, the first Buddhist nun ordained by the Buddha. Māyā means "love" in Nepali. Māyā is also called Mahāmāyā ("Great Māyā") and Māyādevī ("Queen Māyā"). In Tibetan she is called Gyutrulma and in Japanese is known as Maya-fujin (摩耶夫人). On this day after "Mother's Day" and one day before  the holyday of "Vesak" (Buddha's birthday) we celebrate another birth-mother to a founder of a major religious movement which makes it Monday's Madonna & Child.