Mother's Day

====Nepal====
In [[Nepal]], there is a festival equivalent to Mother's Day, called Mata Tirtha Aunsi ("Mother Pilgrimage New Moon"), or Mata Tirtha [[Puja (Buddhism)|Puja]] ("Mother Pilgrimage Worship"). It is celebrated according to the lunar calendar. It falls on the last day of the dark fortnight in the month of [[Baishakh (Nepali calendar)|Baishakh]] which falls in April–May (in 2015, it will occur on 18 April). The dark fortnight lasts for 15 days from the full moon to the new moon. This festival is observed to commemorate and honor mothers, and it is celebrated by giving gifts to mothers and remembering mothers who are no more.{{citation needed|date=March 2016}}

To honor mothers who have died, it is the tradition to go on a pilgrimage to the Mata Tirtha ponds, located 6&nbsp;km to the southwest of downtown [[Kathmandu]]. The nearby [[Mata Tirtha]] village is named after these ponds. Previously, the tradition was observed primarily by the [[Newar]] community and other people living in the [[Kathmandu Valley]]. Now this festival is widely celebrated across the country.{{citation needed|date=March 2016}}

Many tragic [[folklore]] legends have been created, suggesting different reasons why this pond became a pilgrimage site. The most popular version says that, in ancient times, the mother of a shepherd died, and he made offerings to a nearby pond. There he saw the face of his mother in the water, with her hand taking the offerings. Since then, many people have visited the pond, hoping to see their deceased mother's face. Pilgrims believe that they will bring peace to their mothers' souls by visiting the sacred place. There are two ponds. The larger one is for ritual bathing. The smaller one is used to "look upon mother's face", and is fenced by iron bars to prevent people from bathing in it.{{citation needed|date=January 2017}}

Traditionally, in the Kathmandu valley the South-Western corner is reserved for women and women-related rituals, and the North-Eastern is for men and men-related rituals. The worship place for Mata Tirtha Aunsi is located in Mata Tirtha in the South-Western half of the valley, while the worship place for [[Gokarna Aunsi]], the equivalent celebration for deceased fathers is located in [[Gokarna, Nepal]], in the North-Eastern half. This division is reflected in many aspects of the life in Kathmandu valley.<ref name="HeestermanHoek1992">{{cite book|author1=J. C. Heesterman|author2=Albert W. Van den Hoek|author3=Dirk H. A. Kolff |author3-link=Dirk H. A. Kolff |author4=Marianne S. Oort|title=Ritual, State, and History in South Asia: Essays in Honour of J.C. Heesterman|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=EtwtSZwyWpgC&pg=PA786|year=1992|publisher=Brill|isbn=978-90-04-09467-3|page=786}}</ref>

Mother's Day is known as Aama ko Mukh Herne Din in [[Nepali language|Nepali]], which literally means "day to see mother's face". In [[Nepal Bhasa]], the festival is known as Mām yā Khwā Swayegu, which can be translated as "to look upon mother's face".{{citation needed|date=March 2016}}