Have you ever heard of Vesak, the Buddhist festival of light? It’s an incredible celebration that commemorates the birth, enlightenment, and demise of the Buddha, and it’s celebrated annually on the full moon day of the month of May. Buddhists all around the world come together to celebrate this festival, and Sri Lanka is no exception.
During Vesak, the streets of Sri Lanka are adorned with beautiful and colorful lanterns, and temples are decorated with flowers and lights. The festival covers two aspects: “Amisa Puja” and “Prathipaththi Puja”. Amisa puja practices charity, almsgiving, hoisting pandols, and lighting lanterns. You’ll find food stalls lining the streets offering a variety of traditional Sri Lankan delicacies for free. Pandols, on the other hand, are large and intricate structures built to depict stories and teachings from the life of the Buddha. These are decorated with colorful lights, flowers, and other ornaments and are a feast for the eyes.
Prathipaththi puja is a time for reflection and introspection for Buddhists. It’s a time to contemplate the teachings of the Buddha and to strive towards achieving inner peace and enlightenment. Many Buddhists take part in meditation retreats and engage in other spiritual practices during the festival.
But Vesak isn’t just celebrated by Buddhists in Sri Lanka. It’s also recognized by the United Nations as a day of observance. In fact, the UN General Assembly recognized Vesak as an international day in 1999, and since then, it has been celebrated at the UN headquarters in New York and other locations around the world.
If you’re planning a trip to Sri Lanka, try to visit during Vesak to witness this incredible festival for yourself. You’ll be amazed by the joy and kindness shared by everyone during this time. And while you’re there, don’t be afraid to get down among the locals. You never know who you might meet and what incredible experiences you might have. As one traveler put it, “The best thing I gained from this trip was the restored faith in my fellow humans.”
Source: Sri Lanka Travel News
