Vesak Day is one of the biggest days of the year and is celebrated by Buddhists all over the world. Buddhists commemorate the important events that took place in the life of Lord Buddha on this day. First comes the birth of Siddhartha Gautama in Lumbini in Nepal, which took place under the arbor of Sat trees where queen Mahamaya gave birth to him. The second event was Siddharta Gautam’s supreme attainment as the Buddha, the Enlightened One. The third event was Lord Buddha’s Parinibbana over 2500 years ago at Kusinagar.
Temples are crowded with devotees, who worship, offer flowers and light lamps. Dana or alms giving is an important tradition, which means sharing joy and love. People usually wear white clothes to participate in traditional ceremonies. Many of them spend the whole day in the temple. At Sri Lanka, people decorate their houses and public places during Vesak Holiday.
LBuddhist worshipers will be seen going to local temples all over Sri Lanka, and some will travel to distant parts of the island to go to special temples where they offer flowers and incense. They also don white clothing and light lamps during the ceremonies. The monks will give special teaching sessions, devotees will remain at the temple all day to re-dedicate themselves to Buddha’s teachings and recite Buddhist verses. You will also notice the flag of Buddhism flying over each temple.
Some things for the Sri Lankan tourist to do during the days of Vesak include the following:
Don’t miss the lights display in Colombo. People flood into the capital city from all over Sri Lanka to witness the massive, glittering thorana light displays. They also come because the lanterns, made of coloured paper and set on bamboo frames, are extremely numerous and well done. This stems largely from the fact that Colombo has a Vesak lantern contest with prizes given out. The sight is dazzling to say the least.
Visit the Raja Maha Vihara Temple in the town of Kelaniya, less than 10 miles from Colombo. According to Buddhist tradition, Buddha himself visited and hallowed this temple during his final visit to Sri Lanka before his death. He is thought to have taught from a throne in the temple that was bedecked with gem stones. There is a statute of Buddha inside the temple, along with a number of paintings depicting various scenes from Buddha’s life and in the history of Buddhism in Sri Lanka. Those paintings are also much treasured in Sri Lanka because they were painted by a local artist named Solias Mendis.
Tour the National Museum of Kandy, located in the city of Kandy, which is on a lake in the very heart of the island. The museum contains thousands of artifacts from 18th, 19th, and 20th Century Sri Lanka, a period during which Kandy was (at times) the center of a powerful kingdom. The museum is part of the Royal Palace and is adjacent to the famous Temple of the Tooth, so there is much to explore at this location.