Vesak Day
| Vesākha | |
|---|---|
 |
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| Official name | Vesākha, Buddha Purnima, Buddha Jayanti, Vaisakha, Vesak |
| Also called | Buddha's Birthday or Buddha Day |
| Observed by | Buddhists in India, Sri Lanka, China, Japan, South Korea, Taiwan, Nepal, Tibet, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Indonesia, Philippines, Singapore, Vietnam, Thailand, Cambodia, Laos, Malaysia and Myanmar |
| Type | Religious |
| Significance | The birth, enlightenment and death of Gautama Buddha |
| Observances | Meditation, observing the Eight Precepts, partaking of vegetarian food, giving to charity, "bathing" the Buddha |
| Date | Full moon of the month of Vesākha, usually in April (first), May or June (last) |
| 2016 date | 21 May (Sri Lanka, Cambodia and India) 22 May (Indonesia) |
| 2017 date | 10 May (Sri Lanka, Cambodia, India, Bangladesh, Singapore, Thailand and Malaysia) 11 May (Indonesia) |
| 2018 date | 29 May (Sri Lanka, Cambodia, India, Bangladesh, Singapore, Thailand, Malaysia and Indonesia) |
| Frequency | annual |
| Related to |
Buddha's Birthday Other related festivals Laba Festival (in China) (in Japan) |
Vesākha (Pali; Sanskrit: Vaiśākha), also known as Buddha Purnima and Buddha Day, is a holiday observed traditionally by Buddhists on different days in India, Sri Lanka, China, Japan, South Korea, Taiwan, Nepal, Tibet, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Indonesia, Philippines, Singapore, Vietnam, Thailand, Cambodia, Laos, Malaysia and Myanmar and in other places all over the world. Sometimes informally called "Buddha's Birthday", it commemorates the birth, enlightenment (Buddhahood), and death (Parinirvāna) of Gautama Buddha in the Theravada or southern tradition.
The decision to agree to celebrate Vesākha as the Buddha’s birthday was formalized at the first conference of the World Fellowship of Buddhists held in Sri Lanka in 1950, although festivals at this time in the Buddhist world are a centuries-old tradition. The resolution that was adopted at the World Conference reads as follows:
That this Conference of the World Fellowship of Buddhists, while recording its appreciation of the gracious act of His Majesty, the Maharaja of Nepal in making the full-moon day of Vesak a Public Holiday in Nepal, earnestly requests the Heads of Governments of all countries in which large or small number of Buddhists are to be found, to take steps to make the full-moon day in the month of May a Public Holiday in honour of the Buddha, who is universally acclaimed as one of the greatest benefactors of Humanity.
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