What is Vesak?

Vesak (also known as Buddha Purnima, Buddha Day, or Wesak) is the most sacred day in the Buddhist calendar. It commemorates three pivotal events in the life of Siddhartha Gautama — the historical Buddha — that are traditionally believed to have occurred on the same date: his birth in Lumbini (modern Nepal), his enlightenment under the Bodhi tree in Bodh Gaya, and his parinirvana (final death) in Kushinagar.

Vesak falls on the full moon of the Buddhist month of Vaisakha, which corresponds to April or May in the Gregorian calendar. The United Nations officially recognised Vesak as an international holiday in 1999, following a resolution tabled by several Buddhist-majority countries. The exact date varies slightly between Theravada, Mahayana, and other Buddhist traditions.

Observances vary by country and tradition but typically include temple visits, meditation, candle-lit processions, releasing caged birds and animals as an act of liberation, and charitable giving. Vesak is a public holiday in Sri Lanka, Thailand, Myanmar, Cambodia, Laos, Vietnam, Malaysia, Singapore, Indonesia, and Nepal, among other countries.