Wesak celebrated with full zeal

Perhaps the best known date on the Buddhist calendar, familiar even to non-Buddhists, is the thrice sacred day of “Wesak”.

Wesak is the name of the month in the ancient Indian calendar and it usually falls in May though sometimes it may commence in the later part of April or extend to the earlier June.

The decision to agree to celebrate Wesak as the Buddha’s birthday was taken at the first Conference of the World Fellowship of Buddhist (W.F.B.) held in Sri Lanka in 1950.

Celebrating Wesak also means making special efforts to bring happiness to the unfortunate like the aged, the handicapped and the sick. To this end, Buddhists will distribute gifts in cash and kind to various charitable homes.