Vesākha (Pali;Sanskrit: Vaiśākha, Devanagari: वैशाख), Wesak or Vesak, also known
as Buddha Purnia, is a holy day observed traditionally by Buddhists in Nepal,
Sri Lanka, Tibet, Bangladesh, Bhutan, India and the South East Asian countries
of Singapore, Vietnam, Thailand, Cambodia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the
Philippines, and Indonesia. Sometimes informally called "Buddha's
Birthday", it actually commemorates the birth, enlightenment (nirvāna),
and death (Parinirvāna) of Gautama Buddha.
The exact date of Vesākha varies according to the various
lunar calendars used in different traditions. In Theravada countries following
the Buddhist calendar, it falls on a full moon Uposatha day, typically in the
5th or 6th lunar month. Vesākha Day in China and Korea is on the eighth of the
fourth month in the Chinese lunar calendar. The date varies from year to year
in the Western Gregorian calendar, but usually falls in April or May. In leap
years Vesākha is celebrated in June.
The name of the observance is derived from the Pali term
vesākha or Sanskrit vaiśākha, which is the name of the lunar month falling in
April–May (see Vaisakha). In Mahayana Buddhist traditions, the holiday is known
by its Sanskrit name (Vaiśākha) and derived variants of it. Local renditions of
the name vary by language, including:
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