This month Buddhists around the world celebrate the festival of Vesak (celebrating the Buddha's birth, enlightenment and parinirvana).
Vesak falls on the fifteenth day of the fourth month (according to the original tradition, the fourth month is known as VESAK MONTH) of the lunar calendar. This means that Vesak Day does not always fall on the same day of the Gregorian calendar. However, it does fall around the middle of May. But different Asian cultures - where the lunar calendar is traditionally used - have developed slight variations in their astrological readings, and thus the festival of Vesak (Buddha's birth, enlightenment and day of parinirvana) may fall on different days depending on the system followed by their culture.
The United Nations adopted a resolution recognising the day of celebration of Vesak on the full moon day in May. This year, therefore, 16 May became recognised as International Vesak Day.
The best way to commemorate Vesak is to remember the story of Buddha's life. Buddha himself had said, "After I have left this world, my followers should visit the The Four Sites, Lumbini, where Buddha was born, Bodhgaya, where he attained Buddhahood, Sarnath, where he turned the first wheel of the Dharma, Kushinagar, and where he attained Parinirvana".
