Vesak Celebrations in Singapore – A Day of Celebration Spent in Quiet Reverence

In hushed reverence and quiet veneration, the birth, enlightenment and the death of the Buddha is celebrated by Buddhists scattered the world over on the day of Vesak, the day marked as the most important on the Buddhist calendar. Bathed in the charm of this day, devotees find serenity sublime in the beautiful and symbolic celebrations and rituals that are faithfully followed on the day.

In Singapore, where Theravada and Mahayana Buddhists together abide, the rituals followed slightly vary, while the common chord of peace and good deeds as well as repentance bind the hearts and minds of those who celebrate in strong and significant unison. The day of Vesak is celebrated on the 15th day of the 4th month of the Chinese Lunar Calendar in Singapore, on which good deeds and righteous gestures are practiced far and wide owing to the belief that such deeds performed on the sacred day multiplies merit many times over. Hence blood donations are organized in grand scale, mantras are chanted and caged animals are released.

The many statues of the Buddha are illuminated with lights on this day where candlelight processions take place on the streets, while some “bathe” a Buddha statue symbolizing the showers of the waters of the nine dragons that bathed Buddha after birth.

When in Singapore during the time of this festival the Lian Shan Shuang Lin Temple is a great place to observe the quiet celebrations of Vesak. This majestic temple is the second largest temple in Asia as well as being the oldest temple in Singapore. In Chinatown also one may find the beauty of Vesak pulsating with devotion at the spiritual centre of The Buddha Tooth Relic Temple while admiring the wonderful combination of the Buddhist mandala and the remnants of glory of the Tang dynasty expressed in the Buddhist art culture on display there.

For those who would like to visit the country illuminated by a million lights of reverence during the festival of Vesak, Singapore apartment hotels such as the Citadines Mount Sophia Singapore is an ideal place to seek accommodation in as it is one of the leading serviced apartments Singapore has.

Jayani Senanayake is a writer who dabbles in travel and all things exotic. Under the pseudonym of Caliope Sage, she writes of the allures that must simply be discovered.Google+