Images of Vesak Celebrations in Southeast Asia

Vesak celebrates the Buddha’s birth, enlightenment, and final attainment of Nirvana, and is thus one of the most important holidays in Southeast Asia, which retains a sizeable Buddhist population, particularly around Thailand. The name and date of celebration varies depending on the country – it’s known as Waisak in Indonesia and Visakha Puja in Thailand, and it’s generally celebrated in May.

For devout Buddhists, any good deeds done on Vesak has greater value compared to other days, so devotees will perform plenty of merit-making activities during this holiday, from visiting temples to undertaking blood drives.

The images in this gallery represent Vesak as celebrated in Borobudur in Central Java, Indonesia; Singapore; and Thailand.