BUDDHA PURNIMA & BODHGAYA
Buddha Purnima, also known as Vesak, is an auspicious occasion celebrated by Buddhists all around the world. It marks the birth, enlightenment, and death (parinirvana) of Lord Buddha, the founder of Buddhism. Buddha Purnima falls on the full moon day of the Vaisakha month in the Hindu calendar, which usually falls in April or May. Mahabodhi Temple Complex (Source: Manish Bhandari) Lord Buddha spent a considerable amount of time in Bodhgaya, a small town in Bihar, India, which is considered one of the most sacred places for Buddhists. It is the place where Buddha attained enlightenment under the Bodhi tree, which still stands today in the Mahabodhi Temple complex. Bodhgaya was known as Uruvela in ancient times, and it was here that the young prince Siddhartha Gautama renounced his luxurious life and began his spiritual journey. After six years of intense meditation and self-mortification, he realized that extreme asceticism was not the path to liberation. He then sat under the Bodhi tre