Nakhon Ratchasima hosts 11-day grand Vesak celebration with renowned Thai monks

Nakhon Ratchasima province in northeast Thailand is set to hold an 11-day grand event to celebrate Vesak Week, featuring the veneration of holy relics from Sri Lanka, Myanmar, and Thailand. The celebration, starting today, coincides with the 555th anniversary of Nakhon Ratchasima City and will take place at MCC Hall on the third floor of The Mall. Attendees will have the opportunity to pay respect to Buddha images and listen to famous Thai preachers.

In the opening ceremony, Lieutenant General Sawarat Seangphol, the Commander of Army Region 2, will preside over the event, which will include the invitation to the holy relics to be enshrined at MCC Hall. This will allow local residents and tourists to pay their respects.

The Vesak Week celebration comprises the Tri Laksana exhibition, aimed at fostering a deeper understanding of the impermanent nature of life and the Wheel of Dharma with its eight components leading to the end of suffering. Young visitors may learn and apply these concepts in their daily lives. Additionally, there will be 25 lifelike replicas of famous arahants for devotees to ask for blessings, including those of revered monks such as Luang Pu Sao Kanatasilo and Luang Pu To Promrangsi.

Several activities allow Buddhists to participate in merit-making, including the offering of robes, venerating Buddha images, applying gold leaf to sacred Buddha statues, listening to daily Dharma talks at 2 pm, and more. Prominent monks from across Thailand are scheduled to speak, including Acharn Warongkot Wiriyatharai of Wat Phutthaprompanyo in Chiang Mai and Rajchasuttiprachanath (Alongkot Tickhapanyo) of Wat Pra Bat Nam Pu in Lopburi. The event will run from June 1 to June 11 at MCC Hall, third floor, The Mall Nakhon Ratchasima.

Visakha Bucha Day commemorates 3 defining events in the life of the Lord Buddha. These include his birth, attaining enlightenment, and then his death, which all occurred on the full-moon day of the sixth lunar month, according to Buddhist history.