Narendra Modi govt to host ”Buddha Poornima Diwas”

New Delhi

The Narendra Modi government will host an international Buddhist function on the occasion of ‘Buddha Poornima’ on May 4 where a special prayer will be offered to express solidarity with the people of quake-hit Nepal, the birth place of the religion’s founder.

Minister of State for Home Kiren Rijiju, the only Buddhist minister in the Modi government, said the government function is being organised considering the fact that India is the birth place of Buddhism and the whole world look into the country as the spiritual centre of the religion.

“The International Buddhist Confederation (IBC) with full support of Ministry of Culture is hosting a historic ‘International Buddha Poornima Diwas Celebration 2015’ on May 4 at Talkatora stadium in New Delhi,” he said at a press conference here.

Rijiju said, on this occasion, the Prime Minister, who will grace the function as chief guest, will lead the nation in prayers and express solidarity with the people of Nepal, the birth place of Buddha, and all those affected in India and Tibetan Autonomous Region.

“The move to organise the function was initiated under the aegis of IBC and the Prime Minster has accorded the importance in preservation and promotion of shared heritage and development of Buddhist pilgrimage and heritage circuit in top priority,” he said.

Rijiju said it was unfortunate that this most auspicious and sacred day associated with Buddha, the greatest messenger of peace and gift to humanity, which is celebrated all over the world and also recognised as UN Day of ‘Vesak’ did not receive the official sanction and support in India, the land of origins of Buddhism, so far.

“Buddha is the greatest gift that India has given to the world. It is time that we recognise this and celebrate his greatness in the land where he attained enlightenment, delivered his first Sermon, preached the religion, and finally attained Parinirvana,” he said, adding henceforth the government will host the function on the occasion of Buddha Poornima.

Only twice in independent India, the day was officially commemorated — in 1956 and 2007. The grand 2500th Buddha Jayanti celebrations in 1956 was officially hosted by the government in Bodhgaya, the holiest site for Buddhists, under the leadership of the then Prime Minister Jawahar Lal Nehru.

In 2007, the 2550th anniversary of Buddha’s Mahaparinirvana was hosted in Kushinagar.

It was from India that Buddhism spread to other parts of the world, with the efforts of Emperor Ashoka who in the 3rd century sent his son Mahendra and daughter Sanghamitra to Sri Lanka, followed by ambassadors of the religion to the west through Afghanistan and the Middle East, even as far as Greece according to many historians. In the centuries that followed, Tibet, China, Korea, Japan and most of Southeast Asia too came under the influence of Buddhism, an official release said.

Ashoka is also credited with having distributed 108 relics from Buddha’s sacred remains to different parts of his great empire. 

PTI