Buddha Jayanti observed at Boudhanath (Photo Feature)

KATHMANDU, May 26: Today is Baisakh Shukla Purnima as per the lunar calendar or 2,565th Buddha Jayanti – the day when Lord Buddha was born in Lumbini in the western Nepal. The special full moon day is being celebrated by offering homage to Siddhartha Gautam who is believed to be the ninth incarnation of Lord Bishnu. 

On the day, Buddhists from Nepal and other parts of the globe offer their heartfelt homage and devotion to Buddha who got his birth, enlightenment and death on the same day today in the lunar calendar.

Owing to COVID-19 pandemic. no formal programs have been organized on the Buddha Jayanti. With the enforcement of prohibitory orders to protect lives from coronavirus infection, the Buddhist monks, preachers and meditators living in the shrines and monasteries are observing the day by offering peace prayers and worship. 

Meanwhile, a very few people attended an event organized at Boudhanath in Kathmandu on Wednesday afternoon as public public movement is restricted amid the prohibitory orders in the Kathmandu Valley. Here are some photos taken by Ratopati photojournalist Subash Shrestha on the premises of one of the ten World Heritage Sites in Nepal.