Buddha Purnima, the biggest religious festival of the Buddhist Community will be observed in the country on Tuesday.
Buddha Purnima is a festival that marks Gautam Buddha’s birth, enlightenment and death. It falls on the day of the full moon in May.
Lord Buddha was born on the full moon day in 563 BC, achieved enlightenment and nirvana (passing away) on the same day.Different Buddhist organisations have chalked out various programmes to celebrate the day. The day is a public holiday.
Newspapers will bring out special articles while Bangladesh Betar, Bangladesh Television and private TV channels will air special programmes highlighting the significance of the day.
President Abdul Hamid, Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and BNP Chairperson Khaleda Zia, in separate messages, greeted the Buddhist community on the occasion.
In a message, President Abdul Hamid said Bangladesh is a country of communal harmony where all citizens can practice their religion freely.
He also hoped that the people of Buddhist community will play an important role in the development of the country.
In a separate message, Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina said Gautam Buddha preached the messages of friendship, mercy and non-violence throughout his life.
She expressed hope that the people of the Buddhist community will work for the country’s development using their wisdom, talent and efficiency being inspired by the ideals of Buddha.
Mentioning Bangladesh a country of communal harmony, BNP Chairperson Khaleda Zia said the people of all religions and beliefs here are tied in fraternity based on mutual respect.
“We don’t believe in the division of religious minority and majority. We all are Bangladeshis. We’ve always tried to maintain religious harmony and protect the dignity of all religions. We’ll continue our efforts to this end in the days to come, too,” Khaleda added. – UNB
