Wesak or Vesak, also known as Buddha Day, celebrates the Buddha’s birthday, enlightenment and death. It is the most important day in the Buddhist calendar. In Japanese Buddhism, 8th April marks the birth of the Buddha, 8th December his enlightenment and 15th February his death.

During Wesak, Buddhists celebrate the life of the Buddha and his teachings. They remember the night of his enlightenment and his insights into his previous lives, as well as his revelations about the nature of death, karma and rebirth, suffering and desire.

Wesak is celebrated with great joy and vivid colours. Homes are cleaned and decorated in preparation. Celebrations begin before dawn, when devotees throng the temples early in the morning to meditate and take the Five Precepts. Sutras are chanted by monks.

Celebrations vary from one country to another. ‘The Bathing of the Buddha’ often takes place. Water is poured over the shoulders of statues of the Buddha as a reminder of the need to purify the heart and mind. Offerings are made to the monks and the temples, and may be laid on the altar as a sign of respect for the Buddha and his teachings.

In China, traditional elements from Chinese culture, such as dancing dragons, are incorporated into celebrations. In Indonesia, Wesak lanterns are made from paper and wood. Another popular custom in some countries is the release of caged birds, symbolising letting go of troubles and wishing that all beings be well and happy. Buddhists in some parts of the world make origami paper cranes which are used as decorations or sometimes floated down rivers to symbolise the same thing.

Many Buddhist temples serve vegetarian food (as many Buddhists avoid eating meat). Special lectures on the teachings of the Buddha are given, and candle lit processions take place through the streets. Observers are made welcome, both in processions and at temples.

Are presents given on Wesak?
Giving to others is an important part of Buddhist tradition. Gifts may be exchanged as part of the festivities on Wesak. There is also emphasis on giving to the needy. Devotees may visit orphanages, welfare homes, homes for the aged or charitable institutions, distributing cash donations and gifts. Some youth organisations organise mass blood donation to hospitals. Donations are also made to monks and nuns.

What are the Five Precepts and how do they influence Buddhist celebrations?

All Buddhists live by the Five Moral Precepts which are refraining from:

• harming living things
• taking what is not given
• sexual misconduct
• lying or gossip
• taking intoxicating substances e.g. drugs or drink

Samaneras live by ten precepts, while Buddhist monks actually keep 227 rules of the order. The ten precepts are the five precepts plus refraining from the following:

• taking substantial food after midday (from noon to dawn)
• dancing, singing and music
• use of garlands, perfumes and personal adornment like jewelery
• use of luxurious beds and seats
• accepting and holding money, gold or silver

Therefore on celebration days, Buddhists will often eat vegetarian food and will not drink alcohol. Gifts will be simple, especially those given to monks. Monks in particular will not dress up, and people will not eat to excess. However, Buddhist celebrations are also very joyful, colourful occasions.

Why is Wesak celebrated on different days and why does it have different names?
Buddhists, apart from the Japanese, use the lunar calendar to define when dates of festivals should take place. Dates when there is a full moon are used often.

Suggested activities (based on the QCA Scheme of Work)
Unit 1D: Beliefs and Practice (Generic), Section 1: What is a holy day?
Use pictures of Wesak celebrations, for example from BBC Religion, to introduce the festival. Explain how it is celebrated and ask students to describe the events of a special day they have experienced. To compare the similarities and differences between the two, students could make two timelines of events, one for their special day and one for Wesak.

QCA Scheme of Work:
Unit 7C: Religious Figure, Section 1: Why is the Buddha still remembered today?
Get a range of quotations and discuss why the Buddha is still remembered today. Ask the pupils to list, based on the quotations, the qualities the Buddha had that made his life story endure.

Using a map, show where the Buddha lived and travelled, and locate other religious figures of that time and where they lived. Read through information on the life of the Buddha with the students, and then discuss the questions: 'What do the stories tell us about the beliefs of the people who wrote them?', 'What type of source are the stories - historical, myth or parable?'.

Unit 7D: Who was Gotama Buddha? Section 2: Why did Gotama Buddha leave home?
Following study of the Buddha’s life, ask students to consider what he might have seen around him which convinced him to leave his comfortable life. The Story of the Buddha's Enlightenment worksheet may help with this activity. Read and discuss a number of current news stories involving suffering around the world. Students could mark these on a map. They could then investigate what Buddhist groups are doing, both locally and around the world, to alleviate suffering. Images and short write-ups of these stories could be added to the map.

Unit 7D: Who was Gotama Buddha? Section 4: What are the Buddha's main teachings?
Teach pupils about the Buddhist scriptures, focusing on the Four Noble Truths and the Noble Eightfold Path. Ask pupils to write down the information, giving a practical example for each part of the Noble Eightfold Path. The Eightfold Path worksheet may help with this activity.

Unit 7D: Who was Gotama Buddha? Section 5: How helpful are the Buddha’s teachings for today?
Give students examples of situations where moral dilemmas might occur, such as telling the truth about a mistake, keeping money given in error or being offered drinks at a party. Ask students to work in groups of 4–5 to list dilemmas they have encountered in their own lives. Ask them to list 2–3 alternative ways of approaching each dilemma. Then ask them to use the 5 Precepts and the Eightfold Path to decide how a Buddhist would approach each issue. This can lead into a class discussion about how helpful the Buddha’s teachings are in the modern world. The Dilemmas discussion frame may help with this activity.

Unit 7D: Who was Gotama Buddha? Section 6: How did meditation help the Buddha?
Ask pupils to write an article of not more than 250 words on meditation for a Buddhist children's magazine. Give them a selection of information on meditation. Pupils work first in pairs to highlight key points and then arrange these in a brief list. Pairs then double up into fours and plan the article (200-250 words). The group plans should include:

• idea/text for a strong opening sentence
• reminder of agreed key points
• idea/text outline for an effective ending

The Meditation article planning sheet may help with this activity.After checking with the teacher each member of the group should work on a fuller draft of the article.

RE at KS3
Full details of all QCA schemes of work can be found online at:
www.standards.dfes.gov.uk/schemes3/subjects/

BBC Religion and Ethics - Buddhism
A detailed guide to Wesak.

Radio 1's guide to Buddhism
Useful, accessible information and links to other Buddhist sites.

BBC Parenting - Multi Faith Celebrations
This handy guide gives tips on preparing yourself for children's curiosity about religions.

The Buddhist Society
The British Buddhist Society. Includes information about Buddhism as well as details of courses, classes and other events.

Buddhanet
If any queries are left then they will be answered here. Includes a detailed account of the history of Buddhism.

Family Dharma
Written by a practising Buddhist and packed full of activities, ideas and resources for teaching children about Buddhism and for living a Buddhist family life.

Open-Sez-Me - Wesak
An account for children of Wesak, the life of the Buddha and a day in the life of a Buddhist monk, together with instructions for making a mandala, an explanation of hand gestures in Buddhist art and a selection of recipes.

the RE site
A comprehensive collection of RE news, links and resources for students of all ages. Includes an interactive festivals calendar, links to virtual tours of places of worship and AV/IT resources catalogue.

The Culham Institute
RE curriculum and training resources with a strong emphasis on the use of multimedia and ICT. The site contains a wide range of assemblies for primary and secondary groups focusing on people, festivals and other important themes and days.

SPCK - The Assemblies Website
Constantly updated, this site provides instant-access assemblies for primary and secondary schools on a wide range of secular and religious topics, including festivals of world religions.

The Parrotfish Company
A catalogue of multicultural educational resources and religious artefacts from around the world.

Turning the Pages
The British Library's award-winning online collection of ancient texts. Students can 'turn the pages' of a range of texts from different cultures, including the Lindisfarne Gospels, the Diamond Sutra, Sultan Baybars' Qur'an and the Hebrew Golden Haggadah.

Words Alive! - Special Books
An interactive guide to the six world religions from the British Library with video, images and information. Explore each 'display case' to discover more about each religion.

Britkid
A site about race, racism and life - as seen through the eyes of the Britkids. You can hang out with a Britkid or go into town to learn about religion, food, culture and the triumphs, trials and tribulations of life as a teenager in multicultural Britain.

Portsmouth EMAS
The Portsmouth Ethnic Minority Achievement Service offer a range of excellent multicultural online resources, including religious festival activities, literacy resources and interactive number lines in a wide range of languages.

Please note that the BBC is not responsible for the content of external websites.