Events that can be celebrated in Sri Lanka

Sri Lanka is a place of vibrant festivals and colorful celebrations, with four major religions, a diversified culture, and no less than 25 public holidays. Sri Lankan celebrations not only highlight the country’s culture and religions, but also its fascinating history and lovely traditions. Some of Sri Lanka’s most thrilling and intriguing festivals are listed below. The traditional and modern festivals have been discussed in this article.

Vesak Festival

Vesak Poya is a well-known Sri Lankan holiday that honors Buddha’s three major life events: birth, enlightenment, and nirvana. Vesak Poya is one of Sri Lanka’s most major Buddhist festivals, and it takes place in the first week of May. The celebrations begin on the full moon day and go for a week, with magnificent and colorful lanterns called Vesak Kudu, which represent Buddha’s light, adorning every location.

For Vesak in Sri Lanka, peasants and townspeople light up their homes with clay diyas, while well-lit pandals brighten places like Colombo and Kandy that have artwork from the Jataka legends. The holiday is held all throughout the island, with the biggest celebrations taking place in Colombo, the capital.

Many cultural events accompany the festival, which highlight Buddhist history and the three stages of Buddha’s life. The event brings delight to the entire country and is the greatest time to learn about Buddhist culture. Vesak Day is also Southeast Asia’s most important Buddhist festival celebration. This festival is held in May.

Sinhala & Tamil New Year

This holiday, which takes place in mid-April, brings the entire country together in a happy mood. The festival, which marks the conclusion of the harvest season or spring, is one of the major or the biggest in Sri Lanka. During the holiday, people clean their homes, buy new clothes, and cook a variety of traditional treats. The children also apply herbal oils to eliminate any unwanted spirits during the celebrations.

Locals often light fireworks and organize competitive games in which everyone can join. This celebration encourages people of all faiths to get together and form friendships. Every year on the 13th or 14th of April, it is commemorated.

Poson Festival

This is the second most important event for Buddhists in Sri Lanka. Poson Festival is historically significant since it marks the arrival of Buddhism to the island in the third century. In the true spirit of Buddhist traditions and teachings, the celebrations involve lanterns, pandals, and alms-stalls across the island, much as they do on Vesak. The most lavish celebrations take place in and around the Mihintale rock outcrop, where Buddha’s disciple Mahinda delivered Buddhist doctrines to King Devanampiyatissa for the first time. Poson is Sri Lanka’s most important celebration, so don’t miss it.

Vel Festival

It is one of Sri Lanka’s most major Hindu and cultural celebrations. For the war-god Skandha and his trident, the event is crucial (Vel). To begin the ceremony, the Vel is paraded in a large golden chariot driven by white people who apply sacred ash to their faces. As the procession goes through the city, it is accompanied by dancers, elephants, and musicians, and Sri Lankans can hear religious melodies, bells, and drums. You’ll want to see more of the lovely parade and music. Every year in July or August, Colombo hosts this festival.

Kandy Esala Perahera

The festival tooth, also known as the Kandy Esala Perahera, is a celebration that takes place all throughout Sri Lanka. The festive performances bring people together, thus it is celebrated by more than just Buddhists. The festivities last for ten days in either July or August. The celebration takes place in July or August, the month in which Buddha is said to have given his first teaching after attaining enlightenment. The Kap Situveema, in which a blessed young Jackfruit tree is rooted and re-planted, is the beginning of the Kandy Perahera. There are three main categories for perahera.

1. Kumbal Perahara: The first Tooth Relic procession begins with the Kumbal Perahera. It is also known as the Kumbal Procession.
2. Randoli Perahera: Also known as the Randoli Procession, it takes place in Kandy for five days every year during the procession of the Sacred Tooth Relic.
3. Maha Randoli Perahera :It is also called as the Grand Randoli Procession. The Maha Randoli Perahera is the festival’s culminating procession. It is the festival’s grandest parade. The elephants are dressed in gold and crimson sewn outfits and arrive with a garland.

Nallur Festival

This is a 25-day festival honoring Lord Murugan, and it is a grand and auspicious festival well worth seeing. On different days, numerous forms of processions may be observed all over the country, although Jaffna hosts the majority of the festivities. The Nallur Kandaswamy Kovil is the place to be if you want to get the most out of the celebration. Devotees are seen transporting the great deity on a silver throne across the country on the first day of the festival. On other days, chariots carrying various idols from across the country are paraded. Because of Sri Lanka’s cultural diversity, the country’s celebrations are one-of-a-kind, with people of all faiths celebrating each occasion together. Sri Lanka’s festivals have demonstrated the country’s religious harmony and prosperity.

Christmas festival

Despite the fact that just roughly 20% of Sri Lanka’s population is Christian, Christmas is still a huge event on the island. Trees, lights, and garlands are adorning every mall, store, company, and bakery. Nativity displays will be shown in churches and businesses owned by Christians. On December 24, all major hotels host Christmas dinner, and the Cinnamon Grand Hotel lavishly decorates its foyer. In Colombo, a visit to the hotel is enough of a Christmas experience. Don’t miss out on the world’s richest and most spiced cake, Sri Lankan Christmas cake. Despite construction delays that forced organizers to cut the tower in half, Sri Lanka broke the Guinness record for the tallest artificial Christmas tree. The Colombo tree is 18 meters taller than the current world record holder in Guangzhou, China.

Galle Literary Festival

The Galle Literary Festival is a prominent event in Sri Lanka, held in and around the old city of Galle, a UNESCO World Heritage site. Over 70 events are included in the schedule. Panel talks, debates, book launches, poetry slams, literary lunches and dinners, film evenings, seminars, and a complete children’s program are all available to guests during the day. Poetry slams, jazz performances, late-night movies, art shows, and photographic exhibitions are all part of the program at night. Over 40 international writers and 50 Sri Lankan writers took part.

Since its inception in 2007, the “Galle Lit Fest” has evolved to become one of the most prestigious international cultural events dedicated to honoring writing and literature from across the world, earning the title of “No. 1 Literary Festival in the World”

Kataragama Esala Festival

Over the course of two weeks, thousands of devotees from all over Sri Lanka flock to the holy town of Kataragama in southern Sri Lanka for one of the country’s most important Hindu festivities. People of all major faiths engage in rituals such as skin piercing and self-mutilation to seek divine guidance and atonement from the deity. This celebration, like the Esala Perahera, features processions of dancers, musicians, elephants, fire-eaters, and acrobats, all of which add to the religious zeal and festivities.

CMB Street Aurudu Shopping & Food Festival

CMB Street Aurudu Shopping is a festival where visitors may enjoy a spectacular shopping spree as well as a cuisine tour with some delectable foods. Usually, this is held in april. The festival serves as a one-stop shopping destination for all fashionistas. Tourists will also get the opportunity to sample a variety of popular local street foods, as well as street fashion, which is another must-see attraction. The CMB Street is also one of the must-see attractions in Sri Lanka.

Hikkaduwa Beach Festival

Hikkaduwa Beach Fest, also known as Hikka Fest, is one of Sri Lanka’s most popular celebrations. The Beach Fest, which takes place over five days in July/August, includes events such as kite festivals, DJ parties, and ladies-only nights. The presence of world-renowned DJs, prominent dancers, and musicians draws large crowds of both residents and visitors. The event, which is organized by numerous business groups and the Sri Lanka Tourism Board to promote tourism, attracts over 10,000 residents and is said to have attracted 20% of all tourists to Sri Lanka in 2008. The entire festival takes place in the southern coastal town of Hikkaduwa, which boasts pristine beaches, five-star accommodations, and a wide range of leisure activities. The festival’s various events cater to all age groups and can be enjoyed by young and middle-aged persons, as well as families and grandparents.

Independence day

Any country’s residents value its independence day, and it is one of Sri Lanka’s most important holidays. Sri Lanka gained independence from colonial domination on February 4, 1948. Every year, the entire country celebrates this important day with events and parades. Military parades, flag-hoisting rituals, firework displays, cannon fire shows, and cultural performances can all be seen when touring the country.

The National Kite Festival

This lovely location is used for a variety of recreational activities. Thousands of flying shapes of every hue filled the sky over Sri Lanka’s capital on Sunday, August 19th, for the annual kite festival. For the kite competition, thousands of people flew nearly 2,000 kites into the sky. The most beautiful kites floating in the air were giant animals, dragons, birds, and sailing ships, all of which were created by the participants. Kite aficionados from all around the world attend this annual event.

The National Kite Festival is a place where creativity thrives. People of diverse ages and backgrounds demonstrate their abilities. Each kite is one-of-a-kind, with a different color and shape. Everyone is welcome to attend this kite event. The tournament includes categories such as the longest kite, most inventive kite, natural resource kites, and more. There is a palpable sense of anticipation in the air. You can even buy a kite from one of the merchants and participate straight away. In the stalls, you’ll find Sri Lankan-style delights. This kite festival is unquestionably a day of many wonders.

Deepvali Festival

The festival of lights is one of the most important Hindu festivals, and it is celebrated by the Tamil population in Sri Lanka. Deepavali is the name given to the festival in southern India; it is known as Diwali in the north and other parts of the world. The event commemorates Lord Rama’s victory over Ravana, symbolizing the triumph of light over darkness, good over evil, and hope over despair. Thousands of flickering oil lamps outside houses and temples symbolizes victory and invoke the blessings of Lakshmi, the goddess of riches, during the festivities. Families traditionally gather in new clothes to share a meal and exchange gifts, while other festivities include spectacular fireworks displays, crafting homemade sweets, and visiting local shrines and temples.

Vaddas’ annual ceremony

Many different ceremonial dances are performed by the Bintenne Veddas in which a specialist practitioner is possessed by a god or demon. These dances are always performed as part of an exorcism or to obtain favors or information from a spirit entity. The Anuradhapura Veddas organize an annual ritual in which the village’s tutelary god is honored with collective offerings. Individual homes organize other ceremonies, such as exorcisms. The Coast Veddas follow the Hindu festival calendar, however their most important rites are jointly held possession ceremonies by all concerned Vedda villagers. Personal propitiation and protection ceremonies are also popular throughout all Vedic communities.

Most of the festivals in Sri Lanka are traditional festivals and I tried to give some idea about the festivals that you can be celebrated in Sri Lanka. I you visit to Sri Lanka, Don’t miss these Festivals.