Delegates from 80 countries attend the 2025 United Nations Day of Vesak in Vietnam

The 2025 United Nations Vesak Festival will be held from May 6-8 in Ho Chi Minh City, with the participation of about 2,000 delegates, including about 1,000 international delegates from 80 countries around the world .

On the afternoon of September 27, in Ho Chi Minh City, the Executive Council of the Vietnam Buddhist Sangha and the International Committee for the United Nations Day of Vesak (ICDV) held a press conference to announce the results of the First Session of the International Organizing Committee for the United Nations Day of Vesak 2025 in Vietnam.

Most Venerable Thich Thien Nhon, Deputy Supreme Patriarch of the Patriarchate Council, President of the Executive Council of the Vietnam Buddhist Sangha, President of the United Nations International Organizing Committee for Vesak 2025 in Vietnam and Most Venerable Professor-PhD Phra Brahmapundit, President of ICDV co-chaired the press conference.

At the press conference, Most Venerable Thich Duc Thien, Vice President and General Secretary of the Executive Council of the Vietnam Buddhist Sangha and also Vice President and General Secretary of the United Nations Vesak 2025 Organizing Committee in Vietnam, said that the United Nations Vesak 2025 will be organized by the United Nations Vesak International Organizing Committee and the Vietnam Buddhist Sangha with the support of the Vietnamese Government from May 6-8, 2025 at Campus II of the Vietnam Buddhist Academy in Ho Chi Minh City.

The 2025 United Nations Day of Vesak Celebrations with the theme “Harmony and Inclusion for Human Dignity: Buddhist Insights for World Peace and Sustainable Development” will be attended by about 2,000 delegates, including about 1,000 international delegates from 80 countries around the world.

International delegates include several heads of state; leaders of United Nations agencies; leaders of Buddhist churches and sects; scholars and researchers. Domestic guest delegates include monks and nuns of the Vietnam Buddhist Sangha; leaders and former leaders of the Party, State and Vietnam Fatherland Front; central and local ministries, departments and branches, and thousands of Buddhists and Vietnamese people.

Most Venerable Thich Duc Thien emphasized that the 2025 United Nations Day of Vesak in Vietnam is not only a major event of Buddhism but also an important foreign event that contributes to enhancing the role of Vietnamese Buddhism in international integration and affirming Vietnam's position and responsibility towards the United Nations.

Besides, the 2025 United Nations Vesak Festival is also a cultural and people-to-people diplomacy event, an opportunity to promote the image, people and culture of Vietnam to the world.

This Vesak celebration was held in Ho Chi Minh City, demonstrating the companionship of Vietnamese Buddhism with the nation, with the motto "Dharma - Nation - Socialism" in celebrating the 50th anniversary of the Liberation of the South, National Reunification and the 80th anniversary of National Day September 2.

Vesak is a sacred event commemorating the birth, enlightenment and passing of Buddha Shakyamuni, which takes place on the full moon day of the fourth lunar month (equivalent to May in the Gregorian calendar).

On December 15, 1999, the United Nations General Assembly officially recognized Vesak as an international cultural and religious festival of the United Nations, popular throughout the world. To date, Vesak has been held 24 times, including 15 times in Thailand, 1 time in Sri Lanka and 3 times in Vietnam.

Vesak celebrations in Vietnam were held in 2008 in Hanoi, 2014 in Ninh Binh and 2019 in Ha Nam.

Vietnamplus.vn

Source: https://www.vietnamplus.vn/representatives-from-80-countries-attend-the-joint-vesak-2025-in-viet-nam-post979768.vnp