Published:  00:00 Friday - May 16, 2008

As many as 11 records in Vietnam’s Buddhism history were announced at the on-going 2008 United Nations Day of Vesak (UNDV) in Hanoi on May 15.

The 2008 UNDV in Hanoi, co-organised by the National Coordination Committee, the Vietnam Buddhist Sangha (VBS) and the International Organising Committee (IOC), is the biggest Vesak festival so far in Vietnam.

The event, taking place from May 13-17 at the National Convention Centre, has drawn 3,500 delegates from 75 countries and territories around the world.
It has also attracted the biggest number of vegetarians in Vietnam with the value of vegetarian food amounting to VND10 billion.

An international conference on Buddhism held on the sidelines of the UNDV with the participation of 5,000 delegates is also the biggest event of this kind in Vietnam.
A record number of 30,000 reformed theatre (cai luong) DVDs featuring the life of Buddha have been released on this occasion.

Also in the list of the records is a pair of “propagation of faith” lamps from Hoc Mon district, Ho Chi Minh City, which are 12m long and weigh 10 tonnes each.

A “Buddha’s birthday” balloon made by the IOC and the Nam Viet A Construction and Investment company, which is 26.23m long, 18m wide, 60kg in weight and 437.76 sq.m in area is considered the biggest balloon and the Buddhist flag of this year’s UNDV the biggest flag of this kind in Vietnam.

An exhibition of 1,000 photos featuring various topics including Vietnamese pagodas during the past 20 centuries, Vietnamese Buddhism records, Buddhism and daily life, recognised as the biggest photo exhibition on Buddhism in Vietnam, opened on May 13.

Another record has been granted to a symphony performance about Buddhism, which is scheduled for May 16 with the participation of 500 artists.

A record 20,000 candle-lighting programme for peace in Vietnam will be held at the National Convention Centre on May 16.

Around 100 Buddhist Shrines will be planted in Bai Dinh pagoda in northern Ninh Binh province on May 17, the largest number of Buddhist Shrines to be planted in Vietnam so far.

The organising committee said the recognition of the 11 records in the Vietnamese Buddhism on the occasion of the Vesak festival has helped improve Vietnam’s image as well as the status of Vietnamese Buddhism in the international arena.