COLOMBO-Underlining India’s commitment to fostering Buddhist diplomacy, spiritual outreach, and shared cultural heritage, the sacred Devnimori relics of Lord Buddha will be travelling to Sri Lanka for their first-ever international exposition.

The holy relics will be enshrined at Gangaramaya Temple in Colombo from February 4 to 11, with public veneration beginning February 5 onwards. They are expected to attract a large number of devotees, Buddhist monks, and international pilgrims in the island nation, who will have the rare opportunity to pay homage to the revered relics.

“From Vietnam to Mongolia and Thailand to Russia, India continues to share its Buddhist heritage. As the Holy Devnimori Relics arrive in Sri Lanka, witness how India connects the world through the message of Lord Buddha,” the High Commission stated.

The shared heritage of Lord Buddha demonstrates that India’s bond with the world extends far beyond formal ties.

PM Modi has underlined that India is not only the custodian of Lord Buddha’s sacred relics but also a “living bearer” of his heritage.

“Relics associated with Lord Buddha found at Piprahwa, Vaishali, Devni Mori, and Nagarjunakonda are a living presence of his message. India has preserved and nurtured these relics in every form — scientific and spiritual,” he said.

India has continuously strived to contribute as much as possible to the development of sites worldwide connected with Buddha’s heritage. When a devastating earthquake in Nepal damaged ancient stupas, India assisted in their reconstruction. After the earthquake in Myanmar’s Bagan, India helped conserve over 100 pagodas.

In Thailand, where the sacred relics were placed at different locations, more than 40 lakh devotees came for darshan in less than a month. He emphasized that in Vietnam, public sentiment was so strong that the duration of the exhibition had to be extended, and in nine cities nearly 1.75 crore people paid homage to the relics.

In Mongolia, thousands waited for hours outside the Gandan Monastery, and many wished to touch the Indian representatives simply because they had come from the land of Buddha. (IANS)
@with IW