Poson Festival – Celebrating the beginning of Buddhism in Sri Lanka

MihintaleMissakaPawwa|Via-Wikimedia,CC0

The festival of Poson is the commemoration of when Buddhism came to Sri Lanka. This is of great importance to the local people. The traditional celebrations take place in a grand way at Mihinthale. This is a huge rock where the summit can be reached only by climbing up a whopping 1840 steps.
It is believed that King Devanampiyatissa was converted to a Buddhist by Arahat Maha Mahinda, the son of King Asoka in India on this very rock about 3 century BC. On this special day, devotees make their way to the temple here and engage in religious activities. The festivities also include dansal and massive pandols that tell the story of how Buddhism came to Sri Lanka in pictorials. Mihinthale is now one of the major tourist attractions in Sri Lanka. Visitors can easily plan out their sightseeing trip to Mihinthale with agents like Holidays by Design.