Pilgrims from several nations attend Int’l Buddhist Conclave in Lucknow

A procession with the Buddhist flag was carried out by nearly 200 devotees from Ambedkar Chauraha to the four-pillar statue in Ambedkar Park -- a distance of about 500 metres.

LUCKNOW: The day-long International Buddhist Conclave 2022, held at the Ambedkar Park in the city’s Gomti Nagar area on Thursday, was attended by 200 Buddhist pilgrims from several nations. The conclave was organised by the Samanvaya Seva Sansthan on behalf of the Tripitaka Chanting Council and the Light of Buddha Dharma Foundation International.

We have immense potential for spiritual tourism, said tourism department secretary (HT PHOTO)

Speaking at the event, Mukesh Meshram, principal secretary of the Uttar Pradesh tourism department, said, “Our state has great potential for spiritual tourism. While there are over 600 million Buddhists worldwide, less than 1% of them can come to India for pilgrimage due to a lack of advanced tourism facilities. We need to change this. The tourism department lent its support to this event to encourage more such events in the future.”

Earlier in the day, a procession with the Buddhist flag was carried out by nearly 200 devotees from Ambedkar Chauraha to the four-pillar statue in Ambedkar Park -- a distance of about 500 metres.

Dr Phra Charan Suthi, a senior monk from Thailand, was the chief guest at the event. Similarly, Dr Wangmo Dixey, the director of the Light of Buddha Dharma Foundation International, and Dr Richard Dixey of the Khyentse Foundation were the special guests of the event. At the assembly, Bhadant Gyanjyoti represented India.

On the occasion, Hemant Boudh and Suraj Rahi performed musical performances on Lord Buddha’s life. A similar event will also be organised on November 5, 7, 9, and 15 at Sankisa, Shravasti, Kushinagar, and Sarnath respectively.