The Dalada Perahera or the Esala Perahera is held during the Sinhala month of Esala (between July and August) as we know it today annually. It is a grand pageant held to honour the Dantha Dathuwa or the Sacred Tooth Relic of the Buddha which is housed in the Dalada Maligawa or the Temple of the Tooth Relic in Kandy.
Esala Festival is composed of four parts: Devale Perahera (5 days), Kumbal Perahera (5 days), Randoli Perahera (5 days), and Valiyak Mangallaya (7 days). The first three parts, and especially the middle two, are generally called the Kandy Perahera, and attract many tourists and pilgrims. The Devale Perahera is held at the four shrines.
The Kandy Esala Perahera is known to be a grand and one of the oldest Buddhist festival celebrated with elegant costumes and is held in July or August in Kandy in Sri Lanka. The historical procession is held annually to pay homage to the Sacred Tooth Relic of Lord Buddha, which is housed at the Sri Dalada Maligawa (Temple of Tooth Relic) in Kandy.
Kandy Esala Perahera tour Kandy Esala Perahera Tour This unique tour is designed to take you to heart of Sri Lankan culture with the world famous Kandy Parade. The parade of Kandy’s Temple of the Tooth is one of the most important cultural events in the Buddhist world, designed to pay homage to Buddha.
Kandy Esala Perahera Tickets. The Kandy Esala Perahera originated in the Anuradhapura period as the Victory period done by the prisoners who were brought by king Gajaba as the revenge of taking 20,000 men as prisoners to India, the prisoners had to parade with their culture, religious practices showing to the people in the streets of Anuradhapura to commemorate this event.
The Esala Perahera in Kandy is one of the oldest and grandest of all Buddhist festivals in Sri Lanka, featuring dancers, jugglers, musicians, fire-breathers, and lavishly decorated elephants.This is held in Esala (July or August) which is the month that is believed to commemorate the first teaching given by the Buddha after he attained enlightenment.
Modern Kandy Esala Perahera The modern version of Kandy Perahera was inaugurated during the time of King Keerthi Sri Rajasinghe in 1775 A.D. At first only the Devale peraheras were held which had a pure touch of Hinduism because of the influence made by the kings’ consorts who were Hindu princesses from South India and their families and relatives.
The Kandy Perahera. The Kandy Perahera or the Esala Perahera is one of Sri Lanka’s foremost religious celebrations. It has been recorded that the Perahera was held each year since the arrival of Buddha’s tooth relic to Sri Lanka. The Kandy Perahera is an elegant procession or parade that flaunts the various talents of the Kandyan people.
Kandy Perahera Held during the month of July which is the month that is believed to commemorate the first teaching given by the Buddha after he attained enlightenment. The Perahera is held in 3 stages, Kumbal Perahera, Randoli Perahera, Maha Randoli Perahera and visitors from around the world comes to witness this fascinating event every year, flooding the whole city of Kandy.
The Maligawa Perahera is followed by the Devala Peraheras in the order of Natha, Vishnu, Kataragama and Pattini under the direction of the respective Basnayake Nilames, who in their traditional Kandy an costumes, take part in the Esala Perahera. After the day of the Esala Perahera, it is customary for the Diyawadana Nilame and the Basnayake.