International Vesak Day Organizing Committee Chair (ICDV): “Ba Den Mountain is where heaven meets earth.”

Over 2,000 delegates and Buddhists from more than 80 countries gathered at Ba Den Mountain for the Vesak 2025 Great Ceremony on May 8, 2025. Where the relics of the Buddha are enshrined, in the perception of many senior monks, it appears as a “peaceful realm in the Ta Ba world” – a new spiritual destination for the world.

 

“Peaceful Realm” on top of Ba Den Mountain

In the resounding chanting and the shimmering candlelight of the world peace prayer ceremony, the Vesak 2025 Great Ceremony, Ba Den Mountain – the highest mountain in Southern Vietnam – has become a sacred gathering place for thousands of Buddhists from over 80 countries and territories. Not only a pilgrimage site, it is gradually asserting its position as a global Buddhist center.

Ba Den Mountain is a gathering place for Buddhists from over 80 countries worldwide during the Vesak 2025 Great Ceremony

“We are standing in a place called heaven in the Pali Canon,” shared Most Venerable Prof. Dr. Phra Brahmapundit, President of ICDV. (The Pali Canon is the standard collection of scriptures in the Theravada Buddhist tradition. This is the most complete early Buddhist canon still in existence – PV).

The President of ICDV calls Ba Den Mountain a model for the five forms of peace of the United Nations Vesak

“Heaven is not a place we have to wait until we close our eyes to reach, but a realm we can achieve in this life. And today, on top of Ba Den Mountain, we are enjoying that peaceful realm.” He called this place a model for the five forms of peace of the United Nations Vesak: from economic, social, and environmental to spiritual and international friendship. And the Vesak 2025 Great Ceremony in Vietnam, with Ba Den as its destination, has contributed to realizing that.”

A Friendly, Hospitable, and Sacred Vietnam

Many delegates visiting Vietnam for the first time, especially Ba Den Mountain, were deeply moved and surprised not only by the natural beauty and scale of the spiritual structures but also by the presence of Buddhism in daily life – not as a distant belief, but as a tranquil source of life encompassing the space and people here.

Buddha's relics enshrined at Ba Den Mountain, Tay Ninh

1. Arunjyoti Bhikkhu from India – the birthplace of the Buddha – said: “I am very moved to see the Vietnamese people receive the Buddha's relics with deep reverence. Ba Den Mountain is as beautiful as Rajgir in India – where the Peace Pagoda is located. This place is very beautiful and I have seen Vietnamese Buddhists not only consider Buddhism as a belief but also as a way of life, because they have built such a magnificent Buddhist spiritual complex.”

Venerable Kosho Tomioka from Japan, visiting Tay Ninh for the first time, also expressed his surprise: “We have never seen such a massive spiritual structure on a mountain. Japan does not have relics like this. This is truly special and worthy of respect.”

Contemplating the relics on top of Ba Den Mountain is a "great blessing"

For Venerable Maha Veth Masaenai – Vice President of the Lao Buddhist Union, being able to contemplate the relics on top of Ba Den Mountain is a "great blessing": “On top of this mountain, I feel a very good energy, the fresh air. This is also a good karmic connection, as the relics of the Enlightened One are enshrined on Ba Den Mountain for the people to contemplate.”

Belief and Expectations for a World Buddhist Destination

One of the most moving ceremonies at Ba Den Mountain is the planting of 108 Bodhi trees – symbols of wisdom, compassion, and enlightenment – by delegates from around the world.

The ceremony of planting 108 Bodhi trees – symbols of wisdom, compassion, and enlightenment

Venerable Thich Minh Thien – Head of the Executive Board of the Vietnam Buddhist Sangha in Long An Province – said: “The 108 trees represent the wish that everyone should love and protect each other, and build happiness with compassion and wisdom”.

Vice President of the ICDV – Ven. T. Dhammaratana – called it “a moment that will be recorded in the history of Vietnamese Buddhism”: “The whole mountain seemed covered by the yellow color of the kasaya robes. Not just one, but 108 Bodhi trees were planted, transforming this place into a spiritual garden for Buddhists and Bodhisattvas”.

As part of the event, a candle-lighting ceremony praying for world peace was also held at Tay Bo Da Son Square. Thousands of candles were lit by the Venerables and Buddhists from five continents, spreading the light of wisdom and compassion in the sacred space. “This is the first time I have lit candles with international friends at the foot of the Quan Am statue. That moment was quiet yet warm, as if the whole world was praying for something good”, shared Ms. Nguyen Thi Thu Hoa – a participating Buddhist, emotionally.

Ba Den Mountain is a prominent pilgrimage site in the eyes of international friends

Not only is it a place to hold ceremonies, Ba Den Mountain is becoming a new symbol for Vietnamese Buddhism in the eyes of international friends. Venerable Dhammaratana noted: “Vietnam is a country with a long-standing Buddhist tradition, religious freedom, and government support. I believe Vietnam will soon become a Buddhist destination of the world, with Ba Den Mountain as a prominent pilgrimage site”.

Venerable Thich Thanh Nieu – Permanent Vice President of the Vietnam Buddhist Sangha – affirmed: “From such a large plain, there is a cool mountain year-round, with systematic spiritual investment. After Vesak 2025, many international tourists will surely know Ba Den Mountain as an unmissable pilgrimage site”.

Organized from May 6 to 8, 2025, the 2025 United Nations Vesak Day is one of the important international cultural events to honor humanitarian values and global peace. Buddha relics will be enshrined at the Buddhist Exhibition Center, Ba Den Mountain from May 8-13, 2025 for Buddhists and the public to admire, venerate the world's Buddhist treasure and receive the grace of the Buddha.