As many as 11 records in the Vietnamese Buddhism made at the on-going 2008 United Nations Day of Vesak (UNDV) in Hanoi were announced on May 15.

The 2008 UNDV in Hanoi is the biggest Vesak festival so far in Vietnam, which is co-organised by the National Coordination Committee, the Vietnam Buddhist Sangha (VBS) and the International Organising Committee (IOC).

The event, taking place from May 13-17 at the National Convention Centre, draws 3,500 delegates from 75 countries and territories around the world.

It attracted the biggest number of vegetarians in Vietnam with the value of vegetarian food amounting to VND 10 billion.

An international conference on Buddhism was held on the sidelines of the UNDV with participation of 5,000 delegates, becoming the biggest event of this kind in Vietnam.

A record number of 30,000 reformed theatre (cai luong) DVDs featuring the life of Buddha were released on this occasion.

Also in the list of the records is a pair of “propagation of faith” lamps from Hoc Mon district, Ho Chi Minh City , which are 12m long and weigh 10 tonnes each.

A “Buddha’s birthday” balloon made by the IOC and the Nam Viet A Construction and Investment company, which is 26.23m long, 18m wide, 60kg in weight and 437.76 sq.m in area, was selected as the biggest balloon in the country.

The Buddhist flag of this year’s UNDV was selected the biggest flag of this kind in Vietnam.

An exhibition of 1,000 photos featuring various topics including Vietnamese pagodas during the past 20 centuries, Vietnamese Buddhism records, Buddhism and daily life, was recognised as the biggest photo exhibition on Buddhism in Vietnam. It opened on May 13.

Another record was granted to a symphony performance about Buddhism, which is scheduled for May 16 with the participation of 500 artists.

A record 20,000 candle-lighting programme for peace in Vietnam will be held at the National Convention Centre on May 16.

Around 100 Buddhist Shrines will be planted at Bai Dinh pagoda in northern Ninh Binh province on May 17, the largest number of Buddhist Shrines to be planted in Vietnam so far.

The organising committee says the recognition of the 11 records in the Vietnamese Buddhism on the occasion of the Vesak festival helped improve the image of the land and people of Vietnam as well as the status of Vietnamese Buddhism in the international arena. (VNA)