News, International

Sri Lanka High Commission Joins Annual Katina Cheewara Ceremony at Buddha Vihara in New Delhi

10 Nov, 2026

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The Sri Lankan High Commission in New Delhi joined the annual Katina robe ceremony at the Buddha Vihara on 7 and 8 November 2026. Buddhist monks, members of the Sri Lankan community, students and devotees from the city attended the two-day observance. hc-newdelhi.gov.lk

The programme included Pirith chanting and other religious rites. Venerable Kiriwaththuduwe Ariyadassana Thero led the observance with Venerable M. Dhammalankara Thero, chief incumbent of the New Delhi Buddhist Vihara, and other members of the Maha Sangha.

Katina marks the end of the traditional three-month rainy-season retreat known as Vas or Vassana. At the conclusion of the retreat, devotees offer a robe to the monastic community. The offering is an act of generosity and respect for the monks.

The ceremony took place at the New Delhi centre of the Maha Bodhi Society of India. According to the High Commission, the temple stands on land gifted by the British Viceroy, and Raja Seth Jugal Kishore Birla funded its construction. The foundation stone was laid in 1931, and Mahatma Gandhi formally opened the temple in 1939.

The society’s links with Sri Lanka date back to its founder, Anagarika Dharmapala. His work focused on reviving Buddhist heritage in India and reconnecting Buddhist communities with places associated with the life of the Buddha.

The New Delhi observance brought devotees from the capital and members of the Sri Lankan community to a temple shaped by those links. The annual robe offering connects the temple’s historical ties with a religious practice still observed by monks and lay devotees.

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