Esala Perahera

Esala Perahera. Sinhalese term meaning the ‘procession of the full moon of Esala’ and being the Sri Lankan version of the Āsāḷha Pūjā. The procession takes place in the course of a festival held in July or August in Kandy, one of the ancient capitals of Sri Lanka, to honour the relic of the Buddha's tooth (see tooth relic) preserved in the Dalada Maligawa or Temple of the Tooth. The celebrations, including processions of decorated elephants, drummers, and dancers, last for the ten days ending on the full moon of July/August. The celebrations of the first six nights are relatively minor but from the seventh the parade's route lengthens and the procession becomes more and more splendid. The procession is actually a combination of five separate peraheras. Four come from the four Kandy devalas, the shrines to the deities who protect the island. These are Natha (a deva) and the gods Viṣṇu, Skanda, and Pattinī. The fifth and most splendid procession comes from the Dalada Maligawa. A replica of the golden case in which the Buddha's tooth is preserved is carried on the back of a heavily decorated elephant specially trained for the task.