Vesak Bochea Day, also known as Buddha Day, is one of the most important ceremonies for Buddhists throughout the world. The day commemorates the birth, enlightenment and nirvana of Siddharta Gautama Shakyamuni Buddha.

Pchum Ben, also known as the Festival of the Ancestors, is a 15-day Buddhist festival in Cambodia that honors ancestors and the dead: 

• Dates Pchum Ben takes place at the end of Buddhist Lent, Vassa, on the 15th day of the tenth month in the Khmer calendar.

• Activities During the first 14 days, called Kan Ben, Cambodians visit pagodas and offer food, rice, and prayers to monks. On the 15th day, Pchum Ben Day, Cambodians believe the gates of the underworld open, allowing spirits to receive food and blessings. 

• Significance Pchum Ben is a time for families to gather and remember their deceased. Cambodians believe that offerings made during Pchum Ben ease the suffering of spirits and grant them peace. 

• Traditions Children prepare lunch for their parents before visiting the pagoda. Cambodians hold their parents in high regard and believe that making them happy will bring happiness into their lives. 

• Food Cambodians make large quantities of food to share, especially during the last three days of Pchum Ben. These foods include rice cakes that can take weeks to prepare. 

• Monks Monks chant when accepting offerings and call out the spirits of ancestors.

Bonn Kathen is one of the religious festivals for Khmer people and it's the the end of Buddhist Lent. The monks stay for three months in a retreat inside a pagoda and at the end the people all over the country go to local temple to offer them gifts.

Photo by © Chiara Canova