Description : Every year on Vesak Poya Day, the streets of Sri Lanka transform after dark. Towering illuminated structures — known as Vesak Pandals or Vesak Thoran — rise above busy intersections and public squares, their electric panels flickering through scenes drawn from the Jataka tales, the ancient stories of the Buddha's previous lives. Vesak is the most important festival in the Buddhist calendar, celebrating the birth, enlightenment, and death of Siddhartha Gautama (the Buddha). Colombo, Sri Lanka.