Bhubaneswar, May 5 -- Today, Buddhists all over the world are celebrating Buddha Purnima, also known as Vesak, with much pomp and fervour.

The festival generally falls on the first full moon day (Purnima) of the Hindu month of Vaisakha. This auspicious day marks the birth, enlightenment (Nirvana) and death (Parinirvana) of Gautama Buddha, the founder of Buddhism.

Dhauli or Dhauligiri is one of the five famous Buddhist sites in Odisha, where Buddhists flock in large numbers all year round, and more on Buddha Purnima. It is located around 8 kilometre south of Bhubaneswar.

It happens to be the place where the Kalinga War was fought on the bank of the Daya River between the Maurya Empire led by Emperor Ashoka and the state of Kalinga, led ...