Top 10 Greatest Religious Festivals

Religious festivals give you a chance to experience faith through traditions that can fill streets, homes, and places of worship with color, music, food, prayer, and shared celebration. You may see ancient customs carried forward almost unchanged, while others have grown into massive public events that bring together entire cities and communities. Each festival offers its own window into the beliefs, stories, and values that shape the lives of millions of people.

The Top Ten

Diwali (Hinduism)

Diwali, Deepavali, or Dipavali is the Hindu festival of lights that is celebrated in India.
Hanukkah (Judaism)

Hanukkah is a Jewish festival commemorating the rededication of the Second Temple in Jerusalem at the time of the Maccabean Revolt against the Seleucid Empire.
Holi (Hinduism)

Holi is a Hindu spring festival originating from the Indian subcontinent. It is celebrated predominantly in India but has also spread to other areas of Asia and parts of the Western world through the diaspora from the Indian subcontinent. It is also known as the "festival of colours" or the "festival of love."
Christmas (Christianity)

Christmas is an annual festival commemorating the birth of Jesus Christ, observed primarily on December 25 as a religious and cultural celebration among billions of people around the world.
Easter (Christianity)

Easter, also called Pascha or Resurrection Sunday, is a festival and holiday celebrating the resurrection of Jesus from the dead.
Hajj and Eid al-Adha (Islam)

Eid al-Adha, also called the "Festival of Sacrifice," is the second of two Islamic holidays celebrated worldwide each year and is considered the holier of the two.
Water Festival (Buddhism)

Songkran, Thailand's traditional New Year's celebration in April, is the world's biggest water fight. Thousands gather to throw water from buckets, water guns, and hoses. Take refuge in temples, where statues of the Buddha are reverently dribbled with water and sacred relics are paraded by monks.
Thaipusam (Hinduism)

Held in January or early February, this Hindu festival commemorates the occasion when Parvati gave Murugan, the god of war, a divine spear called the Vel to defeat the demon Soorapadman.
Pentecost (Christianity & Judaism)

The Christian holiday of Pentecost, which is celebrated on the seventh Sunday after Easter, commemorates the descent of the Holy Spirit upon the Apostles and other followers of Jesus Christ while they were in Jerusalem celebrating the Feast of Weeks, as described in the Acts of the Apostles.
Las Fallas de Valencia (Christianity)

Held in honour of Joseph, patron saint of carpenters, on March 15, enormous statues made from wood, papier-mâché, and wax, which can depict anyone from politicians to rock stars to mythical beasts, are erected in Valencia's main squares, intersections, and parks. Four days later, the statues are stuffed with fireworks and set alight at midnight in an explosive blaze that guarantees a sleepless night for the local fire brigade.