perahera
/pɛrəˈhɛrə/(also perahara)
noun
In Sri Lanka: a religious procession. Now chiefly (in form Perahera): specifically a ten-day series of torchlight processions occurring annually in the town of Kandy.
- The processions in Kandy occur in the Hindu month Ashadha, and fall in July or August, depending on the full moon; drummers, dancers, acrobats, and richly decorated elephants process with a relic of a sacred tooth, believed to come from the Buddha..
Origin
Late 17th century. From Sinhala parihāra (in vernacular pronunciation perahära) from Sanskrit parihāra ritual carrying around (of sacred objects).