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Great Buddha Statue Bodhgaya
The mention of Bodhgaya brings memories of spirituality and the name is almost synonymous with the religion of Buddhism. Here in this city stands the biggest statue of Buddha across India and in fact, this is the tallest statue all over the country.
Origin
Though the temple at Bodhgaya has been in existence for many years, the construction of the massive statue was thought about only during 1982. The entire statue took about seven years to be fully finished and the efforts of a lakh and twenty thousand sculptors were needed to bring this task to closure. The statue was inaugurated by none other than the 14th Dalai Lama who came to pay his respects to the ‘Enlightened’ one and to visit the temple on November 18th, 1989. This has been the spot where pilgrims all over the world flock to, in order to seek the blessings of Lord Budha.
Major Attractions
Statue of Lord Budha
The statue of Lord Budha is 80 feet high and it has the privilege of being the tallest statue in the country. Lord Budha is seemingly sitting on a lotus with closed eyes sitting in the yoga pose. The closed eyes symbolize peace and tranquility as much as they represent introspection or looking within. This has been one of the fundamental points of Buddhism and the statue depicts exactly that. The statue has been built with the sole purpose of spreading the goodness of Buddhism to the entire world and therefore, the premises are open to all tourists without the barrier of caste, color or creed. The statue is called the 80 feet Budha commonly and most of the local cab drivers and tongawalas also are familiar with the same name. The landscaped gardens with the fountains look celestial especially in the evenings.
Other Places of Interest
Tourists who come here can also spend some time at Mahabodhi temple. This is the place beside the Bodhi tree under which Lord Budha sit before he got his enlightenment. The tree that is seen in the premises is the fifth successor of the tree under which the special one sat. There is a stone slab considered to be the one on which Budha sat before he attained enlightenment. The shrine has an idol of Budha inside as well and in the sanctum sanctorum the Lord is seen to be placing his right hand on the surface of the land as he is considered to have attained enlightenment in this same posture. All around the temple there are quite a few impressive stupas built a couple of thousand years ago.
Other than these, there are specific locations at the temple, where lotus plants came up out of nowhere just at the touch of the feet of the Enlightened one and another where the five colors emanated from his self. Each of these points have stories related to them and the entire temple is a spiritual enlightenment altogether.
Where to Eat
There are many simple yet nice hotels in and around Bodhgaya where the tourists have a happy meal that does not hurt their wallets as well as their stomach. Since there are more tourists who prefer vegetarian Chinese cuisine, there are lots of hotels offering the same. You must never forget to taste the momos here!
Where to Stay
There are 20+plus hotels in and around the Budha Statue with the sole intention of providing accommodation for the tourists. There are hotels which give decent stay facilities clubbed with guides who can accompany you the temple. Tourists who are not familiar with the rituals of the Buddhists will benefit if they avail the services of such guides.
Temple Timings
The temple is open in the morning at 7:00 for tourists. The pilgrims can offer their prayers until 12 noon when the temple is closed for a couple of hours before being reopened at 2 in the afternoon. The temple is closed for the day around 6 pm in the summer season and 5:30 pm in the winter season and no pilgrims are allowed inside after that.
How to Reach
Road
The tourism department in Bihar has introduced many state owned buses in a bid to encourage tourism in the state. There are buses to Bodhgaya from Calcutta, Varanasi, Nalanda, Gaya, etc.
Rail
The railway station at Gaya is less than twenty kilometers from the temple and has good connections from most cities across India.
Nearest Airport
Though the airport closest to the temple is at Gaya just a little over five kms, it has restricted connections. Patna has better connections but is about a hundred and thirty five kms away.
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