Vishwa Shanti Stupa
A 125ft, tall peace pagoda which was built by the Buddh Vihar Society in collaboration with the Japanese government was excavated in 1969. It is a huge, white, beautiful stupa surrounded by enormous greenery, serenity, and a pond where you can spend some leisure time boating and breathing in the fresh air.
Just next to Vishwa Shanti Stupa is Abhishek Pushkarni known as the coronation tank and the sacred waters of this tank were used for anointing the elected representatives before their pledge, at the time of Lichchavis. As you amble around you will find a museum on the north bank that houses the artifacts found during excavation, dividing them into four galleries, one is terracotta items of Human figures, another gallery has terracotta items of animal figures with wheels, cast coins, etc.
The third gallery exhibits antlers, bones, and iron and copper commodities. And the fourth gallery houses earthenwares.
Architecture of Vishwa Shanti Stupa
Vishwa Shanti Stupa is also called the Peace Pagoda. It is located at the highest point of Ratnagiri hill, at an altitude of 400 m in Rajgir, qualifying its serene charm as divine. Built completely with marble, the Stupa comprises four golden statues of Lord Buddha with each representing his life periods of birth, enlightenment, preaching, and death.
There is a ropeway that helps the tourists reach Vishwa Shanti Stupa on top of Ratnagiri hill. The other way to reach this “Stupa” is a serpentine staircase.
History of Vishwa Shanti Stupa
Vaishali is the place where Buddha preached his last sermon before his Nirvana. The Vishwa Shanti Stupa is erected according to the teaching of the Saodharma Pundarika Sutra (The lotus Sutra) to disseminate love and peace and to create "The pure Land" on the earth.
The construction of the stupa all over the world was initiated by the most Ven. Nichidatsu Fuji Guruji, after seeing the tragedy of atomic bombs in Hiroshima and Nagasaki of Japan, at the end of World War 2. The Vishwa Shanti Stupa, Vaishali has been built by Nipponzan Myhoji and Rajgir Buddha Vihar Society. Through the contribution of devotees in India and Japan, The Lord Buddha's relics have been enshrined on the foundation and the top of the stupa.
