Boudha Stupa

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Buddhist stupa in Boudha, Kathmandu, Nepal

title: "Boudha Stupa" type: doc version: 1 created: 2026-02-28 author: "Wikipedia contributors" status: active scope: public tags: ["buddhist-pilgrimage-sites-in-nepal", "religious-buildings-and-structures-in-kathmandu", "stupas-in-nepal", "tourist-attractions-in-kathmandu", "world-heritage-sites-in-nepal", "newa-heritages", "5th-century-establishments-in-nepal", "hindu-communities", "buddhist-communities-of-nepal"] description: "Buddhist stupa in Boudha, Kathmandu, Nepal" topic_path: "society/religion" source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Boudha_Stupa" license: "CC BY-SA 4.0" wikipedia_page_id: 0 wikipedia_revision_id: 0

::summary Buddhist stupa in Boudha, Kathmandu, Nepal ::

::data[format=table title="Infobox religious building"]

Field	Value
building_name	Boudha Stupa or Jarung Kashor
native_name	ne
new
image	Boudhanath stupa , Kathmandu, Nepal.jpg
image_size	320px
caption	The Stupa of Boudanath, associated with the relics of Kassapa Buddha and Shakyamuni Buddha, a UNESCO World Heritage Site
map_type	Kathmandu#Nepal Bagmati Province#Nepal
coordinates
location	Kathmandu, Nepal
religious_affiliation	Buddhism, Hinduism
architecture_type	Stupa
height_max	36 m
designation1	WHS
designation1_offname	Bauddhanath, part of Kathmandu Valley
designation1_date	1979 (3rd session), revised 2006
designation1_number	121bis-005
designation1_criteria	iii, iv, vi
designation1_type	Cultural
designation1_free1name	State Party
designation1_free1value	Nepal
::

Boudha Stupa (; Newari: खास्ति चैत्य); or Jarung Kashor (Let it be done, Slip of the tongue) seen as the embodiment of the enlightened mind of all the Buddhas, Built in the northeast of Kathmandu Valley surrounded by rice paddies, and its massive mandala makes it the largest spherical stupa in Nepal{{cite journal |url=http://www.nepalnews.com.np/contents/englishweekly/independent/11-09/tourism.htm |title=Fables of Boudha Stupa and Changunarayan |journal=The Independent, Nepal News |date=16–22 August 2000 | volume=X |issue=26 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070209001048/http://www.nepalnews.com.np/contents/englishweekly/independent/11-09/tourism.htm |archive-date=2007-02-09 |url-status=dead and one of the largest in the world. In 1979 the Boudha Stupa became one of UNESCO's World Heritage Sites in Nepal.

::figure[src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/5d/Boudha_Stupa_IMG_7804_2018_36.jpg" caption="The eyes of Boudanath"] ::

The stupa's consecrated Body relics include authentic bone pieces of Kassapa Buddha and of Shakyamuni Buddha, together with Dharmakaya relics, Dharma relics, Cloth relics, and Body, Speech, Mind, Mind Qualities, and Activity representations among its other relics. It is located on the ancient trade route from Tibet to India which enters the Kathmandu Valley by the village of Sankhu in the northeast corner and continues to the ancient and smaller stupa of Chabahil named Charumati Stupa, often called "Little Boudhanath". The route then turns directly south, heading over the Bagmati River to Lalitpur and the ancient Malla Kingdom in Patan. Tibetan merchants have rested and offered prayers at Boudha Stupa for many centuries. ::figure[src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/3f/Guru_-_Boudha.jpg" caption="Boudhanath"] ::

::figure[src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/98/Boudhanath_Nepal_(4557261231).jpg" caption="[[Prayer wheels]] with the mantra of Buddha [[Avalokiteshvara]]: [[Om mani padme hum"] ::

Following the 1959 Tibetan uprising, a large number of the Tibetan refugees migrated to Nepal and settled down around the stupa in Boudha. The Tibetan diaspora has given rise to the construction of over 50 gompas and Buddhist monasteries, restaurants, guesthouses, and artisanal businesses around Boudha, while in 1980. A year earlier in 1979, the Boudha Stupa became a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Along with Swayambhunath and Namo Buddha, it is one of the most visited pilgrimage sites for devout Buddhists, which also attracts tourists to the Kathmandu area.

Built at the main northern entrance to the Boudha Stupa is a shrine to the Dharma protectress Mammo Pukkasi, known as the fierce Hariti or Ajima to local Newari Buddhists. Her shrine and the Ganachakra offerings there are the responsibility of the Mahaguru Gompa, which faces the stupa's northern entrance. ::figure[src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/5f/Bouddha_nath_stupa.jpg" caption="Prayer flags around main stupa"] ::

::figure[src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/d4/Khaasti_Stupa_in_1950_by_William_Morris.jpg" caption="Boudha Stupa's northern entrance in 1950, by William Morris" alt="Khaasti Stupa in 1950 by William Morris"] ::

History

Licchavi records

An earlier written source Gopālarājavaṃśāvalī says Boudha itself was founded by the Nepali Licchavi king Śivadeva (c. 590–604 CE); though other Nepali chronicles date it to the reign of King Mānadeva (464–505 CE). The Tibetan sourcered there.

The earliest historical references to the Khaasti Chaitya are found in the Chronicles of the Newars. First, Khaasti is mentioned as one of the four stupas found by the Licchavi king Vrisadeva (c. 400 CE) or Vikramjit. Second, the Newars legend of the stupa's origin attributes it to King Dharmadeva's son, Manadeva as atonement for his unwitting patricide. Manadeva was a great Licchavi king, military conqueror and a patron of the arts who reigned c. 464–505. Manadeva is also linked with the Swayambhu Chaitya of Gum Bahal. Third, another great Licchhavi king Shivadeva (AD 590–604) is associated with Boudha by an inscription; he may have restored the chaitya.

According to the history of Nepal, the palace of King Vikramjit, the Licchavi king, once stood where the Narayanhiti Palace currently stands. King Vikramjit instructed that a Hiti should be built in the southern part of the palace courtyard, but there was no sign of water from the Hiti, for which the king consulted Astrologers. Astrologers suggested that a sacrifice with a male candidate having ‘swee-nita lachhyan'(स्वीनिता लछ्यन), or thirty-two perfections, should be performed. Only the king himself and his two princes were suitable candidates. So, the king decided to sacrifice himself so that signs of water could be seen at the Hiti. The king told his son that a man will be sleeping by covering his face and body, and to sacrifice him without looking at his face. After the son did so, he realised he had killed his own father. With regret and guilt, he consulted with the priests for a way to salvation. The priests suggested to him to fly a ‘bwo-khaa'(ब्वःखा), a flying hen, from the top of Mhaasu Khwaa Maju(म्हासु ख्वा: माजु). The hen landed in the place where the chaitya is currently standing.

A female Dharma Protector Ajimaa was already located at that place before the chaitya construction started. The Khaasti Ajima(खास्ति अजिमा) is one of the important Ajima of Kathmandu. The Newar tradition considers Ajima as a superpower. These female energies protect the nation. The tradition of Kumari relates to a place called 'Kumari-gaal' which is south of Khaasti.

During the time of its construction, the place was struck with a drought and the people managed to abate the scarcity of water by collecting the droplets of dew. Dew is called ‘Khasu'(खसु) and droplets are called ‘Ti'(ति). Historians suggest that the traditional knowledge to harvest dew droplets has been lost with time. The places that end with ‘Ti'(ति) have similar history, such as Chalati(चलति), Kusunti(कुसिन्ति), and so on.

Tibetan records

The birth of Tibetan Buddhism is intrinsically connected to the Boudha Stupa. In a Dharma teaching given by Padmasambhava to Yeshe Tsogyal, King Trisong Detsen (r. 755 to 797) and the Twenty-five Heart Students at Samye Monastery, the history of the stupa and its relationship to Tibetan Buddhism is explained, as a section within a complete teaching.

Little Purna, a daughter of Indra's living in the Gods realm broke a law of the realm by stealing a divine flower. She was cast into the human realm, where she was reborn into a family of Kathmandu Valley poultry farmers, and named Samvari.

Samvari also became a poultry farmer and had four sons by different fathers, who she raised to be comfortable householders. She amassed wealth and made an intention: "I will put this wealth to good use. I will build a support for the wisdom-mind of all the buddhas, my own yidam, a place for beings to accumulate immeasurable merit, a great stūpa whose essence is the Tathāgatas’ relics."

Samvari then asked the local king for his permission and for the necessary grant of land. The king thought and was impressed by Samvari, then responded, "Jarung!" ("Let it be done!"). She immediately began building the stupa with bricks loaded by her four sons and a servant, carried by an elephant and a donkey.

Local Newar people became concerned about the size of the stupa, and how it would reflect on members of the king's court who were not building bigger supports for the Dharma and roots of merit. The king refused to change his decision, and explained how "Let it be done" (Jarung) "slipped from his tongue" (Kashor). Thus, the stupa became known as the Jarung Kashor.

Her four sons continued with the stupa's construction after her death, when she passed into buddhahood while in the bardos. The stupa was consecrated then with Buddha Kassapa's relics, and they made the joint aspiration to bring the Buddha Dharma to the frozen borderland of ice - Tibet. The first born son made the aspiration to return as a king, and was reborn in the 8th century as Trisong Detsen. The second born made the aspiration to be the abbott and was reborn as Shantarakshita. The third born son made the aspiration to be born from a lotus and as a powerful mantra master so as to protect the Buddha's teachings, and was reborn as Padmasambhava. The fourth born son made the aspiration to be born as a royal minister so as to help his brothers, and was reborn as the king's minister Bami Trizher of Yarlung. The servant, the elephant, the donkey, and a passing raven were also reborn as humans in Tibet: respectively, as a minister, as U Dum Tsen, as another minister, and as the king's son.

Yeshe Tsogyal recorded Padmasambhava's complete teaching and concealed it as a terma. It was discovered, translated then reconcealed. The translation was rediscovered by Shakya Zangpo along with the complete teaching by Padmasambhava.

After rediscovering the translation of the terma, Shakya Zangpo came to Nepal in search of the stupa but found only an abandoned mound. He undertook a restoration during which he is said to have found the remains of Nepali king Amsuverma, the possible father of Songsten Gampo's Nepali queen Bhrikuti. His restoration is likely to have resulted in the stupa being the size we see today. He is believed to have resided at Chabahil during the work, a few kilometers away. Chabahil is known as bo, leftover earth, leftover stones, which refers to the belief that the smaller Chabahil stupa was built using the leftover materials from the Boudha Stupa restoration, which could date the Chabahil stupa to the 15th century.

The story of Samvari the poultry woman is also acknowledged by the local Newar people. A painting of Samvari is on the rear of the Pukkasi or Mammo Hariti shrine at Boudha Stupa where a pond with ducks is depicted with a lady taking care of them.

2015 Earthquake

The 25 April 2015 Nepal earthquake badly damaged Boudhanath's Stupa, severely cracking the spire. As a result, the whole structure above the dome and the sacred relics it contained had to be examined and either saved or replaced. ::figure[src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/c9/Boudhanath_2015-11-03_(CF2_2707).jpg" caption="publisher=Nepal Trekking}} All of the consecration relics were in place on 17 October 2016, while 21 days of specific consecration rituals were performed by high representatives of the [[Kagyu]] tradition, the [[Sakya]] tradition, the [[Gelug]] tradition, and the Ngagyur [[Nyingma]] tradition."] ::

The stupa was reopened on 22 November 2016. The renovation and reconstruction was organized by the Boudhanath Area Development Committee (BADC). The repairs were funded entirely by private donations from Buddhist groups and volunteers. According to the BADC, it cost $2.1 million dollars and more than 30 kg of gold. The repaired building was officially inaugurated by Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal. The Boudha Stupa was the first of all the earthquake-damaged World Heritage Sites in Kathmandu valley to be rebuilt. The Nepalese government was criticised for its slow pace in reconstructing quake-damaged heritage structures such as temples, with many left unrepaired.

Boudhanath village

The Newars are cited in Padmasambhava's spoken history as being local residents when the stupa was originally built.

In the 19th century, a Chinese yogi settled nearby and was asked to assisted the Nepal ruler with translations during the Gorka war negotiations. In return, he was granted land for a monastery and residence in front of the stupa, and he became known as the first Chiniya Lama.His descendants still have a role regarding the stupa though its management is now the responsibility of Shree Boudha Nath Area Development Committee, which was established as part of the UNESCO requirements for the protection of the World Heritage Site Monument Zone.

Panorama

Gallery

File:Prayer wheels Boudnath, 1974.JPG|Prayer wheels of Boudnath, 1974 File:Flower offerings in bowls at Boudhanath Boudha Stupa in Kathmandu, Nepal.webm|Flower offerings in bowls at Boudha Stupa in Boudhanath, Kathmandu, Nepal File:AERIAL BOUDHA VIEW.tif|Aerial view of Boudha File:Boudha Stupa IMG 7804 2018 42.jpg|Wide view of Boudha Stupa File:Boudha Stupa IMG 7867 2018 37.jpg|Eyes of Boudhanath File:Head of king bikramaditya.jpg|head of Dipankara Adi Buddha File:A view of Boudhanath Premises 2017 01.jpg|A view of Boudha Stupa Premises File:Buddha Monastery-Buddha monastery-0416.jpg|Buddhists praying on the occasion of Buddha Jayanti (during a renovation of a Boudhanath temple) File:Bouddhanath Stupa 2015 01.JPG|Boudhanath in the full moon night of Buddha Jayanti File:Buddha Monastery-Buddha monastery-0402.jpg|One of Nepal's World Heritage Sites, the Boudha Stupa File:Boudhanath-2018.jpg|Boudha Stupa after renovation. File:Boudhanath 20180104 GDK.jpg|Boudhanath File:Flags Above Bodnath Stupa.jpg|Flags Above Boudha Stupa File:Renovation of Boudhanath Stupa after the devastating, "Gorkha Earthquake".jpg|alt=Renovation of Boudhanath Stupa by local initiation, after the devastating earthquake in Nepal in April 2015.|Renovation of Boudha Stupa

References

Department of Archaeology (Nepal). "Bouddha Stupa".
({{Langx. bo. བྱ་རུང་ཁ་ཤོར།, {{Bo
the stupa gave birth to the origins of [[Tibetan Buddhism]]. It is filled with consecrated substances,Tulku Rigdzin Pema Tenzin Dorje, "Inventory of Jarung Khashor Stūpa", 27 October 2017. Translated by Drubchen Dorje, Edited by Stephan Mang, ''Lotsawa House''.
[[Padmasambhava]], "The History of the Great Jarung Kashor Stūpa", Recorded by [[Yeshe Tsogyal]] and hidden as [[Terma (religion). terma]]; Discovered by Lhatsün Ngönmo, rediscovered by Ngakchang Shakya Zangpo; Translated by Samye Translations. ''Lotsawa House'', https://www.lotsawahouse.org/tibetan-masters/ngakchang-shakya-zangpo/great-history-of-jarung-kashor-stupa
Prasad, Madhav. (2023-06-09). "Major attractions in Nepal".
Shah, Rishikesh. (1990). "Ancient and Medieval Nepal". Ratna Pustak Bhandar.
Ehrhard, Franz-Karl (1990). "The Stupa of Bodhnath: A Preliminary Analysis of the Written Sources." ''Ancient Nepal - Journal of the Department of Archaeology'', Number 120, October–November 1990, pp. 1-6.
Ehrhard, Franz-Karl (1990). "The Stupa of Bodhnath: A Preliminary Analysis of the Written Sources." ''Ancient Nepal – Journal of the Department of Archaeology'', Number 120, October–November 1990, pp. 7–9.
(3 November 2018). "Khaasti Mahachaitya, Boudhanath – World Heritage Site of Nepal".
''The Legend of the Great Stupa and The Life Story of the Lotus Born Guru'', pp. 21–29. Keith Dowman (1973)
''https://www.tbrc.org/#!rid=P1698''
"Boudha Stupa". Nepal Trekking.
(22 November 2016). "Nepal's earthquake-hit Boudhanath stupa reopens after restoration". The Guardian.
(22 November 2016). "Nepal earthquake: Boudhanath monastery reopened". BBC News.
"Mani Lama's Boudha in pictures".

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