Parinirvana Stupa & Temple, Kushinagar - Timings, History, Best Time to Visit

At a distance of 3 km from Kushinagar Bus Station, Parinirvana Stupa & Temple is a Buddhist shrine located in Kushinagar, Uttar Pradesh. Situated amidst ruins of various monasteries, it is one of the popular Buddhist Temples in India, and among the must include places in Kushinagar Tour Packages.

The Mahaparinirvana Temple is said to be one of the most sacred shrines for Buddhists across the world. Built-in the traditional Buddhist architectural style, this temple houses a 6 m long reclining nirvana statue of Lord Buddha, that was excavated in the year 1876. The present temple was built by the Indian Government in 1956 as part of the commemoration of the 2,500th year of the Mahaparinivana.

The statue of Buddha in the lying position was made with red sandstone of Chunar. It is said that this idol is a depiction of the position of Lord Buddha when he left his mortal body at the age of 80 and attained salvation. The structure of the sleeping Buddha is placed on a brick platform. There is an inscription on the platform stating that it was built by Swami Haribala, a disciple of the Buddha in the 5th century AD. The temple attracts huge crowds of tourists and pilgrims from all over the world. The area around this temple is surrounded by stupas and ruins of as many as 8 monasteries.

The Nirvana Stupa is situated right behind the Mahaparinirvana Temple on the same platform and is said to be the death place of Gautama Buddha. Also known as the Nirvana Chaitya, the stupa is 2.74 m high and it also has a dome that is 15.81 m high. The stupa was excavated by an archeologist named General Cunningham in 1876 and was then restored to its original state that very year. The Brahmi inscription on the walls states that the cremated remains of Lord Buddha are deposited here. Further excavations in 1910 revealed copper coins of Jai Gupta and a copper vessel with a copper plate.

Timings: 6 AM - 8 PM

Entry: Free