Bastion of Buddhism gets a lift

The 1,500-year-old Mahabodhi temple in India is widely considered Buddhism’s holiest shrine, marking the site where Buddha is said to have attained enlightenment.

In 2013, the temple received a facelift thanks to a donation of 300kg of gold, reportedly gifted from the King of Thailand and hundreds of Thai devotees. The gold was flown in on a special plane from Bangkok and used to gold plate the temple’s dome.

Located at Bodh Gaya in India’s Bihar state, the temple boasts a descendant of the Bodhi Tree, a major pilgrimage destination for Hindus and Buddhists for well over two thousand years.

Read more about the restoration project and the Mahabodhi temple itself.