Buddha's relic on display in Kathmandu

KATHMANDU: The Buddha Jayanti Programme Main Committee has kept the 'Astidhatu', the relic of the Buddha, for public viewing at the Anandakuti Vihar on the occasion of the 2561st Buddha Jayanti on Wednesday.

The Astidhatu is kept on display for viewing by the general public on the occasion of the Buddha Jayanti every year.

The Astidhatu are the remains after the cremation of the Shakyamuni Gautam Buddha.

The Buddhists revere the Astadhatu as the sacred relic and people make a beeline to observe it when it is kept for public display once a year.

Committee coordinator and Chief of Anandakuti Vihar, Bhikkhu Dharmamurti said that arrangements have been made for keeping the relic on display until the evening today for the convenience of the devotees.

The money collected from the public display of the Astidhatu would be used for the renovation of the Vihar.

The Astidhatu was brought to Nepal from Sri Lanka by a group of monks led by Bhikkhu Narad Thera in 1944 and gifted to the Vihar.

Meanwhile, a special Buddha worship ritual has been performed at the historical Charumati Vihar at local Chabahil on the occasion of the Buddha Jayanti today.

The Charumati Vihar was supposedly commissioned by Charumati, the daughter of Emperor Ashoka of India, who visited Kathmandu some 2,300 years ago and the structure was built at that time.