Ruins of the Buddhist Vihara at Paharpur
Ruins of the Buddhist Vihara at Paharpur
Ruins of the Buddhist Vihara at Paharpur
4.5
10:00 AM - 5:00 PM
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10:00 AM - 5:00 PM
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10:00 AM - 5:00 PM
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10:00 AM - 5:00 PM
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10:00 AM - 5:00 PM
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10:00 AM - 5:00 PM
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Sunday
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4.5
51 reviews
Excellent
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18
Average
1
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0
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1
dmittleman
Palm Beach Gardens, FL1,412 contributions
Dec 2019
A UNESCO heritage site, the ruins of this Buddhist Vihara are stunning. Although not much more than the foundations remain of the monastery, the stupa is amazing. The terracotta tiles are superb. Take a guide so that he can explain the various components to the Vihara as not much is marked.
Written 5 January 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
creamy m
1 contribution
Sept 2023 • Solo
I have visited this place in October 2023. It's large size really amused me a lot that i can't explain in word. Also the guides were very friendly and knowledgeable. The place is very beautiful to visit. I hope it will amused everyone who will visit there.
Written 30 October 2023
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Mahadi Hasan
Dhaka City, Bangladesh44 contributions
Jan 2012 • Friends
Paharpur Buddhist Monastery a site which was used to be affluent Buddhist center for learning & teaching center is amusing site to feel the heritage & cultural bond of Bangladesh. Being there, you can spend the day with movements of Bangladeshi's who will roaming around if you r a foreigner. this is one of the most well preserve archaeological site of Bangladesh.
According to the history: During the Pala dynastic it was built by Dharma Pala. after the fall of Pala Dentistry & Hindu peoples who used it as there temple Before it was burned by the Muslim invaders. there are 177 monks cells where they used to pray. & you can see sup's as well inside the monastery. the museum is one of the well maintain & nice museum where you can see terracotta art, stchues of Buddhist & Muslims as well.
The site is open from 9 to 5 but the museum is closed Sunday & Monday half day.
from Bogra, you can take local buses to Badalgasi union & take a rickshaw to visit the site.
According to the history: During the Pala dynastic it was built by Dharma Pala. after the fall of Pala Dentistry & Hindu peoples who used it as there temple Before it was burned by the Muslim invaders. there are 177 monks cells where they used to pray. & you can see sup's as well inside the monastery. the museum is one of the well maintain & nice museum where you can see terracotta art, stchues of Buddhist & Muslims as well.
The site is open from 9 to 5 but the museum is closed Sunday & Monday half day.
from Bogra, you can take local buses to Badalgasi union & take a rickshaw to visit the site.
Written 26 January 2012
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
TC0241
Lautrec, France1,265 contributions
Mar 2015 • Friends
One of only two World Heritage Sites in Bangladesh (Sunderbans is the other) this place is impressive even it its ruined state.
It displayed the extent of Mahayana Buddhism in Bengal from the 7th century onwards,
Somapura Mahavira, or the Great Monastery, was a renowned intellectual centre until the 12th century.
Its layout perfectly adapted to its religious function, this monastery-city represents a unique artistic achievement. With its simple, harmonious lines and its profusion of carved decoration, it influenced Buddhist architecture as far away as Cambodia
You are free to wander around at will and try and imagine how impressive it would have looked a few hundred years ago.
Given its status it could do with a decent museum and more information about its rich history and the excavations.
It displayed the extent of Mahayana Buddhism in Bengal from the 7th century onwards,
Somapura Mahavira, or the Great Monastery, was a renowned intellectual centre until the 12th century.
Its layout perfectly adapted to its religious function, this monastery-city represents a unique artistic achievement. With its simple, harmonious lines and its profusion of carved decoration, it influenced Buddhist architecture as far away as Cambodia
You are free to wander around at will and try and imagine how impressive it would have looked a few hundred years ago.
Given its status it could do with a decent museum and more information about its rich history and the excavations.
Written 27 April 2015
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Julie C
Gateshead, UK260 contributions
Mar 2014 • Couples
To get there take a bus or train to Joypurhat and then another bus to Paharpur (20-30 mins) from where you will need to take a rickshaw to the ruins (make sure you agree the price in advance as we found the rickshaw drivers there to be a little unscrupulous with tourists - should be Tk10-20 total). Entrance fee to the site and museum for foreigners is Tk200.
The ruins were very impressive, the central stupa is huge and decorated with a number of terracotta bas reliefs around the lower levels. Around the edge of the site are the remains of monks cells and the outlines of several other buildings which made up the monastery. The museum is small but worthwhile with some of the artefacts found on the site (no photos allowed inside). Allow 2-3 hours to comfortably see it all including the museum. During the afternoon when we arrived it was very noisy and busy with groups of Bangladeshi tourists, we stayed overnight in the onsite rest house which meant we were able to get up at sunrise and wander around the ruins completely alone - the stupa looked really magical in the early morning mist.
Eating options around the site are very limited with just a couple of basic restaurants.
The ruins were very impressive, the central stupa is huge and decorated with a number of terracotta bas reliefs around the lower levels. Around the edge of the site are the remains of monks cells and the outlines of several other buildings which made up the monastery. The museum is small but worthwhile with some of the artefacts found on the site (no photos allowed inside). Allow 2-3 hours to comfortably see it all including the museum. During the afternoon when we arrived it was very noisy and busy with groups of Bangladeshi tourists, we stayed overnight in the onsite rest house which meant we were able to get up at sunrise and wander around the ruins completely alone - the stupa looked really magical in the early morning mist.
Eating options around the site are very limited with just a couple of basic restaurants.
Written 29 April 2014
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Raymond W
Townsville, Australia4,533 contributions
Aug 2012 • Couples
Overall, we found Bangladesh a disappointing travel destination, though, to be balanced, we have heard from adventurous backpackers who love the place. There are a few good monuments scattered around the country but, in our estimation, they are pretty hard work to get to considering the poor state of the railways and roads. In terms of true highlights, we can only offer you two: a ride on 'The Rocket', the paddle-steamer which plies the labyrinthine waterways of coastal Bangladesh, and the Buddhist Vihara at Paharpur, a truly magnificent structure located near the country's western border with India.
This place is not easy to get to, as it is located in a rural area serviced by slow and over-crowded buses. Moreover, there are few if any tourist services in the vicinity of the stupa, so you will probably have to visit this place from a dingy city a couple of hours away, but these magnificent and expansive ruins are worth the effort. Somehow the photos rarely do this stupa justice. It often comes out looking like a hill-shaped blot on the horizon. When you are there, it is a commanding structure which captures your attention from first approach. There are some wonderful friezes of mythological creatures around the base but it is the sheer dark mass of the stupa itself which lingers in the memory. In our opinion, this is by the far the best reason to venture to Northern Bangladesh.
This place is not easy to get to, as it is located in a rural area serviced by slow and over-crowded buses. Moreover, there are few if any tourist services in the vicinity of the stupa, so you will probably have to visit this place from a dingy city a couple of hours away, but these magnificent and expansive ruins are worth the effort. Somehow the photos rarely do this stupa justice. It often comes out looking like a hill-shaped blot on the horizon. When you are there, it is a commanding structure which captures your attention from first approach. There are some wonderful friezes of mythological creatures around the base but it is the sheer dark mass of the stupa itself which lingers in the memory. In our opinion, this is by the far the best reason to venture to Northern Bangladesh.
Written 24 August 2012
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
ishiidobie
Osaka, Japan18 contributions
Aug 2014 • Friends
I was a bit hesitant at first because the guide books tend to portray the ruins as simplistic. However, the monastery grounds are quite large and the ruins are rather big. Bring an umbrella to fight the sun as there is no shade!
Written 3 August 2014
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Lata S
Plantation, Florida, United States39 contributions
Nov 2012 • Friends
Paharpur Bihar/ Somepur Mahavihara is one of the ancient Buddhist bihar in Naogaon, Rajshahi Division, Bangladesh.This part is in the Northern part of Bangladesh. You will need more than couple of Bus ride to get there, Though there only ruins left but still have the imagination of that time people.you can walk all over to visit the magnificent and mind-blowing view of the ruins . The museum have huge collection of statues and ancient usable materials.The garden is quite beautiful too.
There are picnic spot too so u can spend whole day.
There are picnic spot too so u can spend whole day.
Written 4 April 2013
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Naeem
Dhaka City, Bangladesh11 contributions
June 2019
If you like old architecture, you must have to visit this impressive archeological site. This is one of the UNESCO sites among the three recognized site form Bangladesh. Looking at the central temple and surrounding 177 cells will remind you of an exclusive place where once people visit to seek for knowledge, meditation, judgment, intellectual argument, and important decision making for the state. Bangladesh was the heart of Buddhism, coeval approach of Muslim and Hindu decrease the power of Buddist in this region. It is said that this place had been burned by Vaga army in the 11th century though there was no major destruction found. There is a well-maintained museum where vast information is available with a collection of old relics from its prime time.
Written 4 September 2019
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Terry M
Hamilton, Canada4,921 contributions
Dec 2018 • Friends
A Buddhist monastery dating from the 8th c, the area is the country’s most impressive archaeological site. It is massive at some 27 acres. Built by Dharmapala, the second Pala king, it had 177 monastic cells. The terraced central temple was done in cruciform shape, measuring a colossal 922' by 918'. The grounds are worth a stroll. The colour of the bricks would make for great photography in the late afternoon. There is a small museum on sitte.
Written 26 December 2018
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
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