Overview

• Chief Minister Nitish Kumar presided over the inauguration ceremony, which featured Vedic chanting, ritual offerings by senior Buddhist monks and a read-out message from the Dalai Lama.
• The museum’s first-floor chamber now houses the authentic holy bone urn of Lord Buddha unearthed during the 1958–62 excavation of Vaishali’s Mud Stupa.
• In a symbolic gesture, Kumar planted a Bodhi tree sapling from Bodh Gaya inside the complex and inaugurated the “Making of Buddha Samyak Museum and Memorial Stupa” gallery.
• Built over six years across 72 acres in Vaishali and Muzaffarpur districts, the stupa was assembled with 42,373 Rajasthan pink sandstone blocks using tongue-and-groove techniques for enhanced seismic strength.
• The eco-conscious layout incorporates a library, amphitheatre, meditation centre, cafeteria, 500 kW solar power plant and ample parking to support Bihar’s cultural revival and tourism growth.