Travel Story of "Historical Rangkoot Banashram Pilgrimage Mahavihara"

_{Hello Everyone. I am @shiftitamanna
From #Bangladesh}

_{Image created by Canva.}

Assalamu Alaikum everyone. Today I'm back again with another blog of my Cox's Bazar trip. I shared a blog about visiting Buddhist temples in Ramu Upazila of Cox's Bazar a few days back. Today I am here to share with you another Buddhist pilgrimage site of that Ramu Upazila. Today I will share with you about Rangkut, a historical pilgrimage site in Ramu Upazila, Cox's Bazar. It is one of the tourist attractions of Cox's Bazar.

History of 'Historical Rangkut Banashram Mahavihara'

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From history, Cox's Bazar, Ramu area was ruled by the ancient Arkan clans in the sixth century BC. Then the then King of Arkan Mahachandra Surya invited the founder of Buddhism Gautama Buddha to come here. Then at the invitation of the king, Gautama Buddha rested for a while at this 'Historical Rangkut Vanasrama Mahavihara' during his journey with his disciples. The 'Historical Rangkut Vanashram Mahavihara' temple was established by the then Emperor Ashoka Maharaja at the place where his footsteps were.

In fact, Ramu Upazila of Cox's Bazar has most of the Buddhist temples which are the center of attraction for tourists. Apart from enjoying the beauty of the beach in Cox's Bazar, tourists also visit these Buddhist temples in Ramu, so the number of tourists is high here. I am also very curious, this time I visited two Buddhist temples in Ramu, Cox's Bazar. One of which is Rangkut. Originally its very beautiful name was “Historical Rangkut Banashram Mahavihara.”

First there is the ticket counter right in front of the entrance gate where I collect the entry ticket for 20/- (Stim 0.645) in Bangladeshi Taka. But noticed that those who are local to the area and come to the temple for worship don't need any ticket. Entering through the front door of the historical Rangkut Banasrasa Buddhist shrine, I saw many statues lined up. All the idols seem to be in a meditative state.

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Then moving forward, I saw another long-shaped statue and the words of Buddha were written on the signboards on both sides of the road. Which is an instructive matter for every tourist. I was very attracted by the beautiful rural environment on both sides of the temple road. Very peaceful atmosphere around.

After that I saw a small beautiful temple. There is also the carving with dragons on both sides containing the stairs. The canopy of the temple is also beautifully designed. It looks like I've landed in China. Then I saw the statue of Hiuen Tsang (Xuan Zang) in front of me. Who is the world-famous Chinese traveler of the seventeenth century.

He visited this place during Gautam Buddha's sojourn in India and Bangladesh. A statue of Xuan Zhang was erected in his honor. Also the contractor for the statue was China Harbor Engineering Company Limited.

Then I immediately came in front of another statue which is of Emperor Ashoka Maharaja who founded the world historical Rangkut Vanashram Mahatirtha complex in 268 BC. The statue of Emperor Ashoka Maharaja holds the Tripitaka, the Buddhist religious text.

Beside it is a huge banyan tree with several statues. Gautama Buddha is seated and surrounded by a few people. All the statues are under a big tree. It was very nice to see from afar.

Next to it is another room-like space where you want to present a scene with several statues. It is basically a symbol of the name Lumbini. On the signboard was written (Birth scene of Bhabibuddha Siddhartha). Anyway I am not very knowledgeable about Buddhism so I have no idea about these statues or symbolism.

Then I saw the stairs of the main temple ahead. Which is located on top of the hill. There are huge dragons on both sides of this staircase. The stairs of the temple are divided into two parts, one is the stairs going up and the other is the stairs going down. While climbing the stairs, I saw a huge statue of 18 feet height on the side. The statue looked like it was surrounded by a different kind of charm. A clock was hanging beside it.

However, climbing the stairs, I saw the royal gate of the historic Rangkoot Banashram Buddhist pilgrimage temple. It looks very beautiful. Basically it is located on top of a mountain. When I got up I saw a huge temple. Where I saw a Bhante of the temple who was talking to various actors. Sharing various unknown information about this temple. I also went out of curiosity.

Bhante showed various idols in front of the temple and said that there is also a museum here. As the temple is on top of a hill, there was quite a wind blowing all around. Since I have come here on a winter day, a cool breeze is blowing from a distance.

And along with it the chirping sound of birds is always coming from all around. Inside I saw a precious statue of Gautama Buddha. I read and understood that this is where Buddhists come to the temple to worship.

Last time I saw Buddhist devotees lighting agarbatti at one place. I saw Pranami Box at another place. In which box anyone can donate something for the temple. I really enjoyed visiting the 'Historical Rangkut Vanashram Mahavihar'.

This 'Historical Rangkut Banashram Mahavihar' in Ramu Upazila of Cox's Bazar will forever remain as a place of worship for Buddhists as the bearer of ancient Bengal's history and tradition. Hope you enjoyed the 'Historical Rangkoot Banashram Mahavihara' tour with me.

Historical Rang-U Rangkut, Ramu, Cox’s Bazar

All images in the article have been captured by me with Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra device from the above location source.

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