Shalban Bihar Comilla

Steemian Friends,

Today, I come to highlight Shalban Bihar. Shalban Bihar is one of the oldest historical places in the country. The historical Shalban Bihar is located in the serene environment of Comilla, which is 107 km from the capital, Dhaka. It is located near the Lalmai-Mainamati hills in the Comilla district. Shalban Bihar is one of the most important Buddhist sites among the Mainamati ruins in Bangladesh. It is believed that Mainamati was an important Buddhist center between the 7th and 12th centuries. The Shalban Bihar was first built under the Dev dynasty. Built in the 8th century, this large Shalban monastery was home to 115 monks at that time.

Main gate of the Shalban Bihar

Bhavadeva was the fourth ruler of the Dev dynasty, an early Hindu dynasty, under whom this great place was established. The original Hindu dynasty of East Bengal. This 168 square meter building was built to accommodate primary Buddhist students and was named Bhava Dev Maha Bihar after the king who ran it.

Shalban Bihar Ticket counter

Entrance ticket of Shalban Bihar

Students from different parts of the country used to come to this monastery to be educated in meditation and religious studies. Several dormitories were built around the monastery for their study and stay, and they continued their studies there. Every wall of the monastery was decorated with terracotta panels and decorated bricks, none of which exist.

I am standing in Shalban Bihar

Short history of Shalban Bihar in the piller

Direction Map of the Shalban Bihar
The monastery was always bustling with Buddhist students. Various business establishments sprang up around the monastery.
But over time, this glittering monastery was lost to time. The talented students and teachers here were also lost to time.

Wide roads to walk inside the Shalban Bihar

In 1875, the work of developing the area started. For this, a specific road was needed. While working on this road, the road builders discovered the new Shalban Bihar. They thought it was an ancient fort and started digging. Many valuable artifacts were discovered at this place.

Historical place Shalban Bihar

According to the records, the valuable items discovered include 8 engraved copper plates, about 400 gold and silver coins, several terracotta and baked clay seals, as well as there were a large number of sculptures made of bronze, stone, terracotta, and many more. Currently, all those valuable archaeological objects are in the Mainamati Museum. Visitors can see them only by going to the Mainamati Museum, located next to the Shalban Bihar.

Some images of Shalban Bihar

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An Abbasid gold coin indicates that Shalban Vihar was inhabited until the 13th century and there are reports of the existence of a Buddhist temple.. After that, no history of them can be found. Currently, Shalban Bihar is a popular tourist destination and a significant archaeological site in the country. It is managed under the Archaeology Department of Bangladesh. The responsibility of its maintenance has been entrusted to them.
There was a central temple with a square structure and 115 rooms for monks, which were spread over a large area. Although none of them can be found now.

Another some beautiful image of Shalban Bihar
I visited the Shalban Bihar tourist center a few days ago. It is easy to reach here from any part of Bangladesh. The communication is excellent. I got out of the car in front of Shalban Bihar. To enter Shalban Bihar, you have to face a gate. A huge gate. At the gate, you have to buy a ticket at a fixed price and enter. Local Visitors can collect a ticket for 30 taka and observe the historical place. There is a nice parking place.

Deep well, which is now useless

I entered Shalban Bihar. The thick environment is very quiet. There is not a single piece of dirt anywhere. The cleaning staff conducts cleaning campaigns from time to time. To keep the place cleaner, food is prohibited inside. Only water bottles can be entered.
The Shalban Bihar is closed every Sunday. Although it is open on Fridays, it is closed during Friday prayers. Apart from that, it is open for visitors from 10.00 am to 5.00 pm on the rest of the days.

Buddhists also visit the place

As soon as you enter, you will see various signboards at various places. The history of Shalban Bihar is briefly known from the boards. Apart from that, there is also a map for what is in the state of Shalban, Bihar. From there, visitors can visit the place with a good idea.
Today, I traveled to this historical place with two more of my Steemian friends. They are @Mahadisalim and @Sojib1996. As I was thrilled to come to the historical place, they also started wandering around excitedly, like me.

We three steamian friends toured the place and sat down to lunch beside the Shalban Bihar

There are still many Buddhists coming and going inside the Shalban Bihar. They come here and crowd to have a look at their entire historical monument.
Although there is no food facility inside Shalban Bihar, there are numerous food stalls on the side of the road in front of the Vihar. Basically, these stalls are aimed at the food of the visitors, where they have various types of chips, biscuits, cold drinks, drinks, juices, etc. There are also food stalls. There are many restaurants near the gate. Again, there is a very healthy restaurant a little further away. We three friends eat our food there.

Snacks shop in front of the Shalban Bihar

I did not find a washroom inside Shalban Bihar. But there are a few washrooms outside the gate. There, visitors can do their cleaning work.
I have come to know from the people around that many visitors flock to visit this historical place every day.
My friends and I came here, and as we increased our knowledge, we also realized that nothing remains static in the world. Everything changes with time. Only the activities of people remain. I end my journey with a sense of satisfaction after completing the Shalban Bihar tour amidst the heat.

💁‍♂️ Location on Steem Atlas map :[//]:# (!steematlas 23.42623 lat 91.13758 long Shalban Bihar comila d3scr)

Special note:-

Shalban Bihar is already there on OpenStreetMap. But the ticket counter of Shalban Bihar is not pinned. So today I included the ticket counter of Shalban Bihar in Open Street Map.

Some important information about Shalban Bihar:-

Open Street Map	Link
Google Map	Link
Website	Link
Source	Link
Open	10.00-5.00
Closed	Sundays
Temporarily closed	Friday prayer time
Entry fee (Domestic)	30.00 Taka or 1.82 Steem
Entry fee (Student)	10.00 Taka 0.61 Steem
Children	free
Visitors (from SAARC countries)	200.00 or 12.12 Steem
Visitors (other foreigners )	400.00 Taka or 24.24 Steem
Washroom facilities	outside
Food facilities	outside.
Cleanliness	sufficient
The interior environment	beautiful
Employee cooperation	good
The security system	good.
The communication system	Very good.
Rest facilities	available.

I invite three of my friends to join in this challenge
@abdul-rakib
@artist1111
@jollymonowara