Around 500 South Korean Buddhist monks congregated in Bihar’s Bodh Gaya state to pray for world peace and tranquility on Monday. The monks, who are associated with a Seoul-based Buddhist non-governmental relief organisation, conducted prayer ceremonies at Mahabodhi temple, where the Buddha is believed to have attained enlightenment. Apart from holding prayers at the Mahabodhi temple, these monks will tour prominent Buddhist sites in the country and pray for global peace. “These 500 people are on a 15-day tour in India. They will visit all famous Buddhist places and pray for everyone’s peace and prosperity across the world,” said a member of a Seoul-based Buddhist non-governmental relief organisation, Join Together Society (JTS), Subhaschandra Boudhh. Buddhist scriptures describe Bodh Gaya as the ‘Navel of the Earth’, where pilgrims and tourists from Sri Lanka, China, Japan and the entire of southeastern Asia throng this holiest of Buddhist shrines every year. In the year 2002, the UNESCO declared Mahabodhi Temple as a World Heritage Site.
ANI