Shalban Buddist Temple in Comilla (Bangladesh)

A new addition to the historical establishment of the ancient civilization at Kotbari in the Comilla district is the Naba Shalban Vihar, which was established in 1995 with about two and a half acres of land.

This Buddhist temple is known as one of the peace monasteries of the Buddhists of Southeast Asia. In 2014, a Buddhist statue made of metal weighing about 06 tons and 30 feet high, received as a gift from the Buddhist Foundation of Thailand, was installed in this monastery. This statue looks bright even from a distance because it is made of metal.

When entering the Naba Shalban Vihar, you have to take off your shoes, and its environment is even more beautiful due to the cleanliness inside. As soon as you enter, the golden-colored Buddhist statue is first seen. In the sunlight of the day, it is visible from afar because it is golden in color. At the entrance, there are 2 golden lions of the same color standing majestically.

However, it is forbidden to touch it. There are numerous stairs to go up, for which there is a provision to go inside the temple and worship. And there are roads to go around the temple.

Only Buddhists are allowed to go inside and we have requested there, there are numerous statues there, each statue is made of metal and high-quality green stone, although it is a center of worship for them, so there is also a guard in front of the gate. These statues and everything starting from the door of the temple were given as a gift from Thailand.

Inside the temple, there is a place for meditation, and not only meditation is taught there, but also general Buddhist enlightenment is done here. Since there is a lot of space inside the temple, many people can easily gather here and worship. Every year, Buddhists from countries like Nepal and Thailand come to this temple.

According to Buddhism, its name is Gautama and Buddhists worship him. Outside the temple, there are several statues of Buddhism under a tree where students are being taught about Buddhism with the teacher.

There are many things to see there, besides the principles given by Gautama Buddha are presented in books and these books are being sold, I keep looking at the books. Besides, there are shops for food and there are guest houses for accommodation.

You have to buy a ticket to enter there and this temple is open on weekdays. The ticket price is 30 taka per person, but 100 taka for foreigners, and no ticket is taken for citizens of this country who are below 5 years of age. It is open from 9 am to 7 pm in summer and from 9 am to 6 pm in winter. Besides, there is a special place for parking private cars and motorcycles.

There is a good transportation system from the city of Comilla district, you can easily reach Comilla from other districts by car and once you reach the city, you can take a rickshaw to Kotbari for 80 takas and from there you can cross the road and take a rickshaw again for 60 takas to reach this temple.