Ancient Buddhist Stupa Discovered in Munshigonj

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An ancient Buddhist Stupa has recently been discovered in Munshigonj. Archaeologists found this Stupa while excavating at Nateshwar, a village under Tangipara Upazila. This is not the first archaeological structure to be found in this area. Many archaeological and historical sites have been discovered since 2013.

Excavations have been conducted by Bangladeshi archaeologist teams from Jahangir University and Cumilla University. The Agrashar Vikrampur Foundation and Chinese archaeologists are providing support to fully excavate the region. The new Buddhist stupa is the result of the second phase excavation by the Agrashar Vikrampur Foundation in Nateshwar.

According to Sufi Mostafizur Rahman who is the Director of the Archaeological Excavation and Research program and Professor of Archeology Department of Jahangirnagar University, the Stupa was the centre of the Buddhist religion and the centre of religious practice. It is the largest Buddhist Stupa ever found in Bangladesh. It is believed to be consanguineous with the stupas of Sanchi, Bharhut and Amravati in India.

North-east side of the Buddhist stupa has been excavated which is 43.5 meters long and its height is 43 meters. Four stupa hall rooms, huge central room, several rooms, border walls, and entrance path can be identified of the Buddhist Stupa. More than 5000 square meters of area in Munshigonj has been excavated from 2013 to 2018. The pyramid-shaped Buddhist stupa has been excavated in the year 2018 to 2019.

In the past, The Daily Star reported that 16 stupas have been discovered in Nateshwar from 2013 to 2016. The stupas have exceptional designs and unique archaeological style. Each of them is square shaped and the walls are made of bricks. The brick walls are 16 meters in length and 3.5 meters in width.

A few years ago, an ancients Buddhist city was discovered in Munshigonj. Various structures, old roads and drains were found in that site. Professor Mustafizur Rahman told the Daily Star that they had sent samples in the US for carbon test and the tests proved that the site was more than 1,100 years old.

Munshigonj, known as Bikrampur in the past, has always been a place of rich cultural heritage. It was one of the capital cities of Bengal during the Vedic Period. Around 820, emperor Dharmapala constructed approximately 30 monasteries during his reign and the discovered monastery is one of them.

The city was also famous for being a centre of Buddhist teaching and religious practice. The place might be the birthplace of the famous Buddhist scholar Atish Dipankar. He also might have been in this area for teaching Buddhism. Thousands of teachers, monks, preachers and students came to Bikrampur from far places like Thailand, Nepal, China and Tibet. Thus, the sites are very important for archaeologists from both Bangladesh and China to understand the great scholar and his life.

The team of archaeologists has a plan for more excavations for the next five years. Moreover, there is a plan to build an archaeological park in Nateswar as many historical and archaeological sites. From these sites, the archaeologists also discovered many relics and pottery.

So, there are enough resources to make it an archaeological park with a museum where history lovers can learn about the ancient ‘Temple City’ of Bangladesh. The researchers also believe that the sites of Munshigonj will receive recognition from UNESCO World Heritage site.

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