Ramagrama Stupa

Ramagrama Stupa, in Ramgram of Parasi district in the Terai, is revered as the single relic stupa of the Buddha that was never opened. After the Buddha's cremation his relics were divided into eight portions; tradition holds that Emperor Ashoka opened seven to redistribute them but left Ramagrama untouched, guarded by a serpent king (Naga).

The stupa is thought to date to the Mauryan–Gupta span and has remained as a grass-covered earthen mound beside the Jharahi River. Archaeological investigation has confirmed brick stupa structures beneath, but the relic core has deliberately not been disturbed.

As the only intact original relic stupa of the Buddha, Ramagrama is of exceptional importance to the Buddhist world and a growing pilgrimage destination. It is on Nepal's UNESCO tentative list.

The visible monument is a roughly 7 m high earthen mound over buried brick stupa phases; the surrounding sacred area includes the riverbank, ancillary mounds and a modern pilgrim infrastructure being developed around the protected core.

Current condition: Protected site; relic core intentionally unexcavated

Protected by the Department of Archaeology; on the UNESCO tentative list, with the relic core preserved unopened.