Following the festivities of Losar, the Tibetan New Year, the Dalai Lama teaches here, attracting devotees and students from every corner of the earth. Believers often credit his presence with imbuing the region with a rare sense of tranquillity. Tibetan Buddhist monks and adherents serve as doctors, painters, and craftspeople. Bodh Gaya is Buddhism's most important site. This small town in Bihar is filled with temples.
Thousands flock here each year to circumambulate the temple in devotion.
Each February, Bodh Gaya hosts the huge ten-day festival known as Monlam. This is the most popular time for visitors and the highlight of Bodh Gaya's winter activities. The village is packed to capacity. The festival is a dazzling experience of colors, costumes, and candlelight. Here, before the people of the world, monks and nuns of the enduring Tibetan tradition conduct rituals and offer prayers for global peace.