Dharamshala: Under the direction of Office of His Holiness the Dalai Lama, eight great stupas were constructed in 2016 by the Department of Religion and Culture, each corresponding to one of the eight great holy sites of the Buddha.

The main purposes of constructing these stupas were to express gratitude and remembrance for the kindness of the Government and people of India for granting asylum to His Holiness the Dalai Lama and hundreds of thousands of Tibetan refugees since 1959; to serve as a means of accumulating merit and purifying negativity for all living and deceased Tibetans who continue to suffer under oppression; and to dedicate the roots of virtue from this meritorious act toward the flourishing, expansion, and long preservation of the precious Buddhist teachings, the source of happiness and benefit for all beings.

Prayers were also offered for the continued harmony and purity among all religious traditions and lineages; for the long lives and fulfillments of noble deeds of the great holders of the Buddha’s teachings; for all sentient beings to live with compassion and noble conduct; and for world peace and environmental purity to prevail.

The Tibetan Buddhist monasteries located at each of the holy sites have been encouraged to perform annual consecration and purification ceremonies on the occasion of Lhabab Düchen, the Buddha’s descent from the heavenly realm.