Vikramshila is an ancient site located 40 km away from the Bhagalpur city of Bihar. The small town is famous for housing Vikramshila University, which was built under the guidance of Dharmapala, a Pala king of 8th century AD. Situated on top of the hills along the banks of river Ganges, the university became a learning center of Tantric Buddhism. Over the years, Vikramshila became one of the most popular Buddhist destinations in India and a major tourist spot in Bihar. During the ancient period, there was a temple located at the center of Vikramshila University. A life-size copy of the Mahabodhi tree was enshrined in this temple. It is believed that around 108 temples were constructed around it. The study of Guhyasamaja Tantra was carried out in 53 of those temples. Some of the great scholars, including Santipa, Jetari, Ratnavajra, Jnanasrimitra, Naropa and Atisa, have been closely associated with Vikramshila University.
In the present times, Vikramshila stands as a site for the remains of this University, which was built with bricks and decorated with terracotta plaques in the walls of the two-tier circumambulatory paths. Carved pillars, Buddhist images and pictures of Hindu deities have been excavated from this ancient site. The town of Vikramshila is 10 km north of Kahalgaon and 291 km from Patna, the capital city of Bihar.
How To Reach Vikramshila
The nearest airport from Vikramshila is located in Patna. If you want to travel via train, then you will have to go to the nearest railway junction that is siatuted in Kahalgaon. Vikramshila has excellent connectivity with Patna, Gaya, Bodhgaya, Motihari, Muzaffarpur, Biharsharif, Bhagalpur and Kahalgaon, via road. You will easily get vehicles on hire from Bhagalpur, which will take you directly to Vikramshila.
