Shanti Stupa

Shanti Stupa (chorten) is a Buddhist white-domed stupa on a hilltop in Chanspa, Leh district, Ladakh, in the north Indian. Stupa was built in 1991 by Japanese Buddhist monk, Gyomyo Nakamura and part of the Peace Pagoda mission. The Shanti Stupa holds the relics of the Buddha at its base, enshrined by the H.H The14th Dalai Lama. The stupa has become a tourist attraction sport not only due to its religious significance but also due to its location which provides panoramic views of Leh town and the surrounding landscape. The Shanti Stupa was built by both Japanese Buddhists and Ladakhi Buddhists. Original idea was stated by Nichidatsu Fujii (Fujii Guruji) in 1914 The mission of Nichidatsu Fujii was to build Peace Pagodas and temples over the world and try to resurrect Buddhism back in India In April 1983 construction of Shanti Stupa began under the supervision of Monk Gyomyo Nakamura and Kushok Bakula Rimpochee, a lama of Ladakh from New Delhi, member of the Minority commission of Government of India, former statesman and former international diplomat of the Republic of India The project was built with the help of Ladakhi Buddhists, who offered voluntary labour, and Japanese, who consider India as the "sacred" birthplace of the Lord Buddha The then Prime Minister of India, Indira Gandhi, sanctioned the construction of a vehicular road to the stupa. The state Government also provided a few financial support in 1984 for the construction of the Stupa The 14th and current Dalai Lama, Tenzin Gyatso inaugurated the Shanti Stupa in August 1991.