Don Tour

Donas stupa is one of the fewer known but popular Buddhist pilgrimage site. As the legend goes, it is believed that after the cremation of Lord Buddha, a disagreement brewed between the eight disciples of Buddha over the distribution of his ashes. Subsequently all of them gave this task to Brahmin who is known as Dona. Brahmin divided the ashes in a very just and reasonable way, making his disciples so content and satisfied that they gave him the vessel in which the ashes were kept. Dona then built a stupa to preserve the holy vessel.

This is known as Donas stupa which was visited by the Chinese traveler, Hiuen Tsang which is mentioned in his travels in India account. He describes the stupa being in ruins. Currently a Hindu temple has been built where the statue of Tara, dating back to the ninth century AD is worshipped as a Hindu goddess. This complete incident relating to the division of ashes to giving of the vessel is mentioned in the end of the Mahaparinibbana Sutra.