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Tourism Department

Vikramshila

Vikramashila was one of the two most important centres of learning in India during the Pala Empire, along with Nalanda. Vikramashila was established by King Dharmapala (783 to 820) in response to a supposed decline in the quality of scholarship at Nalanda. Atisha, the renowned pandita, is sometimes listed as a notable abbot. It was destroyed by the forces of Muhammad bin Bakhtiyar Khilji around 1200. Vikramashila (village Antichak, district Bhagalpur, Bihar) is located at about 50 km east of Bhagalpur and about 13 km north-east of Kahalgaon, a town in Bhagalpur district . It is approachable through 11 km long motorable road diverting from NH-80 at Anadipur about 2 km from Kahalgaon.

General Information

Altitude:52 meters.
Temperature (MaxMin.) Deg C: Minimum : 15 °C, Maximum : 32 °C.
Rainfall:720.4 mm.
Best Season: October to March.
Clothing: Summer – Cottons; Winter - Heavy Woollens.

How to Reach

Air: The nearest airport from Vikramshila is located in Patna.
Rail: 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.
Road: There are bus services from the nearest town Bhagalpur.

What to Visit

Vikramshila Ruins

The Vikramashila stupa built for the purpose of worship is a brick structure laid in mud mortar and stands in the centre of the square monastery. This two terraced stupa is cruciform on plan and about 15 metres high from the ground level. The lower terrace is about 2.25 metres high from the ground level and the upper terrace is at a similar height from the lower side. At both terraces there is a circumambulatory path, the lower about 4.5 metres wide and the upper about 3 metres wide.