Arun Kumar Das/New Delhi

In a move that sent a wave of jubilations across the global Buddhist community, India welcomed home the sacred Piprahwa relics of Lord Buddha after rescuing them from a global auction in Hong Kong, two months ago.

The Piprahwa Relics are a collection of sacred artefacts discovered in 1898 at the Piprahwa Stupa in Uttar Pradesh. The site is associated with Kapilavastu, the homeland of Gautama Buddha.

These relics, unearthed by British colonial engineer William Claxton Peppé in 1898, include bone fragments believed to be those of Lord Buddha, along with crystal caskets, gold ornaments, gemstones, and a sandstone coffer.

An inscription in Brahmi script on one of the caskets links the relics directly to the Lord Buddha’s Sakya clan. These remains were enshrined around the third century BC.

Relics being carried ceremoniously as these arrived in Delhi

Their return to India 127 years later marks a watershed moment for India and the Buddhists the world over.

More excavations by the Archaeological Survey of India between 1971 and 1977 uncovered additional steatite caskets containing 22 sacred bone relics, which are now preserved at the National Museum in New Delhi.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi celebrated the repatriation of the sacred Piprahwa relics of Lord Buddha to India after 127 years, describing it as a proud moment for the nation’s cultural heritage.

In a statement embodying the spirit of Vikas Bhi Virasat Bhi, he emphasized India’s deep reverence for Buddha’s teachings and its commitment to preserving its spiritual and historical legacy.

In a post on X, Prime Minister Modi noted that the relics, discovered in 1898 at Piprahwa but taken abroad during colonial times, were successfully brought back after appearing in an international auction earlier this year, thanks to concerted efforts.

In May 2025, the Ministry of Culture intervened to halt an auction of a portion of the Piprahwa Relics by Sotheby’s in Hong Kong.

Fragments of metal and bones of Lord Buddha

The relics were successfully repatriated to India on July 30, 2025, through a public-private partnership involving the Government of India and the Godrej Industries Group.

Pirojsha Godrej, Executive Vice Chairperson of Godrej Industries Group, expressed pride in contributing to this milestone, describing the Piprahwa relics as timeless symbols of peace, compassion, and humanity’s shared heritage.

The successful repatriation sets a benchmark for cultural diplomacy and collaboration.

The relics will soon be unveiled in a public ceremony, allowing citizens and global visitors to connect with them. This initiative reinforces India’s role as a global custodian of Buddhist values and cultural heritage, aligning with Prime Minister Modi’s mission to celebrate and reclaim Bharat’s ancient legacy.

To preserve and promote the Buddhist heritage, India has launched initiatives like the Buddhist Tourism Circuit which includes development of key Buddhist sites like Kapilvastu,.

Recently, India facilitated cultural exchanges by showcasing Buddhist relics in Thailand and Vietnam for public. In Thailand, the relics of Lord Buddha and his disciples, Arahant Sariputra and Arahant Maudgalyayana, were displayed for 26 days across Bangkok, Chiang Mai, Ubon Ratchathani, and Krabi, attracting over four million devotees.

The Piprahwa relics of Bhagwan Buddha return to India after 127 years. Shri Gajendra Singh Shekhawat, Union Minister of Culture, led the historic reception, strengthening India’s Buddhist heritage.#VikasBhiVirasatBhi #NationalMuseumIndia #GajendraSinghShekhawatAsk pic.twitter.com/u1SxFARZe3

— National Museum (@NMnewdelhi) August 6, 2025

Organized by India’s Ministry of Culture and the International Buddhist Confederation, this exposition underscored deep cultural connections.

Similarly, in Vietnam, a month-long exhibition featuring Buddha’s relics, including a portion of his skull bone, was held in Ho Chi Minh City, Tay Ninh, Hanoi, and Ha Nam as part of the UN Day of Vesak celebrations, drawing 17.8 million devotees. These events highlight the enduring spiritual and cultural ties uniting India, Thailand, and Vietnam through shared Buddhist heritage.

In 2022, in a significant gesture towards the revival of cultural and spiritual ties between Indian and Mongolia, four Holy Relics of Lord Buddha were showcased in Mongolia for an 11-day public exposition. This event was organized to commemorate Mongolian Buddha Purnima, celebrated on June 14.

The Ministry of Culture hosted significant events to highlight its Buddhist heritage, including the Global Buddhist Summit (2023) and Asian Buddhist Summit (2024).

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In April 2023, the global summit was inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, which focused on universal values, peace, and sustainable models for global challenges. Similarly, in November 2024, the First Asian Buddhist Summit was organised with the collaborative effort of the Ministry of Culture and the International Buddhist Confederation in New Delhi. The event was themed ‘Role of Buddha Dhamma in strengthening Asia’ and witnessed the participation from 32 countries across the globe, with more than 160 international participants.