Buddha Dhatu Jadi: Place of Peace and Power

The Bandarban Golden Temple belongs to the Theravada Buddhism order, which is practiced by the Marma indigenous people, a dominant ethnic group of Bandarban. It was built in 2000 in Arakanese architecture, an adoption of South East Asia style.


The Buddhist temple is known as kyang in local dialect. Buddha Dhatu Jadi is considered as one of the holy sites for Theravada Buddhism followers and Buddhist pilgrims. Marma or Mogh tribal group of the Chittagong Hill Tracts is a dominant ethnic group in Bandarban. By religion they are Buddhists and of Arkhan descent.


Perched on small hill six miles (10 kilometers) from the town of Bandarban in southern Bangladesh, the Buddha Dhatu Jadi temple is the largest Theravada Buddhist temple in the country. While not an ancient temple, being constructed from 1995 to 2000, it has become a favored pilgrimage destination because of the relics it contains.

While the country of Bangladesh is more than 99% Muslim, the Marma or Mogh tribal groups of the Chittagong Hill Tracts have practiced Buddhism for many centuries. Every full moon night the temple is illuminated by thousands of clay lamps and surrounding the temple are several statues of the Buddha. Each of these statues shows the Buddha with specific hand positions, called mudras, which indicate particular aspects of the Buddha's teachings.