Pippala Cave
Cave · Mahakashyapa (Maha Kassapa) · Rajgir, Nalanda, Bihar
Buddhists visit it as Mahakashyapa's dwelling and a meditation retreat; Hindu visitors come for the...
A rectangular Mauryan-period stone structure about 22 ft high, standing on the hillside directly above Brahma Kund on the climb toward the Saptaparni caves. Locally it is called Jarasandh ki Baithak, "Jarasandha's seat"; the walls show the polished finish typical of Mauryan stonework. Buddhist tradition identifies it as the Pippala cave, the residence of Mahakashyapa, and it contains small chambers described as monks' meditation cells.
Plan your visit
- Best season
- September to April" (Bihar Tourism)
- Area
- Rajgir
- Status
- Coming Soon
Yatras that include Pippala Cave
- Silence and Stillness: A stone chamber on Vaibhara, used by monks and, later, as a watchtower.
Experiences here
- Sit in a cave: People have gone to these rooms to be alone for two thousand two hundred years
Tirtham can arrange here
Guide, car and stay around Rajgir
Also around Rajgir
- Litti chokha: The dish people mean when they say Bihari food.
- Sattu sharbat in summer: What Bihar drinks against the heat: roasted gram, water, lemon and salt, sold from carts on every corner.
- Magahi paan: The betel leaf of old Magadh, soft enough to melt in the mouth, grown under thatch in Nawada, Gaya, Aurangabad and Nalanda.
- The ropeway up Ratnagiri: The ride up to the Vishwa Shanti Stupa, over the hills the Buddha walked, in an open chair or a cabin.
- Rajgir Mahotsav: Bihar's festival of classical dance and music, with a food fair, held in Rajgir each year.
- Silao khaja: A many-layered fried sweet made in Silao, on the road between Rajgir and Nalanda, GI-registered in 2018.
Nearby places
- Rajgir (Griddhakuta): Hills where the Buddha and Mahavira taught
- Saptaparni Cave: It is held to be where the First Buddhist Council met after the Buddha's parinirvana and where Ananda...
- Vishwa Shanti Stupa, Rajgir: Pilgrims come to circumambulate and pray for peace at one of about 80 Nipponzan Myohoji peace pagodas...
- Venuvana: It is the first monastery ever offered to the Buddha and where he spent several rains retreats, so...
- Jivakamravana: It is the mango grove the physician Jivaka gave to the sangha and where the Buddha was treated after...
- Bimbisara's Jail: Buddhists come because Bimbisara, the Buddha's royal patron who is said to have attained sotapanna...
- Brahma Kund: Bathing in the hot springs is treated as purifying and curative, and the water is believed to be...
- Makhdum Kund: Muslim pilgrims come to bathe in the spring associated with Makhdum Sahib and to pray at the tomb
Questions pilgrims ask
Why is Pippala Cave important?
A rectangular Mauryan-period stone structure about 22 ft high, standing on the hillside directly above Brahma Kund on the climb toward the Saptaparni caves. Locally it is called Jarasandh ki Baithak, "Jarasandha's seat"; the walls show the polished finish typical of Mauryan stonework. Buddhist tradition identifies it as the Pippala cave, the residence of Mahakashyapa, and it contains small chambers described as monks' meditation cells.
When is the best time to visit Pippala Cave?
September to April" (Bihar Tourism).
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