Tradition guide
Buddhism
Buddhist sacred sites trace the movement of teachings, relics, monastic communities, cave practice, stupas, temples, and pilgrimage routes across Asia and beyond.
413 sacred places share this lineage. Use the country and site-type filters to narrow in.
Atlas summary
Buddhism sacred sites overview
Buddhism sacred sites connect places through shared lineage, ritual use, memory, and pilgrimage practice across the Pilgrim Map atlas.
Use this page to compare country clusters, common place types, UNESCO-tagged landmarks, and the map distribution before exploring individual site pages.
| Coverage | 413 Buddhism sacred places in the current atlas. |
|---|---|
| Country clusters | |
| Common place types | |
| UNESCO heritage | 21 UNESCO-tagged Buddhism sites appear in this browse view. |
Dates connected to Buddhism
Upcoming festivals, feast days, and pilgrimages tied to Buddhism. Add any to your calendar, or see the full observance calendar.
Showing 385-413 of 413 sites in this tradition guide
Trongsa Dzong
Bagochen Boolingpang Ueling, Trongsa District, Bhutan
The Ta Dzong of Trongsa was built in 1652 as a watchtower to guard the largest dzong in Bhutan....
Ugyen Cholling Monastery
Baylamsharang, Samdrup Jongkhar District, Bhutan
In the upper Tang Valley of Bumthang, Ogyen Choling sits on a hill shaped like an elephant's head, where the great Nyingma master Longchenpa meditated in a cave in the...
Unpen-ji (雲辺寺)
Miyoshi, Miyoshi, Tokushima, Japan
Unpen-ji sits at 927 metres on the ridge between Tokushima and Kagawa, the highest temple of the Shikoku 88 and the gateway to the Nirvana stage of the pilgrimage....
Wangdue Phodrang Dzong
Dzonkhag Thromde, Wangdue Phodrang District, Bhutan
Wangdue Phodrang Dzong was built in 1638 by Zhabdrung Ngawang Namgyal, fulfilling an 800-year-old prophecy that an emanation of Naropa would build a palace on an...
Wat Langka, Phnom Penh
Khan Boeng Keng Kang, Phnom Penh, Cambodia
Wat Langka is one of the five original pagodas established when King Ponhea Yat founded Phnom Penh in 1442....
Wat Luang
Pakse, Laos
On the banks of the Se Don in Pakse, Wat Luang is among the oldest and largest temples in the city....
Wat Manorom
Luang Prabang, Luang Prabang, Laos
Wat Manorom holds quiet significance among Luang Prabang's many temples. Founded in the 14th century during the golden age of the Lan Xang Kingdom, this active monastery...
Wat Muang Kang
Mouang Kang, Champasak Province, Laos
On the Mekong a short ride from Champasak town, Wat Muang Kang is the region's oldest active temple....
Wat Ounalom, Phnom Penh
Khan Daun Penh, Phnom Penh, Cambodia
Wat Ounalom is the most important Buddhist monastery in Cambodia, headquarters of the Mahanikaya Order and residence of the Supreme Patriarch....
Wat Phousalao
Pakse, Laos
On a hill across the Mekong from Pakse, Wat Phousalao crowns its summit with a large seated golden Buddha that gazes over the city and river....
Wat Xieng Mouane
Luang Prabang, Laos
In the heart of Luang Prabang's UNESCO heritage peninsula, Wat Xieng Mouane is a mid-19th-century royal-era temple whose name means 'Melodious Sounds.' Behind its gold...
Wat Xieng Thong, Luang Prabang
Luang Prabang, Luang Prabang, Laos
At the tip of Luang Prabang's peninsula, where the Mekong meets the Nam Khan, Wat Xieng Thong has stood since 1560....
Wat Xiengthong
Luang Prabang, Luang Prabang, Laos
On the northern tip of the Luang Prabang peninsula, where the Mekong meets the Nam Khan, Wat Xieng Thong gathers four centuries of Lao devotion under its low, cascading...
Yakuō-ji (薬王寺)
Minami, Minami, Tokushima, Japan
Yakuō-ji, Temple 23 of the Shikoku 88, is the canonical yakuyoke-no-tera — the misfortune-warding temple — of the pilgrimage....
Yakuri-ji (八栗寺)
Takamatsu, Takamatsu, Kagawa, Japan
Yakuri-ji clings to the western slope of Mt. Goken at 375 metres, the eighty-fifth temple of the Shikoku circuit....
Yakuriji Temple, Yakuri
Takamatsu, Kagawa Prefecture, Japan
Temple 85 on the Shikoku 88 Temple Pilgrimage, Yakuriji sits high on Mount Goken, the Mountain of Five Swords, whose dramatic peaks thrust skyward like divine blades....
Yanglesho Cave
Pharping, Bagmati Province, Nepal
In this cave near Pharping, Guru Padmasambhava and his Nepali consort Shakyadevi practiced the most profound tantric sadhanas and attained the Mahamudra vidyadhara...
Yasaka-ji (八坂寺)
Matsuyama, Matsuyama, Ehime, Japan
Yasaka-ji is the forty-seventh temple of the Shikoku pilgrimage and one of its most layered....
Yashima-ji (屋島寺)
Takamatsu, Takamatsu, Kagawa, Japan
Yashima-ji crowns the mesa of Yashima, 293 metres above the Seto Inland Sea, and is the eighty-fourth temple of the Shikoku circuit....
Yokei-ji
Setouchi, Japan
Yokei-ji crowns Ueterasan, a low hill above the rice plains of Setouchi City. Founded in the eighth century and long affiliated with the Tendai school, the temple holds...
Yōkoku-ji
Japan
Yōkoku-ji — known to most Kyotoites as Yanagidani Kannon — joins three rare devotional layers in one Nishiyama mountainside: a hibutsu Eleven-faced Thousand-armed Kannon...
Yokomine-ji (横峰寺)
Saijō, Saijō, Ehime, Japan
Yokomine-ji clings to the northern slope of Mt. Ishizuchi, the highest peak in western Japan, at roughly 750 m elevation....
Yoshimine-dera (善峯寺)
Nishikyo-ku, Nishikyo-ku, Kyoto, Japan
Yoshimine-dera is station 20 on the Saigoku Kannon Pilgrimage, a Tendai Buddhism temple in Kyoto dedicated to Senju Kannon....
Yungang Grottoes
Datong, Shanxi, China
The Yungang Grottoes stretch for a kilometer along a sandstone cliff face near Datong, Shanxi Province, a procession of 252 caves containing over 51,000 carved Buddhist...
Zenjibu-ji (禅師峰寺)
Nankoku, Nankoku, Kōchi, Japan
Zenjibu-ji rests on the cliff-edge of Hachiyō-san — Eight-Petalled Lotus Mountain — above Urado Bay....
Zenrakuji (善楽寺)
Kōchi, Kōchi, Kōchi, Japan
Zenrakuji stands beside Tosa Shrine, the province's first-ranked Shintō shrine, on ground that originally hosted a syncretic kami-Buddha precinct founded by Kūkai....
Zentsū-ji (善通寺)
Zentsūji, Zentsūji, Kagawa, Japan
Temple 75 Zentsū-ji stands on the ground where Kūkai was born in 774. Founded by him in 807 on his return from Tang China, it is the head temple of the Zentsuji-ha school...
Zhaiming Monastery
Daxi, Taoyuan City, Daxi, Taoyuan City, Taiwan
Founded in 1873 by devotees of the Longhua sect, one of China's fasting religions, Zhaiming Monastery has since been absorbed into mainstream Taiwanese Buddhism under the...
Zhulinshan Guanyin Temple
Linkou, New Taipei City, Linkou, New Taipei City, Taiwan
Enshrining an Eighteen-Armed Guanyin whose divine presence was carried from Fujian's Jinjiang Longshan Temple in 1801, Zhulinshan Guanyin Temple has grown into the...
Showing 385-413 of 413 sites
Previous pageKey questions
Buddhism sacred-site questions
- What are Buddhism sacred sites?
- Buddhism sacred sites are places connected by shared lineage, practice, memory, ritual use, or pilgrimage tradition.
- Where can I find Buddhism sacred sites?
- The strongest country clusters in this guide include Japan, China, Bhutan, Taiwan, Laos, India.
- What kinds of places are included?
- Common place types include temple, buddhist temple, monastery, sacred mountain, stupa, cave.
- Can I map Buddhism sacred sites?
- Yes. Compare country clusters and site types first, then open individual pages for coordinates, historical context, and visitor guidance.