Consecration of Enlightenment Stupa
It is with great pleasure to announce that after days and nights of working on site, we completed our First Enlightenment Stupa on Awam Lhasa Ling on 21st July 2025. Rinpoche did consecration prayers on the evening on 21st July upon arrival back to Awam Lhasa Ling from Ukraine.
An Enlightenment Stupa (also called a Stupa of Enlightenment) is a type of Buddhist stupa that symbolizes the moment of the Buddha’s enlightenment under the Bodhi tree in Bodh Gaya, India. It is one of the eight traditional types of stupas, each representing key events in the Buddha’s life.
Key Features of an Enlightenment Stupa:
- Symbolism:
- Represents the attainment of enlightenment—the awakening of wisdom and the realization of the true nature of reality (nirvana).
- It often symbolizes the Buddha’s victory over Mara, the demon of illusion.
- Design Characteristics:
- Typically includes the standard stupa structure: a square base, dome, spire, and umbrella or finial at the top.
- Specific proportions and ornaments are used to reflect enlightenment qualities, such as compassion, wisdom, and the unity of all phenomena.
- Spiritual Purpose:
- Acts as a physical embodiment of the awakened mind.
- Used for meditation, offerings, and circumambulation (walking around it in a clockwise direction as a form of devotion).
- Construction Significance:
- Often built according to precise ritual instructions from Vajrayana or Mahayana traditions.
- Contains sacred relics, mantras, scriptures, and symbolic offerings inside.
- Examples:
- Enlightenment stupas can be found in Buddhist countries and Tibetan Buddhist centers worldwide.
- One well-known example is at Kopan Monastery in Nepal.
Summary:
An Enlightenment Stupa is a sacred Buddhist monument that represents the Buddha’s realization of enlightenment, and serves as a spiritual support for practitioners aiming to attain that same awakened state. It is one of the most revered and symbolically rich types of stupas in the Buddhist tradition.
Consecration Video:
