Tirtha Atlas

The sacred geography of the Indic world — every site mapped, dated, storied, and cited.

1126 sites15 countries4 traditions30 centuries
Ancient · Buddhist · India

Ratnagiri Mahavihara

ରତ୍ନଗିରି

Ratnagiri, Jajpur, Odisha · 20.6239°, 86.3456°

Buddha (Mahayana and Vajrayana monastery)Bhauma-KaraPost-Gupta brick with chlorite and khondalite carving
Sacred since
500 CE
first attestation / structure
Standing structure
5th–13th c.; main phase under the Bhauma-Karas
Bhauma-Kara

History & significance

A ruined mahavihara on a hill between the Brahmani and Birupa rivers, the major Buddhist monastery of Odisha and a centre of Tantric and Vajrayana practice, with three main monuments, over seven hundred votive stupas and colossal Buddha heads recovered by excavation.

Sthala katha — the legend

Villagers long took the mounds for the palace of a mythical king and called the site the queen's mound.

Open in Google Maps ↗Wikipedia ↗View on the atlas map

Related sites

Chausathi Yogini Temple, Hirapur
Hirapur, Bhubaneswar · India
864 CE

Sources

coordinates: wikipedia-2026-08-27 · sources retrieved 2026-08-26 · dynasty page: Bhauma-Kara