AT A GLANCE
Why go?
Pankhaiya Para Dharmarajik Buddhist Temple (also rendered as Dhormarajik Buddha Bihar) is a Theravada Buddhist monastery serving the Marma ethnic community in the Pankhaiya Para neighborhood of Khagrachari town, the capital of a district in Bangladesh's Chittagong Hill Tracts. Rated 4.5 on Google Maps, it is one of dozens of Buddhist viharas that dot this hill district, where Theravada Buddhism is a living cultural tradition among the indigenous Marma people.↗
The temple sits on a hillside in Khagrachari Sadar upazila. Its name combines the locality (Pankhaiya Para) with "Dhormarajik," a Pali-derived term meaning "Royal Dharma" or "Dharma King," reflecting the community's Buddhist heritage. Government records show infrastructure investment in the temple precinct, including the construction of a retaining wall on its elevated northern side.↗↗
A Living Center of Marma Buddhist Life
Khagrachari's Buddhist temples are not relics of the past but active community institutions. The Pankhaiya Para neighborhood is a Marma settlement — confirmed by the nearby Marma Unnayan Sonsad (Marma Development Council) office — and the temple anchors the spiritual and cultural rhythm of daily life there. Residents gather for meditation, prayer, and the observance of Buddhist holy days throughout the year, particularly during the full moon festivals of Vesak (Buddha Purnima), Asadhi, and Pravarana.