Latest update:
Bodh Gaya is home to the Mahabodhi Temple, where Buddha achieved enlightenment under the Bodhi Tree more than 2,500 years ago.
The traveler was amazed by the difficult living conditions of the people around him. (Image source: Instagram)
A foreign visitor to Bodh Gaya was left in tears after seeing the harsh reality of life outside the serene walls of the Mahabodhi Temple in Bihar state. I was moved after witnessing the difficult living conditions faced by the residents.
In a video shared on Instagram, she said she had come to Bodh Gaya to volunteer at a charity event at the Mahabodhi Temple, which she had wanted to visit for a long time.
Bodh Gaya is home to the Mahabodhi Temple, the sacred place where Buddha attained enlightenment under the Bodhi Tree more than 2,500 years ago.
Volunteering dreams are shocked by reality
While she expected the temple to be beautiful and peaceful, she was surprised by the difficult living conditions of the people around it.
“I have already come to Bodh Gaya to volunteer at a charity event at the Mahabodhi Temple that will happen in the coming days. I have wanted to visit for a long time, so it feels special to finally set foot in this holy place for the first time,” she said.
“But I was honestly surprised by the circumstances and how difficult life is for so many people who live here,” she added.
In another part of the video, she appeared struggling to walk on a bumpy and uneven road, and said: “I can’t stop crying. This road is not even balanced.”
Children and families struggling to survive
She also shared scenes of makeshift huts lining roads, mothers carrying naked babies, and children walking barefoot. She even shared a clip of a young girl trying to balance on a rope, a dangerous stunt used as a means of begging.
“You see 3- and 4-year-old children begging in the streets,” she said. “And children who are supposed to be in school are not going to school. You see some malnourished people, and you see some malnourished animals as well. You see rooftops made of scraps. It’s really hard to see. This is their natural way of living.”
“There are definitely some things I can help with,” she concluded, “This is life in this part of town, in this whole world.”
She said in the caption that she hopes to draw attention with this video and wants people to become more aware of the residents’ struggles.
“We hope that by bringing more attention to it (as is done through this video), we can raise awareness and encourage greater interest in this sacred site and the people of Bodh Gaya,” she wrote.
Delhi, India, India
18 March 2026 at 5:38 PM IST
Read more
