Shortly after attaining enlightenment, Siddartha Gautama delivered a rousing speech on the Wheel of Law to a crowd of five, setting in motion a religious adherence that today boasts a following of 500 million. To commemorate the seminal spark of all Buddhist teaching, this 141-foot tall stupa has stood for millennia. The Dhamek Stupa was first built in 249 B.C. by Ashoka the Great (304–232 B.C.), Indian emperor of the Mauryan Dynasty, who came to rule nearly the entire Indian subcontinent in his decades-long reign. To encourage the spread of…
