Indian Temple Where Buddha Renounced Material Wealth is Being Adorned With $12 Million in Gold

There’s nothing quite like a big display of ostentatious, costly excess to celebrate a holy man’s asceticism and humility.

Via the Huffington Post:

The Mahabodhi Temple at Bodh Gaya in Bihar, India, marks the spot where Buddha renounced material wealth along with emotions like anger and envy, according to author Thubten Samphel. Despite its spiritual significance, the King of Thailand, along with some others, has donated 660 pounds of gold to create a shiny new temple dome that will be inlaid with the precious metal.

Lawdy, that is precious.

The gold is currently being guarded by Thai commandos as the work to gold-plate the dome commences. It should take between 40 to 50 days to complete.

660 pounds of gold is worth well over $12,000,000.

To their credit, some Buddhists, including representatives of the Dalai Lama, have criticized the profligacy of the project.

(Image via Shutterstock)