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Buddhism

Nicknamed “Gabi,” the humanoid robot monk took part in ceremonies at a temple in Seoul this week. 

Meet ‘Gabi,’ the Robot That Just Became a Monk at a Buddhist Temple in South Korea. It’s the Latest Robot to Take Up Religious Practice

The humanoid promised to obey humans, save energy and treat other robots peacefully. South Korean Buddhist leaders have recently started to embrace artificial intelligence

Modern celebrations of Songkran in Bangkok

Songkran Is Thailand’s Splashing New Year’s Festival, When Everyone Gets Out a Super Soaker and Prepares to Get Drenched

The memorable tradition has a deep cultural history rooted in Buddhism and increasing global notoriety for its rowdy water fights

A third-century B.C.E. plaque unearthed at Ai-Khanoum in Afghanistan depicts the mother goddess Cybele in a chariot driven by Nike, the Greek goddess of victory.

Afghanistan Was a Crossroad of the Ancient World, Where Hellenistic Culture Blended With Buddhist Influences

Alexander the Great conquered the region around 329 B.C.E., leaving behind Greek and Macedonian settlers who intermarried with locals. Their descendants eventually formed new kingdoms whose legacies continue to be debated today

A rendering of how The Light That Shines Through the Universe will look on the High Line

A Stunning Sculpture of the Buddha Modeled After a Destroyed Sixth-Century Statue Is Coming to New York City’s High Line

Known as “The Light That Shines Through the Universe,” the 27-foot-tall artwork created by Tuan Andrew Nguyen will be installed on the Plinth this spring

The gems were found in a stupa in northern India.

India Is Trying to Stop the Sale of Hundreds of Ancient Gems Associated With the Buddha

The 300 sacred jewels are part of a larger trove found in India in 1898. They’re scheduled to be sold by Sotheby’s Hong Kong, where bidding will start at roughly $1.3 million

Almost all the buildings at the Buddhist Gounsa Temple complex were destroyed in the fires

South Korea’s Worst Ever Wildfires Ravage Ancient Buddhist Temples and Menace Historic Villages

One monk said his old temple was ‘reduced to heaps of ashes,’ as the fires continue to rage across the country

 Pilgrims at the Maya Devi Temple in Lumbini offer candles on the lunar date celebrated as the Buddha’s birthday.

What Archaeologists Are Uncovering About the Buddha in His Legendary Nepali Hometown

The birthplace of the Buddha beckons worshipers from around the world, as well as researchers hoping to dig up new evidence about the revered spiritual leader

The body of this Buddha statue is missing its head, feet and right hand.

Cool Finds

Archaeologists Unearth the Torso of a Rare Buddha Statue—Nearly 100 Years After They Found Its Head

The two pieces of the 800-year-old sculpture were discovered roughly 160 feet away from each other at the Ta Prohm Temple in Cambodia

Tourists sunbathe on Chaweng Beach on Koh Samui's eastern coast.

The Secret World War II History of Koh Samui, the New Setting for ‘The White Lotus’

Behind the dreamy scenery of the HBO show’s latest location lurks an explosive story of Thailand’s involvement in the conflict and a sunken Japanese tanker

Six of the 24 Orthodox Christian monasteries strewn across Meteora, a collection of massive stone pillars and rounded boulders in northwestern Greece, are still active more than 700 years after the first was founded in the 14th century.

Ten Isolated, Gravity-Defying Monasteries You Can Visit Around the World

Monks have been seeking spiritual enlightenment at these sites on steep cliffs, inside caves and atop an extinct volcano for centuries

A 17th-century painting of the September 10, 1622, Great Genna Martyrdom, in which 55 Christians were beheaded or burned alive

On This Day in History

Why Japan’s Shogun Executed Dozens of Christians During the Great Genna Martyrdom of 1622

On September 10, 1622, Japanese officials burned alive or beheaded 55 missionaries and laypeople alike. The violence coincided with Japan’s push to expel all foreign influences

Officials from Thailand's Department of National Parks, Wildlife and Plant Conservation were sent to investigate the carving.

Cool Finds

Mushroom Hunters Stumble Upon Mysterious Stone Sculpture in Thai Forest

While the artwork’s age is still unknown, some think it depicts the mother of the Buddha

Long before it was imbued with symbolic meaning in the zodiac and beyond, the dragon was an ambiguous silhouette adorning art forms.

Why Is the Year of the Dragon Considered So Lucky?

The only mythical creature in the Chinese zodiac, the dragon has long been associated with prosperity and imperial power

Just before sunset, the peaks of Gokyo Ri in Sagarmatha National Park peek through the clouds.

Smithsonian Photo Contest Galleries

Soar Through the Himalayas With These 15 Breathtaking Photos of Nepal

Travel vicariously to one of the world’s most picturesque locales

Green tea's enduring popularity is reflected in the "teacup without handle" emoji (left). The "hot beverage" emoji (right) takes its cue from another tea tradition: black tea.

What Emoji Tell Us About the History of Tea

From ancient China to 20th-century America, the aromatic beverage has undergone a dramatic evolution

The Buddha statue stolen from the Barakat Gallery on September 18

Thief Steals $1.5 Million Buddha Statue From Los Angeles Gallery

Gallery officials say they are stumped as to why the 250-pound artwork was targeted

Phin Sokol, the abbot of Khemararangsi Buddhist Temple, performs a Buddhist blessing at a ceremony for the repatriation of three bronze statues that were previously part of the collection of the National Gallery of Australia.

Australia Returns Three Looted Statues to Cambodia

The rare artifacts will remain on display at the National Gallery of Australia for up to three years as the Cambodian government prepares a place for them

The Toshodaiji Temple, an eighth-century Buddhist site in Nara, Japan

Teenage Tourist Carves His Name Into 1,200-Year-Old Temple in Japan

The UNESCO World Heritage site is one of several historical landmarks around the world to be vandalized this summer

Losang Samten, a Tibetan American scholar and former Buddhist monk, will create, with the help of festivalgoers, a sand mandala.

The 2023 Smithsonian Folklife Festival Explores the Many Ways Americans Express Their Spirituality

Tibetan Buddhist monks, Yiddish musicians and many more creatives will share their cultural practices with visitors to the National Mall

An abbot at Dongchan Temple in Fuzhou, China, supervised the creation of The Scripture of the Great Flower Ornament of the Buddha, now on view at the Huntington Library.

Nearly 1,000 Years Old, This Text Shows the Ingenuity of Chinese Woodblock Printing

An 11th-century collection of aphorisms is a part of a new exhibition in California

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