A
stupa is a mound-like or hemispherical structure containing relics that is used as a place of meditation.
A related architectural term is a chaitya, which is a prayer hall or temple containing a stupa.
In Buddhism, circumambulation or pradakhshina has been an important ritual and devotional practice since the earliest times, and
stupas always have a pradakhshina path around them.
According to Buddhist tradition, Emperor Ashoka (rule: 273—232 BCE) recovered the relics of the Buddha .