to the majority of Bahá'ís, as they are in Iraq and Iran respectively, and thus when Bahá'ís currently refer to pilgrimage, it refers to a nine-day pilgrimage which consists of visiting the holy places at the Bahá'í World Centre in northwest Israel in Haifa, Acre, and Bahjí. Buddhism In India and Nepal, there are four places of pilgrimage which are tied to the life of Gautama Buddha: Lumbini: Buddha's birthplace (in Nepal) Bodh Gaya: place of Enlightenment (in the current Mahabodhi Temple, Bihar, India) Sarnath: (formally Isipathana, Uttar pradesh, India) where he delivered his first sermon (Dhammacakkappavattana Sutta), and the Buddha taught about the Middle Way, the Four Noble Truths and Noble Eightfold Path Kusinara: (now Kusinagar, India) where he attained mahaparinirvana (died) Other pilgrimage places in India and Nepal connected Gautama Buddha's life are: Savatthi, Pataliputta, Nalanda, Gaya, Vesali, Sankasia, Kapilavastu, Kosambi, Rajagaha. Other famous places for Buddhist pilgrimage include: India: Sanchi, Ellora Caves, Ajanta Caves, also see Buddhist pilgrimage sites in India Thailand: Wat Phra Kaew, Wat Pho, Wat Doi Suthep, Phra Pathom Chedi, Sukhothai, Ayutthaya Tibet: Lhasa (traditional home of the Dalai Lama), Mount Kailash, Lake Nam-tso Cambodia: Wat Botum, Wat Ounalom, Wat Botum, Silver Pagoda, Angkor Wat Sri Lanka: Temple of the Tooth, Polonnaruwa, (Kandy), Anuradhapura Laos: Pha That Luang, Luang Prabang Malaysia: Kek Lok Si, KL Buddhist Maha Vihara Myanmar: Shwedagon Pagoda, Mahamuni Buddha Temple, Kyaiktiyo Pagoda, Bagan, Sagaing Hill, Mandalay Hill, Nepal: Maya Devi Temple, Boudhanath, Swayambhunath Indonesia: Borobudur, Mendut, Sewu Taiwan: Fo Guang Shan, Dharma Drum Mountain, Chung Tai Shan, Tzu Chi Hong Kong: Po Lin Monastery China: Yung-kang, Lung-men caves. The Four Sacred Mountains Japan: Shikoku Pilgrimage, 88 temple pilgrimage on the island of Shikoku Japan 100 Kannon Pilgrimage, pilgrimage composed of the Saigoku, Bandō and Chichibu pilgrimages Saigoku Kannon Pilgrimage, pilgrimage in the Kansai region Bandō Sanjūsankasho, pilgrimage in the Kantō region Chichibu 34 Kannon Sanctuary, pilgrimage in Saitama Prefecture Chūgoku 33 Kannon Pilgrimage, pilgrimage in the Chūgoku region Kumano Kodō Mount Kōya Christianity Christian pilgrimage was first made to sites connected with the birth, life, crucifixion and resurrection of Jesus. Aside from the early example of Origen in the third century, surviving descriptions of Christian pilgrimages to the Holy Land date from the 4th century, when pilgrimage was encouraged by church fathers including Saint Jerome, and established by Saint Helena, the mother of Constantine the Great. The purpose of Christian