the Rana dynasty in 1951, Buddhism gradually developed in the country. Theravada Buddhists played a greatly significant role for the Buddhist revival campaign in modern Nepal since the 1920s. This revival movement has changed Buddhism from a religion of some ethnic groups and castes to going beyond the caste and ethnic religion in Nepal. Presently, there are three main Buddhist schools; Tibetan Buddhism, Newar Buddhism and Theravada Buddhism. Tourism is an important factor for promoting Nepali Buddhism to the world. Every year, Kathmandu can receive more than 10,000 travellers from all over the world just to visit the Boudha Stupa Boudhanath and the Swyambhu Maha Chaitya Swayambhunath stupas. These are the remarkable and significant architectural sites, which are only found in Nepal. Apart from these two main Buddhist monuments there are hundreds of Buddhist monuments in Kathmandu and in other main cities of Nepal. Republic of Nepal (2006-present) Nepal officially became a secular state in 2006. All religions in Nepal now have equal opportunities to propagate according to their belief. Demographics According to the 2011 Census of Nepal, the adherents of Buddhism are as follows: NEG denotes newly listed ethnic group, for which 2001 census figures are not available. Between 2001 and 2011 census, the percentage of Buddhists have declined by 1.7%, from 10.74% to 9.04%. All major ethnic groups (except Sherpa, Bhote and Thakali) showed decline in percentage of Buddhists. It is interesting to note that in the 2011 census not a single Chhantyal, Jirel and Lepcha reported themselves as Buddhist. In the 2011 census, a total of 11,233 Chhantyal (95.1%) reported themselves as Hindu. Likewise, 4,604 Jirel (79.7%) and 2,907 Lepcha (84.4%) reported themselves as Bon religion followers. Of the Ghale group, which was added in the 2011 Census, more than 50% of them reported themselves as Buddhist followers. See also Dhammalok Mahasthavir Pragyananda Mahasthavir Kumar Kashyap Mahasthavir Aniruddha Mahathera Banishment of Buddhist monks from Nepal Dharmodaya Buddha Dharma wa Nepal Bhasa (magazine) Dharmaditya Dharmacharya Kindo Baha Pranidhipurna Mahavihar Newar Buddhism Buddhist pilgrimage sites in Nepal List of monasteries in Nepal List of Mahaviharas of Newar Buddhism List of stupas in Nepal References Further reading External links Holy Sites of Buddhism: Lumbini - Buddha's Birthplace Buddhism in Nepal Vajrayana Vipassyana - by Ācārya Mahayogi Dharma Vajra (Sridhar SJB Rana) Theravada Buddhism in Nepal -Bhikkhu Kondanya Nepal Vipassana Centers - S.N. Goenka Nagarjuna Institute of Exact Studies Buddhactivity Dharma