Nagarjunasagar

Nagarjunasagar called Vijayapuri in ancient times, is an important Buddhist site, located 150 km. from Hyderabad. Nagarjunasagar is named after the Buddhist saint Acharya Nagarjuna. One of the outstanding Buddhist civilizations dating back to the 3rd century AD was excavated here and carefully preserved on a picturesque island called Nagarjunakonda, situated in the centre of a man-made lake.

The excavations have brought to light the Mahachaitya, the most sacred of the Stupas. An inscription in Bramhi characters states that the sacred relics of Lord Buddha lie within the Mahachaitya.

Other excavations have unearthed the reins of a university, Vihara, monasteries and an "Aswamedha" sacrificial altar, as well as prehistoric finds in the form of tools from Paleolithic and Neolithic times.During
the construction of the Nagarjunakonda, the ruins of an ancient Buddhist university were excavated. These have been carefully reconstructed at Anupu, on the east bank of the reservoir, a feat similar to the Abu Sibel effort in Egypt. The museum at Nagarjunakonda has a model of the now submerged valley and the environs.