Central Institute of Higher Tibetan Studies (Shantarakshita Library)

Set on a hushed, tree-lined 29-acre campus a short walk from the Deer Park where the Buddha preached his first sermon, the Central Institute of Higher Tibetan Studies (now formally the Central University of Tibetan Studies) is one of Sarnath's quietest yet most rewarding stops for the curious traveller.

• Founded in 1967 as a joint dream of Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru and His Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama, it was conceived to give exiled Tibetans and Indian students alike a living home for the scholarship, language and art of the Buddhist Himalaya.
• It began as a special wing of Sampurnanand Sanskrit University, grew into an autonomous body, and was declared a 'deemed to be university' in 1988 — a place where saffron-robed monks, Sanskrit pandits and researchers share the same shaded courtyards.
• The heart of any visit is the Shantarakshita Library, named for the eighth-century master who carried Buddhism from India into Tibet.
• It shelters more than sixty thousand rare Tibetan, Sanskrit and Pali manuscripts, xylographs and illustrated texts, and — its greatest treasure — the complete Kangyur (108 volumes of the Buddha's word) and Tengyur (224 volumes of commentary), graciously donated by the Dalai Lama himself.
• Adjoining galleries and exhibition halls display luminous thangka scroll-paintings, ritual bronzes, wood-block prints and sculpture drawn from the four great traditions of Tibetan Buddhism.
• This is not a slick, ticketed museum with polished captions; it is a working seat of learning, and its charm lies exactly in that — you wander among scholars, not tour groups.
• Entry is free and the campus keeps regular institute hours, so it pairs naturally with the Dhamek Stupa, Mulagandha Kuti Vihar and the Sarnath Archaeological Museum, all within easy reach.
• Come with a scholar's patience rather than a checklist: sit under the trees, watch the unhurried rhythm of study, and ask politely at the library or gallery desk before photographing manuscripts or artworks, some of which are restricted.
• For the vegetarian traveller, Sarnath is a gift.
• As a Buddhist pilgrimage town it is overwhelmingly satvik and pure-vegetarian, and many of its eateries cook without onion or garlic in the monastic spirit.
• Simple thali houses and pilgrim canteens around the campus serve honest, freshly griddled rotis with ghee, dal, seasonal sabzi and rice, while chai and a slab of Banarasi sweets round off the afternoon.
• You will find no meat, fish or alcohol clouding a visit here — only clean, unhurried, plant-based food that suits the contemplative mood of the place perfectly.