Bhutan monk self-immolates at Bodh Gaya

PATNA, India (Reuters) - A Buddhist monk from Bhutan has burnt himself to death at Buddhism's holiest shrine in India, police said on Friday.

Hundreds watched the octogenarian monk sit in meditation at the Mahabodhi temple in Bihar on Thursday and then set himself alight after daubing his body with a flammable substance.

He died at a hospital in Bodh Gaya, the place where the Buddha is believed to have attained enlightenment. It is considered Buddhism's holiest shrine.

"People who rushed to save him were stunned to see that the monk remained firmly seated in the meditation posture and did not cry for help," said Navneet Ranjan Tiwari, a Bodh Gaya official.

"That means he had come to end his life in the land of the Buddha, apparently to get the ultimate freedom from life."

Police said they did not suspect foul play.