text: The eastern Indian state of Bihar derives its name from vihāra due to the abundance of Buddhist monasteries in that area. The word has also been borrowed in Malay as biara, denoting a monastery or other non-Muslim place of worship. It is called a wihan () in Thai, and vĭhéar ( ) in Khmer. In Burmese, wihara ( ), means "monastery", but the native Burmese word kyaung ( ) is preferred. Monks wandering from place to place preaching and seeking alms often stayed together in the sangha. In the Punjabi language, an open space inside a home is called a .
  In Korea, Japan, Vietnam and China, the word for a Buddhist temple or monastery seems to have a different origin. The Japanese word for a Buddhist temple is , it was anciently also written phonetically 天良 tera, and it is cognate with the Modern Korean Chǒl from Middle Korean Tiel, the Jurchen Taira and the reconstructed Old Chinese *dɘiaʁ, all meaning "Buddhist Monastery". These words are apparently derived from the Aramaic word for "monastery" dērā/ dairā/ dēr (from the root dwr "to live together"), rather than from the unrelated Indian word for monastery vihara, and may have been transmitted to China by the first Central Asian translators of Buddhist scriptures, such as An Shigao or Lokaksema.
  Origins
  Viharas as pleasure centers
  During the 3rd-century BCE era of Ashoka, vihara yatras were travel stops aimed at enjoyments, pleasures and hobbies such as hunting. These contrasted with dharma yatras which related to religious pursuits and pilgrimage. After Ashoka converted to Buddhism, states Lahiri, he started dharma yatras around mid 3rd century BCE instead of hedonistic royal vihara yatras.