Lumbini : Birthplace
of the Buddha
Lumbini was the birthplace of the Buddha and is now located near the
Nepal-India border north of Gorakpur. Immediately before his birth,
the bodhisattva was lord of Tushita deva realm. There he had resolved
to be reborn for the last time and show the attainment of enlightenment
to the world. He had made the five investigations and determined that
this southern continent, where men lived for one hundred years, was
the most suitable place and, as the royal caste was then most respected
and the lineages of King Suddhodana and his Queen Mayadevi were pure,
he would be born as their son, a prince of the Shakya dynasty. Placing
his crown upon the head of his successor Maitreya, the bodhisattva
descended from Tushita to the world of man. During the night of his
conception, Queen Mayadevi, who is to be the mother of all the thousand
buddhas of this aeon, dreamt of a great white elephant entering her
womb. The earth trembled six times. It is said that in the manner
of all bodhisattvas in their final birth, he remained sitting cross-legged
for the whole time within the womb. Furthermore, all buddhas are born
in a forest grove while their mother remains standing.
At the appointed time Queen Mayadevi was visiting
the Lumbini Garden some ten miles from the Shakya city of Kapilavastu.
Emerging from a bath with her face to the east, she leant her right
arm on a sala tree. The bodhisattva was then born from her right
side and immediately took seven steps - from which lotus flowers
sprang up - in each of the four directions. To each direction he
proclaimed as with a lion's roar: "I am the first, the best
of all beings, this is my last birth.'' He looked down to predict
the defeat of Mara and the benefiting of beings in the lower realms
through the power of his teachings. He then looked up to indicate
that all the world would come to respect and appreciate his deeds.
The gods Brahma and Indra then received him and together with the
four guardian protectors bathed him. At the same time two nagas,
Nanda and Upananda, caused water to cascade over him. Later a well
was found to have formed there, from which even in Fa Hien's time
monks continued to draw water to drink. The young prince was next
wrapped in fine muslin and carried with great rejoicing to the king's
palace in Kapilavastu.
Many auspicious signs accompanied the bodhisattva's birth. Also,
many beings who would play major parts in his life are said to have
been born on the same day: Yasodhara, his future wife; Chandaka,
the groom who would later help him leave the palace; Kanthaka, the
horse that would bear him; the future kings Bimbisara of Magadha
and Prasenajit of Koshala; and his protector Vajrapani. The bodhi
tree is also said to have sprouted on the day of Buddha's birth.
When Ashoka visited Lumbini two centuries later, his advisor, the
sage Upagata, perceived by clairvoyance and described all these
events, pointing out their sites to the emperor. Ashoka made many
offerings, built an elaborate stupa and erected a pillar surmounted
by a horse capital. When Hsuan Chwang saw it, the pillar had already
been destroyed by lightning. Nevertheless, when discovered at the
end of the last century the inscription which remained on the present
ruin was sufficiently legible to clearly identify the site as Lumbini.
The prince, now named Siddhartha, spent his first twenty-nine years
in Kapilavastu. There he performed three more of the twelve principal
deeds of a buddha. Surpassing all the Shakya youths and even his
teachers in all fields of learning, skill and sport, he showed that
he had already mastered all the worldly arts.
One day while still a child he was left unattended beneath a tree
as his father performed the ceremonial first ploughing of the season.
He sat and engaged in his first meditation, attaining such a degree
of absorption that five sages flying overhead were halted in mid-flight
by the power of it.
Later he was married to Yasodhara and experienced a life of pleasure
in the palace amongst the women of the court. Yet despite King Suddhodana's
efforts to protect him from unpleasant sights, one day when riding
in his chariot through Kapilavastu he happened to see a man feeble
with age, another struck down with sickness, and a corpse. He immediately
realised the suffering nature of men's lives. Then he saw a monk
of holy countenance, and recognized his path and vocation.
It is said that a buddha renounces the world only after seeing
these four signs and when a son has been born to him. Accordingly,
seven days before Siddhartha would have been crowned as his father's
heir, a son, Rahula, was born to Yasodhara. Without further delay
Siddhartha told his father of his resolve to leave the transient
luxury of worldly life and live as a renunciate in order to discover
the causes of true happiness and the end of misery.
Suddhodana was reluctant to let him go. Therefore, riding the horse
Kanthaka and accompanied by the groom Chandaka, Prince Siddhartha
left Kapilavastu with the aid of the gods. Some distance away he
performed the great renunciation, cutting off his hair and donning
the robes of an ascetic. He sent Chandaka back to the palace with
his jewels and horse, and entered into the homeless life.
Some years later, after attaining enlightenment, Buddha returned
briefly to Kapilavastu at his father's invitation. The Buddha and
his followers were welcomed and treated well by the king and the
people, who listened to his teachings. Five hundred Shakya youths
became monks at this time, including Rahula, the Buddha's own son,
Nanda, his half brother, and Upali, the barber, who was to later
become one of the Buddha's most important disciples.
The splendour of Kapilavastu did not last for long, for the city
and many of the Shakya clan were destroyed by the rival king Vaidraka
even within the Buddha's lifetime. When the Chinese pilgrims visited
the area they found nothing but ruin and desolation and merely a
handful of people and monks dwelling there. Yet all the sites of
the events mentioned in the early scriptures were pointed out to
them, and several of these were still marked by stupas. After this,
the area was lost in jungle and earlier in this century, was still
only accessible by elephant.
Now only Lumbini, the birthplace itself, has been identified with
certainty. Kapilavastu has been but tentatively located. At present
these sites are still being explored and some ruins have been unearthed.
The remains of Ashoka's pillar can be seen, as well as a shrine
of indeterminate age dedicated to Queen Mayadevi. A Nepalese buddhist
temple was built in 1956 and a Tibetan monastery of the sakya order
was completed in 1975, which, as well as possessing a beautiful
and elaborate shrine, is well illustrated within by traditional
murals. Here many young monks are studying and practising the Buddha's
teachings, thereby both aiding the revival of Lumbini as a place
of buddhist practice and preserving the great traditions lost in
Tibet.
Bodhgaya : Site of
Buddha's enlightenment
Bodhgaya is the most important Buddhist pilgrimage site in the world.
Apart from being a significant archaeological site, it is also a
vital Buddhist centre. It's the site where Buddha attained enlightenment.
Devout Buddhists and tourists from all over the world visit Bodhgaya,
to study Buddhism and the art of meditation, or to simply absorb
the aura of solemn grandeur that surrounds the place. It is a quiet
and peaceful place. Buddhists from all over the world flock to Bodhgaya,
along with non-Buddhists who come to learn about Buddhism and meditation.
The best time to visit is during winter when Tibetan pilgrims come
down from Dharamsala. The Dalai Lama also often spends December
here.
Location :
Bodh Gaya is located about 13 km from Gaya, 450 km west of Calcutta, and 90 km south of Patna.
Places to See -
Mahabodhi Temple - is the focal point of Bodhgaya. It marks the spot where Buddha gained enlightenment and set out on his life of preaching. It stands adjacent to a descendent of the original Bodhi tree under which Buddha meditated on the excesses of life and formulated his philosophy of a balanced approach to it. There is a red sandstone slab under the tree that is said to be the 'Vajrasan', or diamond throne, on which Buddha sat. This temple is a place of pilgrimage for all Buddhists. Topped by a 50m high pyramid, the ornate structure houses a large gilded image of the Buddha.
Bodhi Tree - The Bodhi tree here is said to be
a descendent of the tree under which Budhha attained enlightenment.
A sapling of the original bodhi tree that the Buddha sat under was
carried by Emperor Ashoka's daughter (Sanghamitta) to Sri Lanka.
That tree is at Anuradhapura in Sri Lanka. A cutting from that tree
was planted in Budha Gaya when the original tree died. Under the
tree is a red sandstone slab that is said to be the Vajrasana, the
diamond throne, that Buddha sat on and attained nirvana. The tree
is located behind the temple and is about 80 feet high and about
115 years old.
Monasteries - most countries with a large Buddhist population have a temple or a monastery in Bodhgaya usually built in a representative architectural style. Thus, there is a Thai temple that looks very much like the colourful wats of Thailand. There is a Tibetan temple and monastery that contains a large prayer wheel. The Burmese who had led a campaign to restore the Mahabodhi temple in the 19th century also built their monastery. There is a Japanese temple (Indosan Nipponji) that has a very beautiful image of Buddha brought from Japan. There are also Chinese, Sri Lankan, Bhutanese, Vietnamese, Nepalese, Korean, Taiwanese and Bangladeshi monasteries. There is also a Tai Bodhi Khan monastery built by Buddhist tribes from Assam and Arunachal Pradesh.
Vajrasana - Vajrasana, the seat of stability. Buddha supposed to have say in meditation gazing east, under the Bodhi Tree, where the Vajrasana, the stone platform is kept.
Chankaramana - This marks the sacred spot of the Buddha's meditative perambulations during the third week after pious enlightenment. It is believed that wherever the Buddha put his feet lotus sprang up.
Arimeshlochana - It is believed that the Buddha spent one week here looking towards the great Mahabodhi Tree out of gratitude, without twinkling his eyes.
Ratnagar- The Buddha spent one week here, where it is believed that five colours came out of his body.
Archaeological Museum - here has a small collection of Buddha figures, and pillars that were discovered in the area.
Other Places -
The Mohanta's Monastery, located right next to the Mahabodhi Temple, is a Shaivite monastery. It is said that Adi Sankaracharya spent days here in a heated debate with buddhist philosophers.
At the Tibetan Mahayana Monastery (1938) there is a large Dharma Chakra, or wheel of law. It is believed that you will be freed of sin if you spin this wheel three times in succession from left to right. It is a 10m high metal drum painted gold and red.
Budha bathed in the nearby Niranjana (now called Lilanja) River after attaining enlightenment. The Niranjana River is about 250m east of the temple. Prince Siddharta crossed this river to reach the Bodhi tree.
Sarnath : First turning of the Wheel of Dharma
There are many legends about the origin of this name. Fa Hien says that the rishi was a pratyeka buddha who had dwelt there but, on hearing that the son of King Suddhodana was about to become a supreme buddha, entered nirvana. Others mention 500 pratyeka buddhas and Hsuan Chwang mentions a stupa marking the site of their nirvana.
The name Deer Park derives from an occasion in one of Shakyamuni's former lives as a bodhisattva, when he was leading a herd of deer. After much indiscriminate plundering of the herd by a local king, an agreement was made with him that one of their number would be offered only when necessary. The turn came of a doe, who was shortly to give birth and wished to delay until then. The bodhisattva offered himself in her stead, which so impressed the king that he not only resolved to refrain from killing deer in future but gave the park to them as their own.
At this place the five ascetics had resumed their austere practices. When they saw the Buddha approaching, thinking him still to be the Gautama who had forsaken their path, they decided not to welcome him. Yet, as he neared they found themselves involuntarily rising and paying respect. Proclaiming that he was the Buddha, Shakyamuni assured them that the goal had been attained. Hsuan Chwang saw a large, dome-shaped stupa on this spot, where a large mound, probably its remains, surmounted by a muslim monument now, stands a short distance south of the park.
During the first watch of the night the Buddha was silent, during the second he made a little conversation and at the third began the teaching. At the spot where all the buddhas first turn the wheel, 1,000 thrones appeared. Shakyamuni circumambulated those of the three previous buddhas and sat upon the fourth. Light radiated from his body, illuminating the 3,000 worlds, and the earth trembled. Brahma offered him a 1,000-spoked golden wheel, and Indra and other gods also made offerings, all imploring the Buddha to teach.
Thus, inviting the gods and all who wished to hear, and saying that he spoke not for the purpose of debate but in order to help living beings gain control of their minds, Shakyamuni began the first turning of the wheel of Dharma. He taught the middle way, that avoids the extremes of pleasure and austerity, the four noble truths, and the eightfold path. Kaundmya was the first of the five ascetics to understand and realize the teaching; Ashvajit was the last. All eventually became arhants.
The teachings included in the collection known as the first turning
of the wheel, which began here, extended over a period of seven
years. Other teachings, such as those on the Vinaya and on the practice
of close placement of mindfulness, were given elsewhere, but the
wheel was turned twelve times at Sarnath.
From the time of the Buddha, monastic tradition flourished for
over 1,500 years on the site of the Deer Park. Amongst the many
ruins, archaeologists have found traces dating from as early as
the third century B.C., and the existing inscription of Ashoka's
pillar, dating from that time, implies that a monastery was already
established during Ashoka's reign. Fa Hien speaks of two monasteries
with monks in residence, while two centuries later Hsuan Chwang
describes a mahavihara encompassing eight divisions. This contained
a great temple with ornate balconies, over one hundred niches containing
gilt images in its walls, and a statue of the Buddha in the teaching
posture.
The last monastery constructed before the muslim invasion, the
Dharmachakra-jina vihara, was the largest of all. It was built by
Kumaradevi, queen of King Govindachandra, who ruled in Benares from
1114-1154. Here a surviving fragment of stone inscription records
that in 1058 a monk presented a gift copy of the Prajna-paramita
Sutra to the monastery: evidence of mahayana activity at that time.
The discovery in the area of ancient statues of Heruka and Arya
Tara shows that vajrayana was also practised there.
Formerly, two great stupas adorned the site. Only the Dhamekha
remains, assigned by its inscription to the sixth century. The Dharmarajika
stupa built by Ashoka, some say upon the very place of the teaching,
was pulled down in the eighteenth century by Jagat Singh, who consigned
the casket of relics contained within it to the Ganges river. Hsuan
Chwang describes that Ashoka's pillar, which stood in front of the
stupa, was so highly polished that it constantly reflected the stupa's
statue of the Buddha.
Benares, which was the second city to reappear following the last
destruction of the world, was also a site of the previous buddha's
manifestations. Kashyapa, the third buddha of this aeon, built a
monastery near Deer Park, where he ordained the brahmin boy, Jotipala,
an earlier incarnation of Shakyamuni. Hsuan Chwang records stupas
and an artificial platform at the places where several previous
buddhas had walked and sat in meditation.
Deer Park was also the location of Shakyamuni's deeds as a bodhisattva
in former lives. Hsuan Chwang mentions a number of stupas commemorating
these near the monastery: one where the bodhisattva offered himself
as the deer; another where, as a six-tusked elephant, he offered
his tusks to a deceitful hunter; and a third where the bodhisattva
had been a bird, with Maudgalyayana and Sariputra as a monkey and
an elephant.
Another stupa commemorated the occasion when Indra manifested as
a hungry old man and asked a fox, an ape and a hare (the Buddha
in a former life) for food. The fox brought fish, the ape brought
fruit, but the bodhisattva hare, having nothing else to offer, threw
himself on a fire and offered his roasted body. Indra was so moved
by this act that he took the hare and placed him in the moon. Many
people in central Asia still refer to the moon as the hare sign,
or worship the hare in the moon.
Today the actual site of the Buddha's teaching at Sarnath and the
several ruins in the area have been enclosed in a pleasant park.
Nearby, a well-planned museum houses a number of unearthed statues,
many barely damaged, as well as several other findings from the
site. The museum's entrance is dominated by the famous lion capital
from Ashoka's pillar (an indication of the Indian Government's renewed
interest in Buddhism), has been adopted as the national emblem.
The wheel design on its base has become the central figure of India's
flag.
Adjacent to the park is the Mahabodhi Society's Mulaghandaluti
Temple, an imposing building containing certain relics of the Buddha.
Close by is the Society's sangharama and a library possessing a
rare collection of buddhist literature. Also in the vicinity are
Burmese, Chinese and Tibetan temples, as well as a Tibetan monastery
and the Institute of Higher Tibetan Studies, where two hundred young
monks practise and study the many aspects of the Buddha's teaching,
aspiring to qualify for the degree of acharya. There is also a Tibetan
printing press, The Pleasure of Elegant Sayings, which over the
last decade has published more than thirty Tibetan texts of buddhist
treatises, otherwise hard to find. Thus the wheel of Dharma that
Shakyamuni first turned at Sarnath continues to revolve.
Rajgir: Second turning
of the Wheel of Dharma
When Gautama the ascetic first visited Rajgir on his way to Bodhgaya
he was met by King Bimbisara. The king was so impressed by the bodhisattva
that he tried every means to persuade him to stay. Failing in this,
he received a promise that Gautama would return to Rajgir after
his enlightenment. Accordingly, after teaching in Sarnath, the Buddha
travelled to Rajgir, the royal capital of Magadha, followed by over
a thousand monks of the new order. King Bimbisara welcomed them
all and offered the Veluvana Bamboo Grove. This was to be the first
property of the Order and one of the Buddha's favourite residences.
The site was ideal for a monastic order, being not too near the
city, calm by day and night, free from biting insects and having
mild air and tanks of cool water. Thus it was suited to the practice
of meditation, and here Shakyamuni passed the first rainy season
retreat following his enlightenment. He was to return to this place
for several rainy season retreats later in his life. When Hsuan
Chwang visited Rajgir he saw a monastery and the Kalanda tank, where
Shakyamuni bathed and which still exists. Close to this stood an
Ashoka Stupa and a pillar surmounted by an elephant. Not far away
King Ajatasatru had built two stupas, one over the portion of the
Buddha's relics that he had received, the other over half of Ananda's
body. Later Ashoka unearthed the first of these to obtain relics
for his 84,000 stupas.
Perhaps the most important event of the Buddha's
first visit to Rajgir was the conversion of Sariputra and Maudgalyayana.
The story of their conversion is as follows. Ashvajit, last of the
five ascetics to be converted by Buddha, was making his alms round
one morning and happened to meet Sariputra. Sariputra was greatly
impressed by the monk's noble and subdued demeanor, and asked him
what teachings he followed. Sariputra immediately attained arhantship,
and when he repeated what he had heard to his friend Maudgalyayana,
he also instantly achieved the same. Later, stupas were erected
at the places associated with these events. The two left their teacher
Sanjaya and came with 500 of their former followers to meet the
Buddha. Buddha welcomed both as his chief disciples, Sariputra having
the greater intelligence, Maudgalyayana wielding the greatest miraculous
powers. Both were born near Rajgir and later, retiring to their
respective villages, entered nirvana before the Buddha did. During
his stay in Rajgir, Shakyamuni received two significant invitations:
one from his father King Suddhodana, the other from a wealthy merchant
who wanted him to spend the next rainy season in Shravasti. Accepting
both, the Buddha returned briefly to Kapilavastu and sent Sariputra
to Shravasti to prepare for his visit there. Shakyamuni later visited
Rajgir on a number of occasions. On several of these, attempts were
made on his life. Once a lay follower of the nirgrantha jains concealed
a fire-pit in front of his house and invited the Buddha to a meal
of poisoned food. However, the pit changed into a lotus pond with
a flower bridge and the Buddha proved that one freed of all inner
poisons could not be harmed by external means. At another time he
predicted the birth of a son to the wife of a jain, who in defiance
killed her. But as her body was being burnt, the child came forth
from amidst the flames. Stupas marking these places were later seen
by the Chinese pilgrims.
King Ajatasatru, who had usurped his father Bimbisara's throne
and allowed him to die in prison, came under the evil influence
of Shakyamuni's jealous cousin Devadatta, who had tried to force
the Buddha to permit him to lead the Order. Failing to achieve this,
Devadatta invited the young king to harm the Buddha. Professional
assassins were hired for this purpose, yet in the end they fell
at the Buddha's feet in devotion. The king then let loose a maddened
elephant from his palace, but the animal, affected by the Buddha's
presence, fell on its knees out of homage to him. It is also in
Rajgir that a young boy later to be reborn as the great king Ashoka
came to him and offered him a handful of sand, wishing it were gold.
Yet the most important of all associations of the Buddha with Rajgir
is that with Vulture's Peak, a small mountain just outside the city.
Here, sixteen years after his enlightenment, he set forth the second
turning of the wheel of Dharma to an assembly of 5,000 monks, nuns
and laity, as well as innumerable bodhisattvas. This collection
of teachings, which extended over twelve years, includes the Saddharmapundarika
Sutra and the Surangama Samadhi Sutra, as well as many Prajna-paramita
Sutras, which, as the Buddha himself told Ananda, contain the very
essence of all his teachings. Mahakashyapa recorded these latter
teachings and Shakyamuni placed them in the custody of the nagas
until such time as men were ready to receive them. The Buddha's
respect for Mahakashyapa was such that when they first met, the
two exchanged cloaks. The great disciple now resides within the
Gurupada Mountain near Bodhgaya. Here he awaits Maitreya, upon whom
he will place the cloak of Shakyamuni.
When the Chinese pilgrims visited Vulture's Peak they found the
summit green and bare. Fa Hien mentions a cave and Hsuan Chwang
a hall slightly below it, where the Buddha is said to have sat and
preached. Here also he once reached through the mountain with his
hand to calm Ananda, whose meditation was being disturbed by Mara
in the form of a vulture. Before the cave were the walking and sitting
places of the previous buddhas, and a stupa where the Saddharmapundarika
Sutra was taught.
King Bimbisara built a causeway leading up to the hill. At the
foot of the hill was Amaravana, the mango grove offered to the Buddha
by the physician Jivaka. The remains of what was once a monastery
may still be seen here. According to Hsuan Chwang, at one time on
Vulture's Peak there was a monastery occupied by many meditators
and several arhants. The final journey of Buddha's life, which ended
with the mahaparinirvana at Kushinagar began at Rajgir. Shortly
after this, the First Council-an assembly of 500 monks presided
over by Mahakashyapa-met under the patronage of Ajatasatru in the
Shrataparna Cave, a short distance southwest of Veluvana Bamboo
Park, and compiled the Buddha's teachings into a collection known
as the Sthaviranikaya. A stupa once marked the spot where, with
great exertion, Ananda achieved arhantship on the night before the
council in order that he might attend. Ashoka later erected a stupa
in honour of this First Council at the place a distance west of
Shrataparna Cave where at the same time the mahasanghikas, regarded
by some as proto-mahayanists, compiled their canon. According to
Nagarjuna, an assembly of bodhisattvas also met on Vimalasvabhava
Mountain, located to the south of Rajgir, and compiled the mahayana
scriptures. Nagarjuna states that Samantabhadra presided over this
meeting, while Vajrapani recited the Sutras, Maitreya the Vinaya
and Manjushri the Abhidharma.
Today, Rajgir is a picturesque and serene place, visited by pilgrims
from all over the globe. It has also gained recognition as a health
resort due to its hot springs and healthy climate.Places to See -
Shanti Stupa - located on top of the Ratnagiri
hill, 3kms from the hot springs is reached by a chair-lift.
Ruins - the main sites include parts of the ruined
city, caves and places associated with Ajatashatru and his father
Bhimbisara like Ajatashatru's Fort
Griddhakuta - or the 'hills of Vultures' was one
of Buddha's favourite places where he delivered some of his most
famous sermons and converted King Bhimbisara of the Magadha Kingdom
and countless others to creed.
Saptparni Cave - located on one of the hills is
where the first Buddhist council was held immediately after Buddha
attained nirvana. The Cave is also the source of Rajgir's hot water
springs that have curative properties and is sacred to Hindus. There
is also a Burmese temple, an interesting Jain exhibition and a modern
Japanese temple.
Sravasti : Teachings in the Jetavana Grove
Sravasti is one of the eight most important pilgrimages of Buddhists.
While Lord Buddha walked from Kapilavastu in Nepal to Sarnath in Uttar
Pradesh, renounced the world and attained mahaparinirvana, he left
behind a trail of footsteps which are revered till today. Sravasti
is one such place. According to legend, it is here where Buddha confounded
his critics by making them witness a miraculous million-fold self
manifestation seated on a thousand-petalled lotus, as fire and water
emanated from his body. The prophet of peace is also said to have
spent 25 rainy seasons here, teaching people the essence of his gentle
creed.
The religious character of Sravasti derives also from the fact
that Lord Mahavira, the founder of Jainism, visited the town frequently.
Apart from this, the city also finds mention in the epics Ramayana
and Mahabharata as a prosperous city of the Kosala Kingdom. The
mythological king Sravasta, is said to have founded it.
Excavations at Sravasti have also revealed two pillars raised here
by Emperor Ashoka, the great Indian King who was largely responsible
for spreading the word of Buddhism. The pillars, which lie at the
eastern gate of Jetavana, mark Ashoka's pilgrimage to the city.
Essentially a temple town, Sravasti will take one
back in time, bring somewhat closer to the soul of a civilization
which has been there, for five thousand years, or more.
Excursions (Shravasti)
Devi Patan Temple : 28 Km. One of the most important
Shaktipeeth in the entire region, it is revered by Hindu devotees
of India and Nepal. Shobhanath Temple : The `Shobhanath' temple is believed to be the birth place of Jain tirthankar 'Sambhavanath', making Shravasti an important centre for the Jains.
Maheth: Identified with the remains of the city, Maheth covers an area of about 400 acres. Excavations have exposed the massive gates of the city, ramparts and also the ruins of other structures, which stand testimony to the prosperity of ancient Sravasti. The Sobhanath Temple is located here. Pakki Kuti and Kacchi Kuti were probably Buddhist shrines, before they were converted into Brahmanical temples.
Saheth: Known primarily as the site of the Jetavana monastery, Saheth covers an area of 32 acres. Lying about a quarter of a mile to the south - west of Maheth, it became an important place of pilgrimage, adorned with numerous shrines, stupas and monasteries. The stupas belong mostly to the Kushana period, while the temples are in the Gupta style.
Sankashya: Lord Buddha
descended from Tushita Heaven
The most westward and perhaps most obscure of the eight places of
pilgrimage is Sankashya, whose name may derive from a stupa built
there by Kashyapa Buddha's father and dedicated to his son. This is
the last of the four places common to the buddhas of this world. Some
say that during his forty-first year Shakyamuni went up from Shravasti
to the Tushita Heaven and passed the rainy season retreat teaching
Abhidharma to his mother, Queen Mayadevi, who had died seven days
after Buddha's birth and been reborn as a male god in Tushita. The
same happens to the mothers of all the buddhas, and they too later
go to teach them, afterwards descending to Sankashya. Seven days before
his descent the Buddha set aside his invisibility. Anuruddha perceived
him by his divine sight and urged Maudgalyayana to go and greet him.
The great disciple did so, telling the Buddha that the Order longed
to see him. This was the time Prasenajit's statue was made. Shakyamuni
replied that in seven days he would return to the world. A great assembly
of the kings and people of the eight kingdoms gathered. As the Buddha
descended, a flight of gold stairs appeared, down which he came. He
was accompanied on the right by Brahma, who, holding a white chowny,
descended on a crystal staircase, while to the left Indra came down
a flight of silver stairs, holding a jewelled umbrella. A great host
of gods followed.
The Buddha bathed immediately after his descent,
and later a bathing house and stupa were built to mark the site.
Stupas were also raised at the spot where he cut his hair and nails,
and where he entered samadhi. The Chinese pilgrims describe further
stupas and a chankramana where Shakyamuni and the previous buddhas
had walked and sat in meditation. The three flights of stairs disappeared
into the ground, but for seven steps of each, which remained above.
When Ashoka came here later he had men dig into the earth around
the protrusions in order to discover their depth. Although they
reached the level of water, they could not find the stairs' end.
With increased faith, Ashoka then built a temple over them with
a standing image of the Buddha above the middle flight. Behind this
temple he erected a great pillar surmounted by an elephant capital.
Because the tail and trunk had been destroyed, both Chinese pilgrims
mistook this for a lion.
Hsuan Chwang tells that the original stairs had existed until a
few centuries before his visit, when they disappeared. Various kings
built replicas of ornamented brick and stone, with a temple containing
images of Shakyamuni, Brahma and Indra above them. These were within
the walls of a monastery, which he describes as excellently ornamented
and having many fine images. He further says that some hundreds
of monks dwelt there and that the community had lay followers. Two
centuries earlier Fa Hien found roughly 1,000 monks and nuns living
here pursuing their studies, some hinayana and some mahayana. Both
pilgrims tell stories of a white-eared dragon who lived close to
the monastery, caring for it and the surrounding area. Fa Hien especially
remarks on the abundant produce of the land and the prosperity and
happiness of the people.
Little seems to be known about Sankashya after the Chinese accounts.
In 1862 General Cunningham identified the spot as being located
outside an obscure village west of Farruhabad, above Kanpur, on
the Ganges. Not much of the ancient glory of the place remains today.
Within a deserted, fenced area stands a large mound topped by the
crumbling ruins of a Hindu shrine, in which the former image has
been replaced by a small representation of the Buddha. The elephant
capital of Ashoka's pillar has been remounted on a ten-foot high
pillar beneath a stone canopy. Another small shrine nearby contains
a statue of Buddha. The surrounding grounds appear as if they might
contain the ruined foundations of former buildings, but if any excavation
has ever been done it is buried once more. This is the only one
of the eight places of pilgrimage where today there is no temple,
monastery or even a solitary monk. Perhaps the wildness of the area
is the cause. With or without a dragon's aid, it may be hoped that
this will change.
Nalanda : Site of the
great monastic university
Nalanda is one of the greatest centers of
learning in the ancient times. It is located in the eastern Indian state
of Bihar. A small village now, Nalanda is situated
around 72 km off Patna, the capital of Bihar and is part of the Buddhist
Circuit that also includes Bodh Gaya and Rajgir. The village has a good
network of roads that connects it to the other cities of the state.
Nalanda is one of the places distinguished as having been blessed by the
presence of the Buddha, it later became particularly renowned as the
site of the great monastic university of the same name, which was to
become the crown jewel of the development of Buddhism in India. The name
may derive from one of Shakyamuni's former births, when he was a king
whose capital was here. Nalanda was one of his epithets meaning
"insatiable in giving."
The ancient Buddhist University of Nalanda was
founded in the fifth century AD. Nalanda is well known as an ancient
seat of learning. However, today this ancient university lies in ruins.
The place not only has the remains of the great university but also many
monasteries, temples, and viharas built by different kings.
Though the Buddha visited Nalanda several times during his lifetime,
this famous center of Buddhist learning shot to fame much later, during
5th-12th centuries AD. In this first residential international
university of the world, 2,000 teachers and 10,000 students from all
over the Buddhist world lived and studied.
The university found patrons in Gupta, Kushan, and Pal kings in
successive centuries. Ashoka and Harshavardhana were some of its most
celebrated patrons who built temples and monasteries here. Recent
excavations have unearthed elaborate structures here. The university
remained in prominence till 12 century AD when the Afghans attacked
Bengal and burnt down this great University.
A large number of ancient Buddhist establishments, stupas, chaityas,
temples and monastery sites have been excavated and they show that this
was one of the most important Buddhist centres of worship and
culture.Regarding the historicity of Nalanda, we read in Jaina texts
that Mahavira Vardhamana spent as many as fourteen rainy seasons in
Nalanda.
|
|
Places to see -
Nalanda University Ruins Archaeological Complex -
The total area of the excavation of Nalanda University Ruins is about 14
hectares. All the buildings are of the red brick built in Kushana style
of architecture and divided by a central walkway that goes south to
north. The monasteries or viharas are to the east and the temple or
chaityas to the west of the central alley.
Nalanda Archaeological Museum -
Nalanda Archaeological Museum is opposite to the entrance of the ruins
of the university. The museum is small yet has a valuable collection of
Buddhist and Hindu bronzes and a number of intact statues of the Lord
Buddha found in the area. Two large terracotta jars belonging to the 1st
century AD are intact and exhibited in a shaded enclosure behind the
museum. The other items in the museum include the copper plates, stone
inscriptions, coins, pottery and samples of burnt rice of 12th century
AD.
Nava Nalanda Mahavihara -
Nava Nalanda Mahavihara is an institute devoted to the study and
research of Pali Literature and Buddhism. It is a new institute, where
students from foreign countries also come to study.
Hieun Tsang Memorial Hall -
A new construction in memory of the great Chinese traveler, Hieun Tsang.
Silao -
In between Nalanda and Rajgir, there is a village namely Silao where a very popular local sweet "KHAJA" is prepared.
Surajpur Baragaon -
The lake with its temple of Surya, the Sun God , is a pilgrim
destination twice a year in "Vaishakha" (April-May) and in "Kartika"
(October-November) during the Chhath Puja or Sun worship.
|
nice share buddhist place in india..... if you find car for rent please click and book online..... Visit Car hire for agra
ReplyDelete