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BUDDHIST TOUR IN INDIA
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It is a real life story of an incredible transformation
of An Indian prince named Siddharth to Sakyamuni (muni
stands for sage) and finally to Lord Buddha (meaning
the Enlightened one), who walked the earth more than
2500 years ago.
Upon seeing sorrow, misery, pain and death, in the prime
of his youth, prince Siddharth decided to discover the
causes and means of overcoming their occurrences. Thus
renouncing worldly pleasures and leaving home and family
behind, he traveled from place to place until finally
attaining enlightenment by fixed meditation under the
tree called the Bodhi Tree.
After this he preached the truth he
discovered, and exhorted his disciples to follow the
Eight Fold Path for the cessation of the endless cycle
of birth and re-birth.
Following are the places worth visit
for any follower, student or admirer of Buddha or Buddhism:-
Bodhgaya - Bodhgaya is situated
in the state of Bihar and is reckoned as the most important
Buddhist pigrimage center. It is the place where Lord
Sakamuni (Gautam Buddha) entered into meditation after
being moved by the sufferings of mankind. The giant
Bodhi Tree (Peepal tree) that we see here today is believed
to have grown from the original Bodhi Tree under which,
sitting on the raised platform, Prince Siddharth meditated
and finally attained Nirvana(salvation). Maha Bodhi
temple situated here is an amalgamation of many cultures.
On the walls of the temple, one can see Buddha carved
in different aspects. Bodhgaya Archaeological Museum
is a must for religious art lovers. The town Gaya is
situated about 12 kms. from here. Gaya is a place of
religious sanctity for Hindus although it has large
numbers of Buddhist temples also.
Rajgir - This town is situated
at about 12kms. south of the capital city Patna of the
state of Bihar. The Gridhakuta Hill, in Rajgir was the
seat from where Buddha delivered many of his sermons.
It was here that the teachings of Buddha were recorded
in writing for the first time. Many sites of historical
and archaeological significance surround the holy city
of Rajgir.
Kapilavastu - It is situated
at a distance of 110kms. from Gorakhpur city in the
state of Uttar Pradesh. Here prince Siddhartha spent
his childhood. It was here that he saw sorrow and pain,
disease and death. Then, finally when he saw a radiant
happy Sadhu(Sage) who conquered all these, he decided
to renounce all worldly riches and pleasures to seek
the truth and embark on the path of salvation.
The place holds significant value for
Buddhist pilgrims and has several Stupas (meaning -
domes) The archaeological excavations have revealed
stone caskets containing relics believed to be that
of Buddha's.
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