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- World Heritage Site
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- “I am the foremost of all the creatures to cross
the riddle of the Ocean of Existence.
- I have come to the world to show the Path of
Emancipation.
- This is my last birth and hereafter I will not be
born again”.
A newly born
baby made this important declaration at Lumbini more then 2,600
years ago. The baby Prince Siddhartha Gautam, at the age 35
indeed turned the wheel of the law and became famous in the
world as the Buddha, the Enlightened One. Lumbini, the
birthplace of this great sage, acquired the holy status as a
site of pilgrimage for all the Buddhists and peace seekers of
the world. The Buddha himself spoke of the importance of Lumbini
for the aeons to come as the first and foremost pilgrimage site
among the famous Catumahasthana, the four important holy places.
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- HISTORY
- The
garden of Lumbini mentioned as Canana, Lumbini Vatica, Lumbini
Upavana, and Lumbini Cittalavana in early scriptures is situated
on the bank of river Telar at the eastern edge of the Sakya
Kingdom of Kapilvastu. The site was renowned for the beauty of
its shady grove of Sala trees and colorful flowers. Maya Devi,
the queen of Sakya King Suddhodana of Kapilvastu, while going to
her maternal home Devadaha, happened to pass through Lumbini. On
the Vaisakha purnima (Full Moon day) in the month of Vaisakha
623 years Christ, she bathed in the Sakya Puskarini and
proceeded towards north. Soon after she felt the sudden pain of
labor causing her to hold a branch of the sala
tree under which she was standing. Such was the situation of the
divine event where queen Maya Devi gave birth to Prince
Siddhartha.
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- Lumbini:
The Pilgrimage
- Today
visitors from all over the world come to Lumbini, the timeless
place where ancient monuments glorify the birthplace of the
Sakyamuni and bear witness to the record of the noteworthy
visits by famous dignitaries. The pilgrims deeply immerse
themselves in the serene spiritiual atmosphere of Lumbini.
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- The
famous Maurya Emperor Ashoka guided by his spiritual teacher
Upagupata made a pilgrimage to this holy site in 249BC. He
erected a stone pillar bearing an inscription stating that the
Buddha, the sage of the Sakyas, was born there. Famous Chinese
pilgrim Fa- Hsien (5th century AD) visited Lumbini.
He saw the nativity tree, the bathing tank, and the well, among
other monuments. He also visited other surrounding historic
sites such as Kapilavastu and Devadaha.
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- Hiuen-
Tsang, another reputed Chinese traveler visited Lumbini in 7th
century AD. His travel account gives exact location of this
site. He had seen the stump of the nativity tree, a Chaitya, the
Ashokan pillar, the bathing tank, the Telar (oily) river and the
warm and cold water springs. The history of Lumbini after this
period is checkered and lacks written records. But continuation
of construction and settlement in the holy complex suggest an
unbroken tradition of pilgrimage to Lumbini.
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Other
Places of interest
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