"After I am
no More ,O Ananda,men of Belief will visit the four Places with
Faith,Curiosity and Devotion.Lumbini Where I was born,Bodhgaya where i
attained enlightment,Saranath where I gave the first Sermons, and
Kusinara where I Shall Pass into MahaParinirvana."
- Lord Buddha
As the
birthplace of the lord Buddha - the apostle of Peace and the light of
Asia was Born in 623 BC - the scared area of Lumbini is one of the
holiest places of one of the world's great religion,and its remain
contain important Evidence about the nature of Buddhist Pilgrimage
centres from a very early period. Lumbini,in the South-western Terai of
Nepal,evokes a kind of holy sentiment to the millions of Buddhist all
over the world,Like Jerusalem to Christians and Mecca to Muslims.
Lumbini
is the Place where Lord Buddha,was born.It is the place which Should be
visited and seen by a person of Devotion and which should cause
awareness and apprehension of the nature of impermanence.The site and
its sorroundings area is endowned with a rich natural setting of
domesticable fauna and Favorable agricultural environ.Historically,the
regions is an exquisite treasure -trove of ancient ruins and antiquities
,dating back to pre-christian era.The Site,Described as a Beautiful
garden in Buddha's time,still retains its legendary charm and beauty.
The
birthplace of the Gautam Buddha ,Lumbini,is one of the four holy places
of Buddhism.It is said in Parinibbana sutra that Buddha himself
identified four places of future pilgrimage: the sites of his
birth,enlightment,First Discourse, and death.All these events happened
outside in nature under trees.There is no particularly significance on
this,other tha it perhaps explains why Buddhist have always respected
the environment and natural law.
Lumbini is Situated at the
foothills of Himalayas in Modern Nepal.In the Buddha's time,Lumbini was
beautiful garden full of green and shady sal trees.The garden and its
tranquil environment were owned by both the Shakyas and clans. King
Suddhodhana ,father of Gautam Buddha,was of Shakya Dynasty and Belonged
to Kshatriya(Warrior Caste). Maya Devi ,his mother,gave birth to child
on her way to her parents home in Devadaha while resting in Lumbini
under a sal tree in the month of May,642 BC.The Beauty of Lumbini is
Described in Pali and Sanskrit Literature.Maya Devi ,it is said,was
spellbound to see the natural grandeur of Lumbini.While she was
standing,she felt labour pains and catching hold pf a dropping branch of
a sal tre,she gave birth to baby.
In 249 BC,when
the Indian Emperor Ashoka visited Lumbini,it was flourishing
Village.Ashoka Constructed four stupas and a stone pillar with figure of
horse on top.The stone pillars beads an inscription ,which in
translation runs as follows:'King Piyadasi(Ashoka),beloved of devas,in
the 20th year of the coronation,himself made a royal visit,Buddha
Sakyamuni having been born here;a stone railing was built built and
stone Pillar erected to the Bhagavan having been born here,Lumbini
village as taxed reduced and entitled to the eight part'.
Lumbini remained neglected for centuries.In 1985,Feuhrer ,a famous
German archaeologist ,Discovered the great pillar while wandering about
the foothills of the churia range.Further exploration and excavation of
the surrounding area revealed the existence of brick temple and
Sandstone sculpture within the temple itself,which depicts the scenes of
Buddha's birth.
It is Poined out by Scholars that the temple of
Maya Devi was constructed over the foundations of more than one earlier
temple or stupa,and that this temple was probably built on an Ashokan
stupa itself.To the south of the Maya Devi temple there is the famous
scared bathing pool known as Puskarni.It is believed that Maya Devi took
a bath in this Pool before the delivery.By the side of Ashoka Pillar a
river which flows south-east is locally called ythe OI.In 1996,an
archaeological dig enearthed a 'flawless stone' placed there by Ashoka
in 249 BC to mark the Precise location of the Buddha's birth more than
2600 years ago.
Source - Image nepal,Unesco,Clt,whc,srishaligram.com,
