Tuesday, June 12, 2012

Lumbini - The BirthPlace of Lord Buddha

"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,


No comments:

Post a Comment