With the resurgence of global interest in the gentle, compassionate and self-sacrificing message of Gautama Buddha, the Buddhist trail or circuit stretching from Nepal to Bihar has been experiencing a rush of pilgrims and tourists Like the New Testament which recounts the life and ministry of Jesus Christ (1-33 AD), the biography of Gautama Buddha (536-486 BCE) is also one of the greatest stories ever told. The Buddha’s message fell on receptive ears, particularly of people suffering the inherent iniquities and injustices of the Hindu caste system. During his ministry, he developed a community of self-abnegating monks who took his message across the seas especially to the Far East into China, Japan, Sri Lanka and Cambodia, which to this day remain strongly Buddhist countries. Currently estimates of the global Buddhist population vary between 489 million and 1 billion. A prince of the Shakya clan born in 536 BCE in Lumbini (Nepal), Siddhartha Gautama abandoned his palatial home at age 29 to become a wandering ascetic. After six years of observing the sufferings of the world, while seated in deep meditation under a Bo (fig) tree in Bodh Gaya in modern day Bihar, he attained nirvana (enlightenment) and transformed into the Buddha (fully enlightened). From the age of 35 until his death at age 80 (486 BCE), he adopted the life of a religious Master, who taught four noble truths (arya satyani). In essence, the Buddha’s analysis of the cause of human suffering was that their condition is rooted in worldly desires. He preached that the conquest of desire is the route to happiness, arguing that human beings — rather than the gods — shape their own destinies. He explained in detail the chain of causes which lead to suffering and ways and means to attain nirvana. Moreover, since he believed that man was the arbiter of his own destiny, he questioned vedic rituals, the caste system and the superiority of Brahmins within it. The sequence of the 15 Buddhist holy sites follows the Buddha’s life cycle and the journeys performed by him as narrated in the Jatakas and the Tipitaka, and are sacred for Buddhists. Among them are his birthplace, Lumbini (Indo-Nepal border), Bodh Gaya (where he received enlightenment), Sarnath (where he gave his first sermon) and Kushinagar (where he breathed his last). With a resurgence of global interest in the gentle, compassionate and self-effacing message of Buddhism, the Buddhist trail or circuit has been experiencing a rush of pilgrims and tourists. The Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation (IRCTC) has introduced a special train — the Mahaparinirvan Express — which offers a guided tour of eight days. Lumbini The birthplace of the Buddha, Lumbini nestles in the Himalayan foothills of Rupandehi district, Nepal, near the Indian border. In 1997, it was designated a Unesco World Heritage Site and nominated for the international World Heritage programme. The scripture Sutta Nipáta states that the Buddha was born in a village of the Sákyans, in the Lumbi-neyya Janapada. Records maintained by the…
