It is said that for all Buddhists during their life to visit the four main places
Lumbini – the birthplace of Buddha
Bodhgaya – where Buddha attained enlightenment
Sarnath – where Buddha gave his first discourse of Dhamma to the world
Kushinagar – place of Buddha’s Maha Parinibbana
We had a life time opportunity to visit India (Dambadiva) in March 2012 all the way from Sri Lanka as a Buddhist pilgrim. India is the birthplace of Buddhist religion and when you visit there, still we can feel the sense of Buddha. It was a 8 days tour and the time is not enough to visit each and every religious places but any how we worshiped all the important places with a busy schedule. Buddhagaya, Varanasi and Sravasti are the most interesting places for us and we would like to visit these places again if possible. We had realized that we are still living in Gautama Buddha era and we should try our best to follow the path shown by Buddha in his teachings.
For your information we have decided to create this web site and publish the experience that we gathered. Most of information and knowledge gathered are based on our tour guide and the buddhist monks we met on this pilgrimage. Also we have gathered some several informations from websites and youtube videos as well. My thanks to respective owners of such videos on you-tube.
We hope this web site about Dambadive is informative and useful for you to get understanding of theses places or for your future visits to Dambadiva.
All the pictures publish on the web albums are Geo-tagged. Click on photo detail to see location details.
ශාවස්ති නුවර ජෙතවනාරමය
Sravastī or Sāvatthī, a city of ancient India, was one of the six largest cities
in India during Gautama Buddha's lifetime. The city was located in the fertile
Gangetic plains in the present day Gonda District of Uttar Pradesh near
Balrampur some 120 km north
of Lucknow. Jetavana
monastery was a famous monastery close to Savatthi.
Suganda Kutiya
Savatthi was located on the banks of the river
Aciravati (now called the
Rapti river). It was the capital city of the kingdom of Kosala, and its king was
called Pasenadi, who was a disciple of Buddha. It is a beautiful city with vast
amounts of agriculture and diversity.
Buddhaghosa says that, in
the Buddha's day, there were fifty seven thousand families in Savatthi, and that
it was the chief city in the country of Kasi
Kosala, which was three
hundred leagues in extent and had eighty thousand villages. He stated the
population of Sávatthi to have been 180 million.
Thus, Sravasti is the place where Buddha lived the longest amount of time, and
it is the place where he gave the largest amount of discourses and instructions.
The mango-tree, at the gate of Savatthi, under which the Buddha performed the Yamaka-patihariya . The king's gardener, Ganda, while on his way to the palace to give the king a ripe mango-fruit from the palace gardens, saw the Buddha going on his alms-rounds and offered him the mango. The Buddha ate it immediately, and gave the seed to Ananda to be planted by the gardener at the city-gate. A tree of one hundred cubits sprouted forth at once, covered with fruit and flowers. At the foot of this tree Vissakamma, by the order of Sakka, built a pavilion of the seven kinds of precious things.
Outside of Savatthi is located the stupa where the Twin
Miracle (Pali:Yamaka
Patihara) took place. The site of Jetavana monastery is the
main pilgrim destination, with meditation and chanting mainly
done at the Gandhakuti (Buddha's
hut) and the Anandabodhi tree.
A holy destination related deeply with the life of a legend, Lord Buddha, eventually Kapilvastu is the place where Lord Buddha had lived the childhood and the days of teenage, in complete luxury. The capital of King Shuddhodhan, Kapilvastu still carries with it the mystic charm. It houses many sculptures of Buddhism, which present a landscape before that visitors that makes them feel calm, content. Kapilvastu carries the visitors away to the ancient days when Buddha was a small child, a prince. The place is situated 27 km south of Lumbini.
Lumbini is the birth place of Buddha. It is situated in Nepal about 22 kms from Bhairahawa of Nepal in the foot hills of Himalayas.
Lord Buddha was born at Lumbini while his mother was on her way to parental home from Kapilvastu. Lumbini should be visited and seen by a person of devotion, being one of the four holy places of Buddhism.
This place itself is interesting as a whole, the landscapes and the green forestry. However Maya Devi temple and the Stupas and the Pillar built by Ashoka are really worth a visit. Recently, several beautiful shrines have been constructed by devotees from
all over the world. A visit to Lumbini is not only for spiritual enlightenment but also for solace and satisfaction that one gets in such a calm and peaceful place.
Kushinagar is the place where Shakyamuni entered Mahaparinirvana. Mahaparinirvana Temple is the main place in Kushi nagar. This temple stands on the same plinth as the main Nirvana Stupa behind it. The reclining Nirvana statue of Lord Buddha inside the temple is 6.10 metres long and is made of monolith red - sand stone. It represents the "Dieing - Buddha" reclining on his right side with his face towards the west. It is placed on a large brick-pedestal with stone-posts at the corners. There is an inscription datable to the 5th Century A.D. recording that the statue was "the appropriate religious gift of the Mahavihara Swami Haribala".
Buddha gave the disciples the famous exhortation - "Impermanence is inherent in all things. Work out your own salvation with diligence". Then, passing through the meditative absorptions, Shakyamuni Buddha entered Mahaparinirvana. The earth shook, stars shot from the heavens, the sky in the ten directions burst forth in flames and the air was filled with celestial music. The master's body was washed and robed once more, then wrapped in a thousand shrouds and placed in a casket of precious materials.
For seven days, offerings were made by gods and men, after which, amidst flowers and incense, the casket was carried to the place of cremation in great procession. Some legends say that the Mallas offered their cremation hall for the purpose. A pyre of sweetly scented wood and fragrant oils had been built, but, as had been foretold, it did not burn until Mahakashyapa arrived. After the great disciple eventually arrived, made prostrations and paid his respects, the pyre burst into flames spontaneously.
After the cremation ceremony was complete, the ashes were examined for relics. Only a skull bone, teeth and the inner and outer shrouds remained. The Mallas of Kushinagar first thought themselves most fortunate to have received all the relics of the Buddha's body. However, representatives of the other eight countries that constituted ancient India also came forth to claim them. To avert a conflict, a Brahmin, Dona, suggested an equal, eightfold division of the relics between them. Some records state that in fact Shakyamuni's remains were first divided into three portions, one each for the gods, nagas and men. The portion given to humans was then subdivided into eight. Each of the eight people took their share to their own countries and eight great stupas were built over them. These relics were again subdivided, after Ashoka decided to build 84,000 stupas. Today, they are contained in various stupas scattered across Asia.
Vaishali was the capital city of the Licchavi, one of world's first republics, in the Vajjian Confederacy (Vajji)mahajanapada, around the 6th century BC. At the time of the Buddha, Vaishalī, which he visited on many occasions, was a very large city, rich and prosperous, crowded with people and with abundant food. There were 7,707 pleasure grounds and an equal number of lotus ponds. Its courtesan, Amrapali, was famous for her beauty, and helped in large measure in making the city prosperous. The city had three walls, each one away from the other, and at three places in the walls were gates with watch towers. Outside the town, leading uninterruptedly up to the Himalaya, was the Mahavana, a large, natural forest.
Rajagaha, meaning ‘King’s Abode,’ was the capital of the Kingdom of Magadha, the largest city in the Middle Land, and was visited by the Buddha on many occasions during his life. It consisted of two parts, the old city built amongst hills, and the new city located on the plain just beyond the hills. Both were surrounded by huge walls, the remains of which can still be seen today. The Buddha praised the beauty of many of the natural and man-made landmarks around the city , his two favourite places being the Bamboo Grove and a low rocky hill called the Gijjajuta Peak, just beyond the east gate of the city. Several places in Rājagaha which are mentioned in the Tripiṭaka have been identified and excavated by archaeologists. Rajagaha is now called Rajgir and is in the modern north Indian state of Bihar.
Surrounded by five holy hills, the picturesque little town of Rajgir is important for Buddhists. Here the two rock-cut caves were the favourite retreats of the Buddha and it was on this hill that he preached two of his most famous sermons. The nearest airport is in Patna (115 kms) and the railhead is in Bhakhtiyarpur (54 kms). Rajgir is well connected by good roads to Patna, Gaya, Delhi and Kolkata (Calcutta).
Literally, Rajgir has got the name from Raj Griha meaning the abode of the king. The city was the capital of the mighty Magadha Empire during the period of Lord Buddha's lifetime. The city has hosted Lord Buddha during the reign of rule of Bimbisara who was overwhelmed, along with many citizens, by the charm and grace of Lord Buddha.
Gridhakuta Hill - Gridhakuta Hill was the favourite place of Lord Buddha, where he delivered many discourses after he attained enlightenment. It was here that he gave two important sutras the Lotus Sutra and the Prajnaparamita.
Saptparni Cave - It was here, where the first Buddhist council was held after Buddha attained Nirvana. Also a Burmese temple, and a modern Japanese temple can be seen here.
Shanti Stupa - This is an immence white structure situated on the top of the hill Ratnagiri and is the main Buddhist attraction at Rajgir. This houses four gold statues representing Buddha's birth, enlightenment, teaching and death.
Ancient Ruins - There are many sites including ruins of the ancient city, caves, and places associated with Ajatasatru and king Bimbisara can be seen here. Here one can see the Ajatasatru's fort built in 5th century BC where the emperor had imprisoned his father. The 1.5-km long outer wall was built by stone blocks.
සත් සතිය How the Buddha spent the Seven Weeks 'Sath Sathiya' after enlightenment
Buddha spent these seven weeks in the vicinity of the bodhi tree where He attained Enlightenment
First week: Under the bodhi tree
During the first week after Enlightenment, the Buddha sat under the bodhi tree, experiencing the happiness of freedom and peace. Throughout the week, He sat in one posture, experiencing the Bliss of Emancipation (Vimukthi Suva).
Vajrashana වජ්රාසනය
Second week: Gazing at the bo tree
In gratitude to the tree that had sheltered Him during His struggle for Buddhahood, the Buddha stood without moving His eyes as He meditated on the bodhi tree (Animisalochana Pooja), thus teaching a great moral lesson to the world. Buddhists who follow this example pay their respects not only to the original bo tree, but also other bo trees.
Third week: Golden bridge
The Buddha saw through His mind's eye that the gods were not sure whether He had attained Enlightenment, as the Buddha had not given up His temporary residence at the bo tree. To clear their doubts, He created, by His psychic powers, a golden bridge in the air, and walked up and down it for a whole week.
Fourth week:In the jewelled chamber
The Buddha created a beautiful jewelled chamber (ratanaghara) and sitting inside it, meditated on what was later known as the 'Detailed Teaching' (Abhidhamma).
His mind and body were so purified that rays of six colours came out of His body - blue, yellow, red, white, orange and a mixture of these five. Each colour represented one noble quality of the Buddha: yellow for holiness, white for purity, blue for confidence, red for wisdom and orange for defeat of desire. The mixed colour represented all these noble qualities. Today these six colours make up the Buddhist flag.
Fifth week: With a Brahmana and three girls
While meditating under the Ajapala banyan tree, the Buddha replied to a Brahmana, who came to see Him, that one becomes a perfect Brahmana by one's deeds and not by birth.
Three charming girls called Tanha, Rati and Raga (the daughters of Mara) came to disturb His meditation. They danced around the Buddha and tried to distract Him, but soon got tired and left Him alone.
Sixth week:Under the muchalinda tree
The Buddha started meditating under a muchalinda tree. It began to rain heavily and the huge Muchalinda Nagaraja (cobra king) came out and coiled his body seven times around the Buddha to keep Him warm and placed his hood over the Buddha's head to protect Him from the rain.
After seven days, the rain stopped and the snake changed into a young man who paid his respects to the Buddha.
Seventh week: Under the Rajayatana tree
The Buddha meditated under the Rajayatana banyan tree. Two merchants, Tapassu and Bhalluka, came into His presence and offered the Buddha rice cakes and honey.
The Buddha told them some of what He had found in His Enlightenment. These two merchants, by taking refuge in the Buddha and His Dhamma, became the first lay followers in the Buddhist world. There was no Sangha (order of monks and nuns) then.
They asked the Buddha for something sacred and the Buddha wiped His head with His right hand and pulled out some hair to give them. These hair relics (Kesa Datu) were brought home and enshrined by the merchants.
