In Search of Bhudda’s Foot-Print

In the 6th century B.C, a prince from Kapilavastu, give up all worldly attachments, shattered all barricades of desire, and dedicated his entire life in search for an answer to the realities of pain, suffering and sorrow haunting mankind since time immemorial. He walked through dense jungles, barren lands, poor villages, practiced austerities and mortifications and finally set on meditation for attaining Enlightenment by the banks of the Falgu river near the city of Gaya, in Bihar. Beneath a Peepal tree here, this man attained the supreme and perfect insight and gave the world a new way of life, a new vision- The prince was called Siddhartha Gautama, who later became the Buddha.

Ever since I had developed my desire for photography, I have always kept an open eye for any tourist destination with some cultural or historical importance attached with it. And with such intent, a trip to Bodh Gaya came to the fore. My train from Dhanbad reached Gaya at Six in the morning. A cloudy dawn, with a  cool breeze sweeping across my face, greeted me. After a quick cup of hot tea from the roadside vendor outside the station, I reserved an auto for Bodh Gaya. As we rode through the narrow streets of Gaya before moving out into the National Highway, a perfect picture of an underdeveloped Indian town came to the mind. In about 45 minutes I reached the Mahabodhi Temple complex at Bodh Gaya.

The Mahabodhi Temple is one of the most important Buddhist temples in the world as it marks the place where the Buddha attained his Enlightenment under a Peepal tree. Situated at the centre of the Bodh Gaya town, the temple site consists of the main temple and six sacred places within an enclosed area. As I began exploring the complex, I soon found out that inside this vast area, at different locations various religious activities were performed by monks and devotees. At a prominent stage by the side of main temple building, a large group of young monks all clad in red dress, sat in rows and performed certain rituals. I went on exploring further and soon found out several monks performing prostration, some reading scriptures and some praying and counting beads on the thread in their hand. I found monks from different countries, who followed different sects of Buddhism- I found people who could speak neither Hindi nor English. I also interacted with a monk from Nepal, who didn’t understand much of my English or Hindi, but smiled and politely told me, “I’m now doing prostration..... It gives me immense happiness, staying here and doing something to attain the ultimate goal.”

After the temple visit, I checked in, and soon after set out to visit the rest of the tourist attractions in the town. While planning the trip, I had gone through the GOOGLE for details about lodging and food at Bodh Gaya.

In evening I walked through the town and visited the Buddhist temples and monasteries by different countries- Thailand, Japan, Bhutan, Malaysia, China and Vietnam, each one offers a unique experience to learn, and get a taste of the huge Buddhist impression around the world. After the temple and monasteries, I went to the see the much hyped 80-ft high statue of the Buddha- what a huge and dominating structure! This huge image of the Buddha sitting in a meditation posture on a lotus flower struck a very deep chord of admiration for that prince called Siddhartha Gautama, in my heart.

After a splendid dinner at a restaurant near the ASI museum, I retired for the day.

The next day I planned for a day long trip to Nalanda and Rajgir- two immensely important places of Buddhist significance. I booked a Bolero from the guest house reception. Road trips always have a romantic air attached to them. You see them in movies, on foreign roads, in open-hood cars.

Nalanda is about 95 kilometres from Bodh Gaya, and I reached there in about three hours. I headed for the famous ruins of the ancient Nalanda University. History of Nalanda dates back to the days of Mahavira and Buddha around 6th century BC.

The complex was built with red bricks and its ruins occupy an area of 14 hectares. At its peak, the university attracted scholars and students from as far away as China, Greece, and Persia. From the ruins I went to the museum and looked around at the exhibits which were excavated from Nalanda. Statues of the Buddha, various day-to-day used objects, images of Hindu gods and goddesses, and many more such things were displayed in the well furnished museum.

I had lunch in Nalanda, at a restaurant near the museum and soon after left for Rajgir.

Rajgir was the capital of the state of Magadha before the foundation of Patliputra in ancient times. It is named after “Raj Griha” meaning “the royal palace”. Lord Buddha is said to have spent several years in this place. Rajgir is mentioned in the epics Ramayana and Mahabharata. The most famous tourist attraction site with Buddhist significance is the Vishwa Shanti Stupa, founded by a Buddhist organisation from Japan under the guidance of monk, Nichidatsu Fujii (1885-1985). The stupa is made of spotless white marble and is a remarkable monument. Vishwa Shanti Stupa is the tallest peace Pagoda in the world standing tall at 400 meters and houses four statues of Lord Buddha on the four side-corners of the stupa. The four statues on four corner-sides of stupa depict the four phases of life of Lord Buddha. These statues are made of gold. These statues depicting, birth, enlightenment, teaching and passing away of Lord Buddha are symbolical of Lord Buddha’s teachings and temporary life.

The most interesting fact is that, you have to reach the stupa, via a cable car system, or rather a cable seat system! It’s fun and quite adventurous! Put in an insecure covered single seat and hanging on a cable you go all the way up to the high hill where the stupa is located. With this breathtaking ropeway ride, my trip ended and I was on my way to the same mundane world, where I was couple of days back.

Bihar has a great history and heritage attached to it- be it as the land of rise of Buddhism or of rise and fall of the first greatest empires of the subcontinent. But the sad irony is that, instead of such a history propelling the socio cultural scenario of the state today, the evils of modern times have somehow covered the glory of the yesteryears. It’s only time, and proper administrative and political steps that can help the state regain what it once had-the glory, the pride.