Lumbini Buddha's birthplace

Yesterday marked the Birth, Enlightenment and Parinibbana of the Buddha the spiritual leader of Buddhists who comprise the majority of people in Sri Lanka .All His devoted followers in Sri Lanka and the world over celebrated the event with great piety. The places where the events took place have naturally become places of great religious significance with many a devotee going to at least one of the four holy places on pilgrimage.It is said in the Parinibbana Sutta that the Buddha himself identified four places of future pilgrimage: the sites of His Birth, Enlightenment, First Discourse, and Parinibbana. Today we feature Lumbini , the place where the Buddha, Siddhartha Gautama also known as the Tathagata, was born in 624 B.C..

Today, Lumbini is one of the holiest places Buddhists venerate. It evokes religious sentiments of millions of Buddhists all over the world, like Jerusalem to Christians and Mecca to Muslims.

Lumbini is situated at the foothills of the famous Himalayas in modern Nepal.Most of you must have read about the beautiful environs of Lumbini during the Buddha's time. Lumbini was a beautiful garden with an abundance of of green and shady sal trees (Shorea robusta ).

The garden and its tranquil environs were owned by both the Shakyas and the clans who lived during that time.The beauty of Lumbini is described in Pali and Sanskrit literature.

The father of Gautama Buddha,King Suddhodana, was of the Shakya dynasty and belonged to the Kshatriya (warrior caste). It is said that his mother, MahaMaya, was on her way to her parents' home in Devadaha and gave birth to Prince Sidhartha while resting in Lumbini under a sal tree in the month of May, 624 BC. Maha Maya, was spellbound to see the natural grandeur of Lumbini.

While she was standing, she felt labour pains and catching hold of a drooping branch of a sal tree, she gave birth to a baby, the future Buddha.

Perhaps, the significant place where the Buddha was born may have even remained unknown to the world if not for the following events.History records that in 249 BC, when the Indian Emperor Ashoka visited Lumbini, it was a flourishing village.

Emperor Ashoka is known to have constructed four stupas and a stone pillar with a figure of a horse on top. The stone pillar bears 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 and a stone pillar erected to the Bhagavan having been born here, Lumbini village was taxed reduced and entitled to the eight part (only)'.

Thereafeter Lumbini remained neglected for centuries.Then in 1895, a famous German archaeologist named Feuhrer, while wandering about the foothills of the Churia range discovered the great pillar left by Emperor Ashoka.

Further exploration and excavation of the surrounding area revealed the existence of a brick temple and sandstone sculpture within the temple itself, which depicts the scenes of the Buddha's birth.

It is pointed out by scholars that the temple of Maha Maya was constructed over the foundations of more than one earlier temple or stupa, and that the temple was probably built on an Ashokan stupa itself.

To the south of the Maya Devi temple there is the famous sacred bathing pool known as Puskarni. It is believed that Maha Maya took a bath in the pool before the delivery.

By the side of the Ashoka pillar a river which flows south-east and is locally called the Ol.

In 1996, an archaeological dig unearthed a 'flawless stone' placed there by Ashoka in 249 BC to mark the precise location of the Buddha's birth more than 2,600 years ago.

As the birthplace of the Buddha - the apostle of peace and the Light of Asia the sacred area is a place which should be visited and seen by His devotees.

Historically, the region is an exquisite treasure-trove of ancient ruins and antiquities, dating back to the pre-Christian era.

The site, described as a beautiful garden in the Buddha's time, still retains its legendary charm and beauty.

Source: UNESCO