by Rev. Pannasara of Nepal
“Aggo Hamasmi Lokassa
Jettho Hamasmi Lokassa
Settho Hamasmi Lokassa
Ayamantimajati Natthidani
Punabbhavoti”.
I am the foremost of the creatures to cross the riddle of the ocean of existence. I have come to the world to show the path of emancipation. This is my last birth and hereafter I will not be born again.
A newly born baby in Lumbini declared this more that 2600 years ago. The baby born as Prince Siddhartha Gautama, turned the wheel of the law in His youth and became known to generations to come simply as the Buddha, the apostle of peace.
While passing through the rough-and-tumble way down the centuries, Lumbini wore out beyond recognition. The Dhamma its son had founded, propagated and won millions of hearts also declined after it reached its apogee around the twelfth century.
The worthy son of Lumbini had revealed that nothing in this world was permanent. And Lumbini was no exception. Once a flourishing Kingdom, with enchanting monument, temple, palace, offices, roads and monumental buildings could be seen no more. Time swept them down. On the sprawling landscape where they had once been a flurry of human activities, sweet sounds of bells and songs; music and dances, only prowling tigers and leopards roared, jackals, howled, snakes and many other poisonous creatures wriggled and hovered under the cover of thick jungle. Uncertainty even over the location of Lumbini prevailed till December 1st 1886.
Since then Lumbini has found its identity, location with some invaluable ruins of temples. Its famous garden, art and artifacts and is now paving way to rehabilitating its ancient sanity and culture.
Lumbini - a place in the South-western Terai of Nepal, evokes a kind of holy sentiment to the millions of Buddhist all over the world - as do Jerusalem to Christians and Mecca to Muslims. For, Lumbini is the place where the Buddha - the apostle of peace and the Light of Asia was born in 623 BC located in the flat plains of South-western Nepal and the foot-hills of Churia range, Lumbini and its surrounding areas are endowed with a rich natural setting of domestic able fauna and favourable agricultural antiquities dating back to pre-Christian era. The site described as a beautiful garden in the Buddha’s time still retains its legendary charm and beauty. To the north of Lumbini lies the dense and picturesque Sal grove. For centuries Buddhist all over the world, knew that Lumbini where Prince Siddhartha was born is somewhere around.
The descriptions of famous Chinese pilgrims Huian-Tsang and Fahien, indicated to this area, saying “Lumbini, where the Buddha was born is a piece of heaven on earth and one could see the snowy mountains amidst a splendid garden, embedded with Stupas and monasteries”.
However, the exact location remained uncertain and obscure till December 1, 1886 when a wandering German archaeologist Dr. Alois A. Fuhrer came across a stone pillar and ascertained beyond doubt the birthplace of the Buddha.
As the birthplace of the Buddha, the Sacred Area of Lumbini is one of the Holiest places in the world’s great religions. In terms of the categories of cultural property under the World heritage Convention, Lumbini is a heritage site. Since the inscription of Lumbini on the World Heritage list, the World Heritage Committee has requested the State party, in this case, the Department of Archaeology and the Lumbini Development Trust (LDT) to prepare a management plan with respect to all existing issues and challenges.
According to tradition, the Prince Siddhartha was born at this place under the Sal-tree. His mother was wife of King Suddhodana of the Shakya Republic of Kapilavastu.
He was born on the day of the Full Moon of the month of Vaisakh (April - May) in 563 BC. A pond, where the Queen bathed before giving birth to the Prince had existed there for a long time. There were also two mountains of cold and hot water and a river of oil, which flowed there at the time of His birth providing cold and hot water and oil to bathe Him. (Fuhrer: 30-32)
The Maha Parinirvana Sutra reveals that at the time of the Maha Parinirvana of the Tathagata when Ananda Thera asked Him about the future of His religion and followers, He spoke eloquently about the purity and contemplative virtues of the Lumbini garden and advised His faithful followers and ordinary devotees to visit Lumbini along with the holy sites of Bodhagaya, Saranath and Kushinagar.
Rijal 1979:30-32). Thus after the Maha parinirvana of the Buddha, Buddhist pilgrims began to come and pay homage at the holy site of His nativity in order to acquire virtues. After the beginning of the tradition of making Stupas, a few were also built by the adherents of Buddhism at Lumbini.
The single most important place of the Lumbini (and to the entire Buddhist world for that matter) is the stone slab, located deep in the sanctum and sanctorum. Revealed after hard and meticulous excavations under the three layers of ruins over the site of a famous Maya Devi Temple, the stone slab foundation pinpoints the location of the original place marking the exact spot of the birthplace of the Buddha in Nepal.
On the occasion of 4th World Buddhist Conference in 1956, the late King Mahendra did his best to provide basic facilities and recreating and Buddhist environment by constructing a Vihara rest house, road and some other items.
United nation’s Secretary General U. Thant’s pilgrimage in 1967 became a milestone in the history of the development of Lumbini. Deeply affected by the sanctity and necessity in consultation with King Mahendra Bir Bikkram Shaha Dev. He suggested the Government of Nepal to develop Lumbini as an international pilgrimage and tourism centre. An international committee for the Development of Lumbini was formed in 1970 at the UN Headquarters. Professor Kenzo Tange was awarded consultancy for the preparation of master plan design for the development of Lumbini.
Lumbini is situated in central atria (plain) of Nepal, about 350 km west of Kathmandu. Although its elevation is 105 m above sea level, Himalayan foot-hills are only 24 km away and on clear days, Dhaulagiri Peak (8,167 m) is visible 130 k.m. due north . Siddhartha Nagar is the nearest town with an airport (Gautam Bdudha Airport, Bhairahawa). This town is connected by highways with Kathmandu (east) via Chitwan rich in wildlife and Pokhara (north), the destination for treakkers.
The Tarai districts of Kapilavastu, Rupandehi and Nawal-Parasi around Lumbini are mostly a land of gentle plain with meandering streams. Until five decades ago, the area was forested with sparse habitation owing to endermic malaria. The rural landscape of today and wild environment of the immediate past give no clue to the area’s glorious history. Over two millennia ago, this plain around Lumbini harboured a rich civilisation. The unique legacy of Lumbini was the message of peace as propounded by the Buddha, son of that soil. This philosophic religionist now central to the belief of a major portion of the mankind.
At Lumbini there are two archaeological mounds, one around the Mayadevi Temple, which can be named as LMB-1 and the other on the South and south-east of the temple; it can be named as LMB-2. The area around the Mayadevi Temple was monuments like Asokan pillar, Temples, Stupas, Viharas and wells. They are all built with kiln burnt bricks. But the other site (LMB-2) is an area where we can expect the ruins of ancient Lumbini village (Lumbini-gram of the pillar inscription). There we can expect the rural picture of an ancient village with hut, shops, wells, roads and lanes etc.
Here we can expect villages belonging to N.B.P, Sunga and Kushan periods (as it was clear from some earlier trenching at the area done by Dr. N.R. Banerji and B.K. Rijal in 1971).
“Sabba Papassa Akaranam
Kusalassa Upasampada
Sachitta Pariyodapanam
Etam Buddhanu Sasanam”
To avoid all evil to cultivate all that is good and to cleanse one’s mind, is the advice of all Buddhas.
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