Lumbini is the place where the Buddha, known
as the ‘Tathagata’ was born. It is the place which should be visited
and seen by a person of devotion and which should cause awareness
and apprehension of the nature of impermanence. The birthplace of
the Gautama Buddha, Lumbini, is the Mecca of every Buddhist, being
one of the four holy places of Buddhism. It is said in the Parinibbana
Sutta that Buddha himself identified four places of future pilgrimage:
the sites of his birth, enlightenment, first discourse, and death.
All of these events happened outside in nature under trees. While
there is not any particular significance in this, other than it
perhaps explains why Buddhists have always respected the environment
and natural law.
Lumbini is situated at the foothills of the Himalayas in modern
Nepal. In the Buddha's time, Lumbini was a beautiful garden full
of green and shady Sal trees (Shorea). The garden and its tranquil
environs were owned by both the Shakyas and Kolias clans. King Suddhodana,
father of Gautama Buddha was of the Shakya dynasty belonging to
the Kshatriya or the warrior caste. Maya Devi, his mother, gave
birth to the child on her way to her parent's home in Devadaha while
taking rest in Lumbini under a sal tree in the month of May in the
year 623 B.C. The beauty of Lumbini is described in Pali and Sanskrit
literature. I t is said that Maya Devi was spellbound to see the
natural grandeur of Lumbini. While she was standing, she felt labor
pains and catching hold of a drooping branch of a Sal tree, the
baby, the future Buddha, was born.
Maya Devi Temple:
Lumbini
remained neglected for centuries. In 1895, Feuhrer, a famous German
archaeologist, discovered the great pillar while wandering about
the foothills of the Churia range. Further exploration and excavation
of the surrounding area revealed the existence of a brick temple
and a 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 Maya Devi was constructed
over the foundations of more than one earlier temple or stupa, and
that this temple was probably built on an Ashokan stupa itself.
On the south of the Maya Devi temple there is the famous sacred
bathing pool known as Puskarni. It is believed that Maya Devi took
a bath in this pool before the delivery. In 1996, an archaeological
dig unearthed a "flawless stone" placed there by the Indian
Emperor Ashoka in 249 BC to mark the precise location of the Buddha's
birth more than 2,600 years ago, if authenticated, the find will
put Lumbini even more prominently on the map for millions of religious
pilgrims.
Recently, several beautiful shrines have been built by devotees
from Buddhist countries. A visit to Lumbini, the birthplace of Buddha,
is not only for spiritual enlightenment but also for solace and
satisfaction that one gets in such a calm and peaceful place.
Ashoka Pillar:
It is an important evidence of the birth place of Buddha. The inscription
engraved by Ashoka is still intact and testifies the authenticity
of the birth place. The text written in Brahmi script records the
visit of King Priyadarsi who ordered structures built to protect
the site.
One can also see the brick masonry foundations, known as the GROUP
OF STUPAS and vihars, built in the period of Mauryan Gupta and Kushana
(between the 3rd century B.C. and 2rd century A.D.) which are evidence
of the early devotee desire to be near the sacred birth place. On
the eastern side there are two standing two monasteries, Lumbini
Buddhist Monastery built in 1953 and Dharma Swami Maharaj Buddhist
Monastery built in 1968.
Master Plan:
The plan, which was completed in 1978, was designed by the Japanese
architect Kenzo Tange. The plan has its objectives to restore an
area of about 7.7 square km, to be known as the Lumbini Garden,
centering on the garden and the Ashoka Pillar, with an additional
area of 64.5 square km to be developed in its support. According
to architect Kenzo Tange, "the overall objective is to reinforce
the symbolic entity of the Lumbini Garden in its simplicity and
clarity”. It provides complementary activities as residence of monks,
research, international meetings and teachings.
