We have taken a number of long road trips on this journey and they are always interesting and enjoyable. Riding in a comfortable car with an experienced driver and watching life go by by on the wayside of India allows time for reflection on the relative value we put on our activities at home and what people must do here to survive. Our distinction between urban and rural live is not nearly as great as the difference here between people living and working in cities and those small farmers managing crops in small communities. On this drive to Kushinagar, we pass through Ayodhya, birthplace of Lord Rama and the site of the heralded temple which was consecrated last year to great fanfare by Prime Minister Modi on the site of a razed Muslim Temple which was itself probably built on the remains of a Hindu temple dedicated to Rama.
There is a huge gathering of people waiting to go to this temple. Our driver tells us that everyone has to get down, buses and cars, at the entrance and then either walk or have other transportation to the temple itself. Great decorated arches are seen going toward the sacred space as we pass by on a newly constructed highway nearby.
We arrived into Kushinagar, a very small town known entirely because it is the location where Shakyamuni died about 2500 years ago. It is said that he consciously chose the place of his death, in a garden owned by the local king, between two Sal trees. Since that time, the town has gone through large changes: from the development of many monasteries and Buddhist centers which were founded during the expansion of Buddhism to their physical destruction by invading Mogul armies to their eventual excavation starting with British archeologists in the late 19th century. In the 20th century, many Buddhist religious orders in Asia built places for their practitioners to stay and honor the Buddha, called Viharas, as well as temples in their own local style. But the local people who live and work here are mainly Hindu.
in the late afternoon we checked into our hotel, one of very few in the area as it is not a tourist draw except for large Buddhist groups who stay at the various viharas on the main street.
Bill and I take a walk and I immediately remark on how clean it is with concrete spread on the side of the road down to a curb and orderly garbage pails, green compost and blue for trash, which we are told are picked up every day. We find a park with children’s playground areas which are busy at the end of the day and a private garden (entrance fee: 5 rupees) which skirts the edge of a small river where boat rides are offered for a fee. Back at our hotel, there is a large throng of white-clad pilgrims from some Asian country who fill the dining room.
The next morning we meet our guide, an educated Buddhist who practices Vipassana meditation, who takes us to the four main archeological sites of the area. The first is the covered shrine where a 20 foot prone golden statue resides of Sakyamuni Buddha in his final posture. The enclosure was build in the 1950’s and is unattractive but serves its purpose, a place where the devoted and faithful can come and pay respects to thone who was enlightened. We arrived early when there were few people except for a ring of mainly Tibetans sitting on mats around the edge of the room and meditating or praying. While we were there, several large groups arrived with saffron colored cloth to cover the statue and chant while doing so. Money was also donated in front and, no matter how sacred the space, the pilgrims were busy taking selfies and videos of themselves in the moment. Many around the edge were chanting, using either their mobile phones or electronic tablets to read the sacred text. There were only 2 other non-Asians present.
Behind this building is a fairly recent stupa and behind that a large excavated brick mound believed to be where the Buddha was laid out and bathed before being taken to the cremation site. Also in this area are the excavated remains of the foundations of monasteries build more than a thousand years ago.
On the other side of the road was another excavated site where a beautiful early image of the Buddha from the 10-11th century was found, missing one hand believed to be lost in the destruction of the area by the Muslim invaders. Excavated in 1876 when the British Raj had begun its archeological digs, it was originally part of a large monastic complex. It now sits in a partly covered enclosure built in 1927 and the sculpture shines its beneficence on those who come to pay respects to Lord Buddha.
The fourth and last ancient site is where it is believed the Buddha was cremated. Deep in the brick hillock was found wooden fire remains. Either here or in the earlier mound, there was also found what they believed were relics of Buddha. My immediate 21st century thought was whether someone could do a DNA test on any remains which would be interesting — perhaps only to know about his descendants and whether he had any exceptional gene markings.
We were exhausted by now, our guide left us and we had lunch at a small restaurant in a nearby hotel after which Bill went back to the hotel to rest and.I want on for a walk. Not all of the temples in the area are open to visitors but I was able to go into a Burmese temple, a Chinese temple founded by a Vietnamese nun, and a Thai temple, which had the most well kept grounds and buildings. Bill and I had earlier gone into the Sri Lanka temple financially supported by Japanese Buddhists. There is also a Tibetan temple and Cambodian temple which were not open to us.
Around the main temple area today was a small area like a fairground with colorful food and souvenir stalls, rides for kids and a general festival atmosphere – I assume both because it is Saturday and because tomorrow is Indian Republic Day, celebrating the establishment of the form of the current national government. There were carts with fresh coconut water to drink, sugar cane juice squeezed on the spot, hot roasted peanuts, popcorn, grilled corn on the cob, as well as sweets of all varieties, including the ubiquitous metal refrigerator carts of Kwality and Wall’s ice cream.
I visited the Government Buddha Museum where priceless Buddhist artifacts in stone and metal are shown in ancient wooden display cases but here at least the glass looked fairly new and clean. Cost to enter was 10 rupees for everyone and it was fairly empty. At other museums we have visited in Delhi and Lucknow there was one low price for locals and 500 rupee charge for foreigners. That seems fair to me in order to keep costs down for those who can not otherwise afford to visit. But there are so few visitors here they kept it uniform for everyone, which policy Sakyamuni Buddha would have supported.
The hotel restaurant is empty tonight and Bill and I have a delicious simple meal — of brown rice which I brought with me and asked the chef to prepare, a broccoli and mushroom dish and a yellow lentil soup, warm and soothing for Bill who is “under the weather” (what does that phrase mean) with a sore throat and slight cough. We are both wearing masks, indoors and outdoors. We both need sleep.
We leave tomorrow morning at 8 am for Varanasi.
