The Ruined Sites - Rajgir

Rajgir located in a green valley surrounded by seven rocky hills, was an ancient capital city of Magadha Kingdom found about 3000 years ago. The city was sacred to both Buddhism and Jainism as it was greatly associated with their founders, Gatauma Buddha and Mahavira. The first monastery dedicated to Buddha by Magadha King Bimbisara was at Veluvana Bamboo Grove. Lord Buddha after coming back from Sarnath and converted 3 Kassapa brothers and their 1000 followers in Gaya, came to Rajgir. The King offered him the royal park Venu Van and built him a Vihara as his residence. The place was one of Buddha's favorable place to stay and where several discourses of Buddha were set.



The beautiful bright structure is not the first Buddhist monastery. The actual location of the first monastery was some walking distance away from the building. It was behind the park at the slope of a small hill. The ruins were there but sad to hear that the site had been buried with bodies of other religion.



Karandak Kanivapa was the man-made Water Tank in the park which Lord Buddha used to bathe when coming to Rajgir and staying in Venu Van.



The shady and cooling Venu Van or Bamboos Grove was a very well maintained royal park. It was offered to Lord Buddha for his stay when he preached at Rajgir.



Lying next to Bamboo Grove is one of the 80 World Peace Stupa built by Japanese.



The Ajatasattu Stupa is another ruined site that makes us shed tears. It was an underground stupa built by Magadha King Ajatasattu to protect it from the attack of Roma Visaya Kingdom. Buddha's relics were distributed to Princes of 8 state kingdoms after Parinirvana and they were enshrined and worship in Stupas. As reported by Chinese monks Faxian and Xuanzang who traveled to pilgrim India in 4th and 7th century, all the 8 relic Drona were in ruin. Some version of saying believed that when King Ashoka began to gather and collect the relics and redistribute them to 84,000 stupas, the 8 portions of Buddha's relic were still held in the original places.



Ajatasattu Stupa was built by King Ajatasattu to hold one of the 8 portions of Buddha relics given to him after Buddha's parinirvana, but now had turned into a cemetery by the villagers. Seeing those white coffins displayed at the sacred site, we were truly grieved.



No matter how it was now, we wanted to pay highest homage to this ancient sacred site. There was no space allowing us to walk round it but with our strong faith, we did it. We moved step by step on the ruined rocks, climbed up and down at the rocky edges, and finally completed three rounds.