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THE BODHISAUVA SIDDHAUHA"Even death is not to be feared by one who has lived wisely." -Buddha |
It was the month of November; November 8th to be
precise. Actually, it’s a beautiful month, with cold dawn and dusk accompanied
by warm afternoon. Like the warm sun of November, my desire, wish, willingness,
longing to travel, was also warm but was growing fervent with every passing
days and nights. I wanted to travel, but at the same time, I wanted it to be a
short trip. Finally, a quick idea hovered around my mind- an idea that made my
willingness come true, and yes, successful. I made a quick and sensible
decision to travel to Lumbini- The
birth place of Lord Buddha. And, this is my first solo travel experience.
I woke up with the alarm at 4.30, that cold and pitch black
November morning, still unsure of my decision. The chilly air levitating over
and around my blanket was preventing me from exposing even my little fingers to
the atmosphere. But my desire was burning brighter than the fire to overcome
the chilliness of the morning air. The battle between the cold morning air and
the burning penchant continued for several minutes. Until then, I remained
covered under the blanket like an innocent child, afraid of the ongoing battle.
But as soon as my willingness defeated its nemesis, I got out from the bed,
walked to the bathroom, and splashed ice cold water to my face (I still remember
the numbness I felt at that very moment).
Soon after that, I became as alert as the watchman.
As I had already packed my bag pack with necessary kits and
belongings that previous night, it just took few minutes for me to set off for
my adventure. (Just a quick permission from my parents to let them know that
I’ll be gone for a few days). It was still dark outside, but the faint light
cast by the white moon on the atmosphere had made the path a little easier to
navigate. And the barking of street dogs had interrupted the tranquil air
blowing above my head. It took me about 30 minutes (although I didn’t keep the
exact notice of time) to reach Gongabu
Bus Park, from where I bought a ticket for Lumbini.
The price Was affordable (less than the information I gathered from the web.)
Although I had been informed that the bus will leave at 6.30,
it was delayed by 15 minutes- which is not hell of a time here in Nepal; and
especially for hedonistic people like me. So, the bus departed from Gongabu at 6.45. And yeah, the sit next
to me was unoccupied- vacant would be the suitable term. Well, for one reason-
I like it that way, as I love traveling comfortably. Everybody does! But, I was
there for a change, and wanted things to happen differently. It would only be
possible, if I would meet new people and engage in conversation about new
things and of course about- Life. As the
bus arrived Kalanki, we were stuck on
a traffic jam, that lasted for about 30 minutes. But later, the bus eluded from
the hustle and bustle of Kathmandu city, and the background was soon replaced
by the green hills beside which pinnacle of snow-capped mountains were
glistening in the golden sun. Also the golden paddy fields, above which tiny
black birds were hovering like butterflies and honeybees- flying swiftly just
in front of the mountain, was breath-taking sight on the Earth. On the heaven,
there were clouds- levitating along with the cold morning air, changing its
shape. And there was me, a lonely soul- still sitting alone and comfortably in
a double seat. I was happy to give my backpack that vacant seat, where we sat
like a close friend, talking to each other and collecting the warm experience
of proximity.
At around 9, the bus stopped at Dharke- where I ate Boiled-fried potato and a cup of tea to please
my hungry stomach. I hate telling this- but it was the worst flavoured tea I’ve
ever tasted-as it was 98% water, 1%milk, 0.5% tealeaf, 0.5%sugar. Yet, I gulped
it down, pretending that I was drinking a hot water in a cold morning (just to
warm up the molecules in the body.) I then took close notice of the place,
which was just a small settlement at the middle of the highway.
Later, at 10.48 (I then started to keep precise record of
time) the bus stopped at Mugling, to
collect local passengers in order to fill up the vacant seats. Still, my bag
was lucky enough to have its own seat.
The bus moved meticulously along the narrow and bumpy (due
to the ongoing road construction project) road of Narayangath, above the wide, green and serene Trishuli River. The air inside the bus was replaced by the
suffocating dust and made me kind of sick. But the green and firm trees standing on the
other side of the river consoled me to stay confident, as they told me that my
suffering is only transient, because the bus will soon meet the black-topped,
clean highway, along the middle of the forest and, again my lungs can inhale
the freshness of the forest air. Those trees also shared me their stories of- how
impossible it is for them to inhale the fresh air, as they are stuck over there
permanently. They couldn’t elude from that place where they are now staying, to
a new clean location. And, the only reason they are smiling is due to the
support they get from each other (not due to irrational sympathy we-human give
to them.) Later, I bade farewell to those courageous fellow trees and smiled at
the problems I’ve had inside my heart. “I WILL ONE DAY FIGURE OUT THE WAY TO
REPLACE THESE DARK PROBLEMS WITH ILLUMINATING HOPE- WHICH WILL TEACH ME TO LIVE
A MEANINGFUL LIFE.”
Looking at the beautiful sight of nature- the flowing river,
the green and monumental hills, Cascades that assumes the shape of whitish
threads, small scattered ramshackle buildings- I was asleep and, later woke up
with the intense and infuriating sound of people chattering and gossiping. When
I looked through the window, I was already at Jugedi- the next Bus Station-
where the passengers are meant to have their lunch. I got off the bus, twisted
my dense body- that got even stiffer after this gruelling bus ride along the
bumpiest road- and strode towards the café to have my lunch. The atmosphere was
torrid – around 31 ~C.
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WORLD PEACE PAGODA |
After around 6 hours of bus ride along the highway, over the
river, between the forest, hills, mountains and settlements, we reached
Santinagar (Siddharthanagar), Rupendehi, where the bus stopped to refill the
fuel tank. At around 3.30, I reached the tourist Bus Station at Lumbini; booked
a Hotel- ‘Hotel Lumbini Darshan’, for
NRs. 700 per night. After taking a quick glance of my hotel room, I unpacked by
bag, took a quick shower and left the room to scrutinize the Birth place of
Lord Buddha. It was a beautiful place with small shops, colourfu
l and well
decorated buildings, clean streets where tourists and locals were moving here
and there. I then took a look at the street map and entered inside the
protected Zone of Lumbini Development Trust. At first I walked along the Circular
Levee at led me to Maya-Devi Temple (Museum), where Lord Buddha was born, took
a few photographs of around the Buddha’s Palace and rested peacefully under the
Big Tree, where I could see monks, performing their evening prayers in front of
the gleaming Ashoka Pillar. Also, the Maya-Devi Temple seemed heavenly in the
evening Lights. I looked at my Watch, and it was already 6.38. I then returned
back to the hotel, hoping to visit the place once again at the morning. |
THE TEMPLE OF MAYA DEVI GLEAMING IN THE EVENING LIGHT |
THINGS TO DO IN LUMBINI:
- · VISIT THE FOLLOWING PLACES:
- . TIBETAN RABTEN MONASTERY
- . GREAT DRIGUNG KAGYUD LOTUS STUPA
- . LUMBINI MUSEUM
- . MAYA DEVI TEMPLE
- WORLD PEACE PAGODA
- . ROYAL THAI BUDDHIST MONASTERY
- . ASHOKA PILLAR
- . ETERNAL FLAMEVISIT FOR MORE INFORMATION.
- I.INH SON MONASTERY
- . . MYANMAR GOLDEN TEMPLE
- 11. LUMBINI CRANE SANCTUARY
- . SOKYO GOMPA
- . .. ZHONG HUA CHINESE BUDDHIST MONASTERY
- · Also, you can have a rickshaw ride around Lumbini.
- · Cycling
- · Sight-seeing
- · Vipassana center, where you can learn practice of meditation.
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A BEAUTIFUL DUSK AT LUMBINI |
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