In the Footsteps of the Buddha Pilgrimage
30th and 31st October

Day 1

Morning

  1. A walk along the rivers Nirāñjanā and Mohā (approximately 5 km)   

Explore the footsteps of Bodhisattva Siddhārtha on the day of Veshākha Pūrṇimā (the day of his Enlightenment). The places where Siddhārtha took penance, where Sujata offered him food, where he consumed the food offered by Sujata and the place where Siddhārtha threw his bowl in river Nirāñjanā. 

Rs. (INR) 200-250/ Person (depending on the number of participants)

Day 1

Evening

  1. Climb to the ‘Ashokan Stupas’, Prāgbodhi Hill (approximately 10 minutes climb)

Prāgbodhi Mountain means the mountain leading to perfect enlightenment’. The sacred hill is intimately associated with the life and story of the Buddha.  Prāgbodhi is an hour’s drive from Bodhgaya.

Rs. (INR) 600-750/ Person (depending on the number of participants)

Day 2

A Visit to sacred sites in Rājgir and Nālandā

  1. Vulture’s Peak- It was one of the favourite places of the Buddha. The most important event associated with Vulture’s Peak is when the Buddha after his Enlightenment set forth the Second Turning of the Wheel of Dhamma to an assembly of monks, nuns and laity, as well as, innumerable bodhisattvas. The Prajñāpāramitā-Sūtra-s, the Saddharma- Puṇḍarīka Sūtra (Lotus Sūtra),  SūrāngamasamādhiLalitavistra Sūtra and the Bhadrakalpikā Sūtra all are considered second-turning teachings delivered here.
  1. Remains of Ancient Nālandā University

In 1915, the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) began excavating the site of the ancient Nālandā Mahāvihāra systematically.  Excavations have revealed that the Nālandā Mahāvihāra flourished for more than 700 years (5th to 13th CE).  The site of the ancient Nālandā University was originally an Āmra garden (mango grove).  The 7th CE Buddhist monk scholar Xuanzang mentioned that five hundred merchants had bought the site and offered it to the Buddha. The Buddha used to stay there during his sojourn to Nālandā.

 

  1. Xuanzang Memorial, Nālandā

 

The Memorial commemorates the epic journey of the 7th CE Buddhist monk Xuanzang (Hsüan-tsang). Xuanzang, one of the most celebrated students of Nālandā, travelled more than ten thousand miles from Xian (China) to reach NālandāMahāvihāra to practice and collect manuscripts of Yogācārabhūmi-Śāstra.  XM evokes strong cultural ties between India and China which go back to over two millennia.

Rs. (INR) 2600 (including lunch and entry tickets)/ Person 

Tour with Pilgrimage

Deepak Anand is a Bodhgaya-based Buddhist Pilgrimage Interpreter. He has been exploring and documenting the Buddhacarika (the sublime wanderings of the Buddha) sites in the Gangetic plains. He has a few publications on the contributions of the 7th CE Buddhist monk scholar Xuanzang. Deepak has curated several exhibitions, most notably The Pilgrimage Legacy of Xuanzang, which is permanently exhibited at Xuanzang Memorial, Nalanda.

for more infomation please contact +91 94314 90264

Works of Deepak Anand may be visited on  his blogs:

1.     Nālandā – Insatiable in Offering (http://nalanda-insatiableinoffering.blogspot.com/)
2.     Nālandā on the Move ( http://nalanda-onthemove.blogspot.com/)