Brief introduction of lumbini

Lumbini is a village, archaeological site and pilgrimage site, known as the birthplace of Siddhartha Gautama (Buddha, 563-483 BC), located in Lubandi District, the fifth province of modern Nepal, near the Indian border. In 249 BC, King Ashoka of the Peacock Dynasty (reigned from 268 BC to 232 BC) officially recognized it as the birthplace of the Buddha for the first time.

Before Ashoka's visit, the village was called another name, which may be similar but has now been lost. It has become an important pilgrimage site for early Buddhist believers. At first, it seemed to be a scenic amusement park, located between Kapilowei City in the east and Tipoto City in the southwest, ruled by the related Sakyamuni and Courier clans respectively. King suddhodana of Sakyamuni's family married his cousin Kolya, who will become the mother of the Buddha.

According to the records in Buddhist and Jain classics, when Maya went from Kapilowei to her hometown of Tipadaha to give birth, she stopped to rest in the garden of Lumbini and began to give birth. She gave birth to her son under the Sarah tree. According to some versions of the story, she bathed him in a nearby pond. Then she seems to have returned to the country of Capilovie, and she died seven days later.

The site remains an important pilgrimage site and continues to be honored as the birthplace of the Buddha.

Her son later gave up his inheritance and embarked on the road of practice, and finally became a Buddha ("awakened"), the founder of Buddhism. In the next 45 years, he passed on his vision to others. After his death, his disciples continued his teaching by establishing various schools, and respected places related to Buddha's life by designating pilgrimage sites and building stupas containing his relics.

It seems that the site was abandoned after Sakyamuni people were defeated and almost destroyed by the kingdom of Kassala (7th century BC to 5th century BC) under the rule of King Vidudaba of Bajojia dynasty (6th century BC). However, it is still an important pilgrimage site (modern archaeological evidence proves this), and it is still known as the birthplace of the Buddha, until King Ashoka visited and erected his famous stone pillar in 249 BC, thus establishing the name of the site. After that, many pilgrims traveled long distances to Lumbini to worship Buddha.

Among them, China monk Chengzai (AD 265-420) was the first foreign tourist to be recorded in detail, and was later called Faxian by pilgrims (AD 337-422) and Xuanzang (AD 602 -644). But the popularity of this place declined, and it was invaded in the 9th century. The site may still be visited by local people, but it was forgotten before it was rediscovered and excavated in A.D. 1896. Since the beginning of the 20th century, it has been one of the most popular Buddhist pilgrimage sites in the world, and was listed as a World Heritage Site by UNESCO in 1997.

Legendary history and the birthplace of Buddha

According to Buddhist classics, the Acropolis (or Tipadaha) was founded by the legendary King Ikshwaku, who founded the Ikshwaku dynasty. He is one of the sons of Shraddhadeva Manu. According to Hindu belief, the first human being was warned by Vishnu of the flood, built a big ship to save his family, planted seeds and animals, and seven chiefs (saptarishi) later became the ancestors of human beings.

Ikshvaku participated in many construction projects, reclaimed land-even Lumbini Garden, although it was speculative-and established a dynasty related to the later Sakyamuni family. He is consistent with the first leader (or king) of Sakyamuni, King Oka of Sakyamuni and his relative currier. Kapilavastu and Devadaha were ruled by two brothers of these clans respectively: Sihahanu and Anjana. The polis is friendly, intermarried, allied, and pure in blood.

The most famous of these marriages is the marriage between King Sakyamuni of Kapilowei (the eldest son of Sihanou) and Collier of Tipodaha (the daughter of Angana). Although Sudoku often exists in Buddhist classics as a long line of descendants of the king and the royal family, modern scholars think that he is more of a local governor or chief executive, although he is still an upper class and belongs to Khrushchev (warrior) class. The political system of Sakyamuni is oligarchy (one of which was elected to the ruling parliament), not monarchy (rule is passed down from generation to generation or another relative), so it is likely that more high castes in King Sudoku choose officials rather than princes or kings.

Lumbini was very mature when Sudoku King married his cousin Maya.

It seems that Lumbini matured at the breakthrough point when the king married his cousin Maya. For some reason, they had no children in the first 20 years of marriage. However, one night, Maya had a dream that she was taken away by four kind souls. They bathed and purified her in a lake (or pond), then dressed her, oiled her and saluted her with garlands. A white elephant appeared, circled her three times and entered her uterus from her right side. When Maya woke up the next morning, she knew she was pregnant with her first child.

Later, according to the traditional regulations, she and her entourage left Kapiloway City and gave birth to a child in her hometown of Dipodaha. They stopped at Lumbini to let the Mayans rest and bathe. After bathing in the pond, she took a walk in the garden. When she gave birth, she grabbed the branch of a salad tree and gave birth to Siddhartha. It is said that Siddhartha stood up and took seven steps to the north, declaring himself a messenger of peace and saying that this would be his final incarnation. According to some versions of the legend, Maya then bathed her newborn in a nearby pond (establishing a ceremony that is still observed today), while in other versions, a sudden rain washed him clean, while in other versions, he appeared in front of Maya in a dream bathed in the same soul.

The entourage seemed to have returned to the kingdom of Kapilowei, where it was predicted that the newborn would grow up to be a great ruler or an important spiritual leader. Maya died seven days after her son was born. He was raised by Pajapati, who was menstruating, and Sudoku King took her as his second wife.

The legend of Buddha and Ashoka

According to the legend of the Buddha in his early years, after hearing the prophecy about his son, King suddhodana took measures to protect him from any painful knowledge-which might inspire him to devote his life to spirituality-and built a courtyard in the Acropolis in Capillo. In the first 29 years of his life, Siddhartha was isolated from the outside world. However, in the end, these defenses failed, and the young man was exposed to the concepts of disease, age and death, which made him embark on the road of asceticism and eventually led to his enlightenment.

As a Buddha, he taught for 45 years. It is said that before he died, he suggested to his disciples that four places should be designated as pilgrimage sites for believers in the future. First of all, his birthplace is Lumbini. Since the 6th century BC, the excavation of this site has established the continuity of pilgrimage there. When the Sakyamuni people were almost wiped out by the overlord of their kingdom of Kosara, the pilgrimage seemed to be interrupted. Pilgrimage resumed during the reign of Ashoka and became more and more popular. He formally established Lumbini, and has since provided a well-known name.

Ashoka converted to Buddhism sometime after defeating Kalinga. About 260 BC. The Kalinga War was devastating to the defeated. Even if he won, Ashoka was full of remorse, gave up violence and believed in Buddhism. In 249 BC, he and his entourage, including his spiritual mentor, visited Lumbini and ordered a sandstone pillar to be erected at the site to commemorate it and his visit. He wrote an inscription on a 22-foot-high post and a paragraph in Sanskrit and Pali, which read as follows:

The love of the gods [Ashoka] King Pidas, who has been crowned king for 20 years, came here to worship and celebrate because Sakyamuni Buddha was born here. And because the Lord was born here, Lumbini village is tax-free and only needs to pay one-eighth of the products. (Lumbini column, 1)

King Ashoka also issued decrees engraved on rocks, pillars and other independent monuments in his territory to encourage the Buddha's foresight and send missionaries to other countries. Buddhism thrives in Sri Lanka, China, South Korea and Thailand, becoming more popular than at home and attracting foreign pilgrims to Lumbini and other places. Among them are China pilgrims Sangha, Faxian and Xuanzang, whose works are famous for their detailed records of their respective journeys in 10. AD 350-375, 399 and 627.

Protrusion and loss

Monk Cai's account is the first record of the lapis lazuli carving and slate of the Maya Queen who gave birth to Buddha, indicating that it was the Buddha who first put him on the earth (these two records are still kept on modern websites). According to the monk, the Mayan sculpture that was born under the Miluo tree was erected under the descendants of the original tree. At this time, the site (about 350-375 AD) seems to have been carefully cared for and welcomed by pilgrims.

Fa Xian's works (Dharma or Buddhist kingdom) will "become an authoritative guide for many pilgrims who follow in his footsteps" (Baswell &; Lopez, 298), and preserved many legends related to Lumbini and the birth of Buddha. Fa Xian wrote:

In the east of Capello Acropolis, there is a garden called Lumbini. The Queen Maya enters the pond to bathe. Coming out of the north bank pool, he took twenty steps, raised his hand and held a branch, facing east, and gave birth to a prince. When he fell to the ground, he immediately took seven steps. Two dragon kings appeared to wash him. Where they did this, a well was formed at once. From the well and pond where Moya bathed, the monks even kept getting water to drink. (Chapter 22)

Faxian's description also provides evidence that the site is still a popular pilgrimage destination, and ceremonies are held there regularly.

In 627 AD, Xuanzang ignored the imperial edict of Emperor Taizong (reigned from 626 to 649 AD), forbidding him to travel abroad, and began his adventure. Xuanzang's works are well known. His Buddhist scriptures were translated into China (especially the perfection of the Heart Sutra Wisdom), but he also made detailed notes on the websites he visited. In Lumbini, he recorded the damage of Ashoka's pillars and other monuments, and pointed out how many structures were in poor condition.

Xuanzang's account and the lack of other pilgrimage records or evidence at this time indicate that Lumbini's popularity declined at some point. This may simply be because Buddhism is not as popular in India as in other countries, or because Hinduism is popular again. In the 9th century, especially in12nd century, the invasion of * * led to the destruction of many Hindu, Jain and Buddhist sites. At this time, Lumbini, except for the locals, seems to have been abandoned and finally forgotten.

Rediscovery and development

The rediscovery of Lumbini is usually attributed to German archaeologist alois Anton Fuer (reign time 1853- 1930), but this statement has been well questioned. In fact, the site was originally identified in 1896 by former military commander and then district governor Khada Shamsher Jang Bahadur Rana (working time: 1885- 1887). Hada Shamsher was told that he had found an ancient pillar, most of which was buried underground, and reported this object to the Irish Indian scientist Vincent arthur smith (1843- 1920). At that time, he held an administrative position for the British in the area, and then sent Nepalese workers to dig. Vincent arthur smith already knew that Lumbini existed somewhere in this area, but he didn't know the exact location until he was told of Hada Shamsher's discovery, so he claimed to have found this location.

At this time, alois Anton Fuer is working in other parts of the region-although he may have done some work near Lumbini earlier-and then hurried to the place where he claimed to have found Ashoka's stone pillar. However, when he got there, Hada Shamsher's workers had thoroughly cleaned the pillars. Shortly after Vincent arthur smith announced his amazing discovery of Lumbini, he accused the Fuehrer of making fake cultural relics and submitted false reports, historical protection and antiquities to Sir Alexander Cunningham, the founder of the Indian Archaeological Survey (18 14- 1893), who was in charge of the excavation.

The Fuehrer admitted his crime, resigned in 1898, left the country and handed over his post to Indian archaeologist Poorna Chandra Mukherjee (also known as PC Mukherjee or Mukherjee, 1845- 1903). Mukherjee joined Cunningham's organization on 1883, but because most of his colleagues were white Europeans, he didn't get many opportunities to dig. The Fuehrer was trying to find Kapilavastu when he was humiliated, and then he took over the excavation of Lumbini in the season of 1898- 1899 CE.

If anyone deserves praise for "discovering" Lumbini, then Mukherjee was the first person to do detailed and extensive work on the spot. He discovered temples, sculptures and other buildings and revised the date suggested by the Fuehrer. Mukherjee's work set a standard for the excavation of Lumbini. Unfortunately, the later field work did not follow this standard. From 1933 to 1939, the governor of this area ordered a large-scale restoration work in Lumbini to make it a more attractive tourist attraction. I don't know what may have been lost at this time, but Mukherjee's main works have been preserved.

conclusion

Shortly thereafter, the Ministry of Archaeology of Nepal took over the site and was protected by the Law on the Protection of Ancient Relics with the name 1956. Currently, Lumbini is managed by Lumbini Development Trust, a non-profit organization that manages the website. Now Lumbini is 3 miles (4.8 kilometers) long and 65,438+0.0 miles (65,438+0.6 kilometers) wide. There is a huge temple center separated by a grand canal, which is divided into a seat of attendance, a Mahayana Buddhist school and temples on both sides. Water.

The Mahadevi Temple, Ashoka's pillars and other holy places are open to the public. In 20 13, British archaeologist Robin Counningham excavated the Mahadewei Temple and revealed the wooden structure below it. Its history can be traced back to the 6th century BC, and it is the oldest Buddhist shrine. There once seemed to be a tree in this world. Of course, the significance of this lies in the connection between Miluo tree and the birth of Buddha. It is believed that the ruins of Mahadewei Temple developed from this earlier temple.

Many different countries from all over the world built buildings in Lumbini to commemorate the Buddha's vision and devote themselves to the prospect of world peace and cooperation. Lumbini is one of the most popular pilgrimage and tourist attractions in Nepal. Although it looks very different from the Buddha's era today, it is said that it exudes the peace and tranquility that his mother is said to have. She experienced it when she stopped there and walked in the garden more than 2000 years ago.