Kushinagar

Kushinagar is a city in the Purvanchal region of Uttar Pradesh in India. It is the holy site of the Buddha Shakyamuni's demise (Parinirvana). Today it is an important Buddhist Pilgrimage and tourist spot. Biddhist tourist from all over the world visit this place.

Understand
Kushinagar along with Lumbini, Bodh Gaya and Sarnath are places directly involved with the life of Buddha. Lumbini was the place of his birth, Buddha attained enlightenment at Bodh Gaya is the place of enlightenment, Sarnath is the place of first sermon and Kushinagar is the place of death. These four places are known as char dham and are part of the Buddhist Circuit.

By road
Kushinagar is connected to Lucknow by the NH-28. Buses between Gorakhpur and Kushinagar are frequent and take around 2 hours.

By train
Deoria Sadar is the nearest railhead (33 km). Gorakhpur (55 km)is the nearest major city. Gorokhpur has a better connectivity.

Get around
The archaeological sites, museum and new temples are located in a short distance and can be covered on foot. Autos are also available but there are no fixed rates, so do bargain before you start the tour.

Historical Sites
The historical sites consist of three archaeological sites consisting of Matha Kuar (last sermon), Mahaparinirvana (death) and Ramabhar Stupa (creamation). The fourth historical site is the relic distribution site. There are no historical structures at this site.



New Temples
Apart from the archaeological and historical sites Kushinagar also houses several new Buddhist temples. These are constructed by countries with Buddhist presence and include China, Japan, Myanmar, Sri Lanka and Thailand. Autonomous regions like Tibet also has there temple in Kushinagar.

Do
Soak up the peaceful atmosphere, conducive to meditation and reflection.

Eat

 * Restaurant at Pathik Niwas
 * Dhabas near Mahaparinirvana Temple
 * Dhabas near Mahaparinirvana Temple

Respect
Wear clothing that expresses respect for the sacred nature of the site. Do not climb onto statues or other sacred objects.

Circumambulate (walk all the way around) the stupas and other sacred objects in a clockwise direction. Preserve the peace and tranquillity of the area.