After Buddha steps

Route in North India and Nepal

Sangha Services offers you the opportunity of knowing the most important places of Buddhism in India.

Buddha was born, lived and died in India more than 2500 years ago. Thanks to the arqueologists' work over the last 150 years, today many of the places where he was are important pilgrimage places for millions of people from all over the world. Places full of energy that invite us to the inner peace and meditation.

Alone or with a group, organize your trip with us and come… after Buddha steps.

We will accompany you and give you the details. You can design your tour or make it with us.

1. Lumbini.

Birth place of Buddha in the year 563 BC. It is a World Heritage Site and is located in Nepal, near the Indian border.

In Lumbini you can find the Maya Devi Temple which commemorates the place where the prince Sidharta (name of Buddha before enlightenment) was born. The German arqueologist A. Futzer excavated the place and found the first footsteps of baby Shidharta and the Ashoka Pilar, build by this Indian king in the year 300 BC.

Inside the Temple park you can find the water pond where Maya bathed before the delivery. Also in Lumbini we can find different monasteries from many Buddhist traditions from all over the world.

2. Kapilvastu.

Located between India and Nepal. Here is the oldest Buddhist stupa dated on V Century BC by the Sakhya dynasty and the ruins of Buddha’s father's palace, the King Suddhodan, where Buddha spent his childhood.

This arqueological site on the indian side is known as Piprahwa.

3. Vaishali.

Vaishali is the place where Buddha met his first spiritual teacher, Alarkalam. There Buddha stayed 3 rainy seasons and founded the first women congregation or Sangha. Also in this place he delivered his last teaching before death, and 100 years after his death the 2nd Buddhist Council took place. A very interesting place for Buddhism.

In Vaishali we can find Ananda´s stupa, Buddha's relique stupa (from the 1stCentury BC) and one Ashoka Pilar.

4. Bodhgaya, Rajgir and Nalanda.

Located in the state of Bihar, these three places are very important for the history of Buddhism.

Bodhgaya is a World Heritage Site. There Buddha reached enlightenment under the Bodhi tree at the age of 35. After enlightenment, Buddha stayed 7 weeks during meditation practices at this place. The Maha Bodhi Temple represents the place were Buddha attained enlightenment, and on it is the Bodhi Tree. A place full of magic.

Also in Bodhgaya we can find the 18 foot Buddha, the Mahakala cave where Buddha meditated 3 years before enlightenment, the Sugatra Temple and many temples from the different Buddhist traditions of all over the world.

Buda de 18 pies

Maha Bodhi Temple

Rajgir, 80 km from Bodhgaya, is the place where Buddha met his 2nd teacher. After enlightenment Buddha stayed there 5 rainy seasons and delivered many teachings in the mountain known as the Vulture Peak, between them the famous Heart Sutra.

Also in Rajgir the 1st Buddhist council took place 6 months after Buddha's death.

Vulture peak

Shrine at Vulture peak

Nalanda was the first Buddhist University in the world. Built in the year 500 AC Nalanda was a place of study for scholars such as Nagarjun or Mahavir. In the year 1200 AC Muslim invaders destroyed the university and burned the library.

Ruins of Nalanda University

5. Sarnath.

14 km from Varanasi, Sarnath is known as the birth place of Buddhism, because there Buddha delivered his first teaching after enlightenment: the 4 noble Truths. In Sarnath Buddha stayed his first rainy season after enlightenment, and founded the first congregation or Sangha with 60 members.

Ruins at Sarnath park

Conmemorative stupa at Sarnath

6. Kushinagar.

In Kushinagar Buddha attained Paranirvana at the age of 80. There we can find a relique stupa of Buddha and the place that commemorates Buddha´s cremation.

At the temple we can find a statue of Buddha in the Nirvana position. This is a place of pilgrimage for the Buddhists of all the world.