Mahaparinirvan Express

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My wife Linda and I spent seven nights band eight days on the 'Mahaparinrvan' Special train that was recently introduced by th Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation (IRCTC), a Public Sector Underatking, under the Ministry of Railways. the trip, which consists of a combination of train and bus travel, transports pilgrims on a odyssey to some of the worl'd most significant Buddhist sites including Bodhgaya, Rajgir, Nalanda, Sarnath, Kushinagar, Lumbini (in Nepal) and Sravasti, the the Taj Mahal and Agra Fort thrown in on the way back to Delhi. Was it a worthwhile endeavour? Read on and decide for yourself.

Day 1: Depart from Safdarjung railway station for Gaya at 16:30 hrs; tea, dinner and overnight on train

We arrived at the raiway station with 45 minutes to spare before departure. We were treated to a tea on the platform where we interacted with IRCTC officials and other pilgrims/participants who hailed from Singapore, Japan, Sri Lanka and of course India. There were aprroximately 40 participants in all. Once onboard, we noticed that all passengers had opted for first class, which means a private airconditioned cabin with two or four bunks behind a sliding door that was lockable from inside. Dinner was of typical Indian variety and the bunks were very comfortable, thus ensuring a pleasant sleep.

Day 2: Arrive Gaya at 5.00hrs; transfer to hotel by bus; sightseeing of Bodhgaya; return for lunch and relax till tea time; depart for sightseeing of International temples of Bodhgaya around 16.00 hrs, return for dinner and overnight stay

Bodhgaya is where Lord Buddha attained enlightenment under the Bodhi tree. The complex contains the Mahabodhi temple with the diamond throne called the vajraasana and the holy Bodhi tree. the complex also contains an Ashokan pillar erected by Emperor Ashoka during the 3rd Century B.C. The sanctum sanctorum inside the temple contains a huge golden Buddha and a chamber at the top housing a figure of the Buddha's mother Mayadevi. Mahabodhi Temple was inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2002.
Besides the Mahabodhi Temple complex, Badhgaya is also home to several beautiful Buddhist monasteries. The Indisan Nipponji Japanese Temple houses a huge Buddha statue, while the Thai temple has gleaming gilded roofs and elegantly curved lines. Further, there are three Tibetan Monasteries and a number of houses of worship maintained by Sri Lanka, Bhutanese, Chinese, Vietnamese and Nepalese monks.

Day 3: 05:30 hrs, tea and breakfast and checkout of the hotel; depart for pilgrimage sites of Rajgir and Nalanda; lunch; back to the train at Gaya; dinner on train and depart for Varanasi by train; overnight on train

Rajgir is the location of Gridhakuta or Vulture's Peak, that is listeed in Buddhist canonical texts as one of the places where the Buddha stayed while in Rajgir. a number of major canonical texts, most famously the Lotus Sutra, are believed to have been delivered as sermons at the peak.
We visited the site of the once Tapodarma Monastery, a buddhist monastery at the time of Gautama Buddha, that was located on the site of hot springs. Now a Hindu temple caleed the Lakshmi Narayan Mandir is constructed on the site.
Nalanda is recognised as 'one of the first great universities in recorded history,' and and was a Buddhist center of learning usually from 427 B.C. to 1197 A.D.
Today Nalanda consists of ruins of the university enclosed in a complex with immaculately manicured lawns, hadges and flowers under the control of the Archeological Survey of India.

Day 4 : Arrive at varanasi; transfer to hotel by bus; after breakfast depart for sightseeing at Sarnath by bus; return to hotel for lunch and rest; 17:00 hrs checkout of the hotel and proceed toward River Ganga for boat ride and evening Aarti (Hindu religious ceremony); return to train for departure to Gorakhpur; overnight on train.

Sarnath, one of the four pilgrimage sites designated by Gautama Buddha, is situated about 10 km from Varanasi and the site of the deer parl where Buddha delivered his first sermon. the Ashokan Pillar, originally surmounted by the 'Lion Capital of Ashoka' was broken during the Turkish invasions but still stands at the original location.
The Sarnath Archeological Museum houses the famous Ashokan Lion Capital, which later became the National Emblem of India. The museum also houses a famous and refined image of the Buddha in Dharmachakra posture.
Gang Aarti is reformed every evening at Dasashwamedh Ghat on the banks of river Ganga at Varanasi. The river is worshipped with flowers, incense, sandalwood, milk and vermilion to the chant of Sanskrit mantras and the clash of cymbals and drums.
First the blazing camphor lamps and then the many-flamed aarti lamps are raised high. The ceremony was definitely a moving experience.

Day 5: Arrive Gorakhpur at 06:00 hrs; proceed to hotel at Kushinagar; after breakfast proceed for sightseeing of Kushinagar; lunch at hotel; afternoon free; chanting session led by Buddhist monks at 17:00 hrs; dinner and overnight stay at hotel

Kushinagar is a much-frequented Buddhist pilgrimage site as it is the place where Lord Buddha attained nirvana. We visited the Mahaparinirvana Stupa, which stands at the place of Buddha's Mahaparinirvana, and Makutabandhana, the cremation site of his body. A 1500-year-old image of the Buddha as he attained Parinirvarna is located close to the stupa.
The chanting session in the evening in front of an image of Lord Buddha an the hotel lobby was nice.

Day 6: Breakfast at 6:30 hrs, check-out and depart by bus for Lumbini in Nepal, lunch along the way; sight-seeing of Lumbini; depart for train at Gorakhpur; Dinner on-board and depart for Gonda.

Lumbini, in Nepal, is the place where Mayadevi gave birth to Siddhartha Gautam, who later became the Buddha.
The holy site of Lumbini has the riuns of ancient monasteries, a sacred bodhi tree, an ancient bathing pond, the Ashokan Pillar, and the Mayadevi Temple, where the precise place of birth of the Buddha is located.
Foreign pilgrims must ensure that they obtain a double entry visa due to the fact that they must exit and re-enter India during the trip to Lumbini. Oh yes, foreigners can obtain a free short term visa for Lumbini at the Nepalese border crossing point.

Day 7: Arrival at Gonda and depart by bus to Sravasti at 05:30 hrs; transfer to hotel; breakfast and depart for sightseeing; lunch at hotel; check out and back to the train at Gonda station; Depart for Agra at 17:30 hrs; dinner and overnight on train.

Sravasti was one of the six largest cities in Indai during Gautama Buddha's lifetime. It is believed that the Buddha spent 25 Monsoons or rainy-seasons here and gave the largest number of discourses and instructions.
We visited the ancient Angulimala's and Anathapindika's stupas, on the site of the Jetavana Monastery- the main pilgrimage destination, with meditation and chanting mainly done at the Gandhakuti (Buddha's hut) and Anandabodhi tree. Besides these, Buddhist monasteries built by Thailand, South Korea, Sri Lanka, Myanmar, Tiabet and China have been constructed at Sravasti.

Day 8: Arrival at Agra at 05:00 hrs; transfer to hotel by bus; Breakfast; 09:00 hrs check out and proceed for sightseeing of Taj Mahal and Agra fort; return to train; lunch on board and depart for New Delhi at 13:00 hrs' arrival at Safdarjung railway Station. End of tour.

Agra is home to the world famous Taj Mahal and the majestic Agra Fort. It was quite thoughful of IRCTC to include Agra on the tour. After all, some foreign tourists were on their first visit to India, and what's a visit to India without seeing the Taj mahal.

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