Rajgir - The Crown of Magadha Kingdom

Rajgir, the first capital of Magadha Kindom that later on became the Mauryan Empire, has a lot of tales to tell every inquisitive visitor with a keen interest in history. This city is not just mentioned in the epic "Mahabharata" but also finds a place in Jainism and Buddhism scriptures and has a cluster of attractions spread across 3 lanes- defining Incredible India. This tiny town in the remote part of India has more than enough to give treasure hunters sleepless nights.

Sone bhandar Caves is the ultimate mysterious challenge and more like an Indiana Jones moment in Rajgir. This simple looking cave could very well be your elite luxurious retirement bonanza. If only you could decipher the inscription on the caves. Legend has it that incredible amount of gold and precious stones are hidden here and cracking this code would be the key to this treasure. When Britishers failed the intelligence test of our forefathers they resorted to brute force by firing canon balls in the hope of getting their hands on the booty. Needless to say their choice was not a smart one.

En-route to sone bhandar is Maniyar Matt dedicated to serpent Goddess. This structure resembles a well and has some interesting images such as Ganesh with snakes wrapped around, a six armed dancing Shiva and a four armed Vishnu. Sadly though most of these images have been ruined.

Bimbisar Jail or barely the remains of it today. If not for the board by Bihar Tourism, this place left us perplexed as to what should we see. It just looks like any other barren land. However, we were told that there was an underground prison where King Bimbisar was imprisoned by his son Ajatashatru. The site for the prison was chosen by the King himself, over looking the Griddhakuta hill. This hill is believed to have been used by Buddha to preach and the King being a disciple of Buddha wanted this privilege.

Another striking and almost unbelievable yet a pretty convincing place that makes you question your own reasoning ability is Lord Krishna's Chariot marks left on a very hard rocky surface. There are two tracks that run parallel to each other for several meters. It is very firmly believed that these are the wheel tracks of Krishna's Chariot. We believe Hindu Mythology is completely factual or one hell of a grand illusion.

Head to Brahma Kund to experience one of the many hot water springs in India. This is one of the holiest Hindu pilgrimage sites. People strongly believe that the water here has great healing powers. The many temples around the hot water spring offer a very charming and serene ambience. We sat there immersed in thoughts losing track of time. The only downside to this place appears to be self declared pseudo priests and guides who offer unwanted advice and charge a fee. You will find many of them who may ruin your time there. It would be a better idea to stay away and not encourage such people as you never know how much they might end up charging you.

Vishwa Shanti Stupa is a breathtaking beautiful pagoda built on top of a hill and can be accessed via rope way or a tedious trek. The stupa is home to 4 statues of Buddha made of gold depicting birth, enlightenment, teaching and passing away of Lord Buddha. There is also a monastery and the views of the valley from here are amazing.The tickets for the rope way are issued from 8 am to 4.30 pm and keep in mind there is a one hour lunch break.  A round trip ticket for the rope way is priced at Rs 60.

On the way to Shanti Stupa stand the ruins of  Jeevak Aamravan, a residence cum hospital that was run by Jeevak Kaumarbhritya. Jeevak was a renowned physician in the royal court of  Bimbisar and Ajatashatru. He even treated Lord Buddha and there are accounts of his medical practice mentioned in literatures in Pali language.

There are beautiful tongas in Rajgir that slowly ferry people around. These colorful tongas were our best friends. They offer a package deal for most of the tourist attractions at a government set price of Rs 450 per tonga. However, if you want to visit attractions that are not mentioned in the package you will have to shell out a little more.

Rajgir is a very tiny town so most people prefer a day trip and hence this place offers very few basic stay options. Most of them are very old homes converted to hotels. Rajgir offers 3 very good stay options- Hotel Nalanda Regency near bus stand, Siddharta Hotel near Brahma Kund and Gargee Gautam Vihar Resort on the same road as Nalanda Regency. There is not a single 5 star property in Nalanda. Annapurna Restaurant in Nalanda Regency is the best deal to dine in the whole of Nalanda and Rajgir. They have a wide range of cuisines to choose from and serve awesome food. They offer excellent service and have a reasonably priced menu.

We stayed at Hotel Ratnagiri near bus stand, this budgeted place is one of the best stay options in Rajgir. This relatively new building which quite honestly is a rare sight in Rajgir offers compact rooms with clean sheets and soft pillows. Do keep in mind that there are frequent power cuts in Rajgir, this property has 24 hour power backup. Another plus is that it is walking distance from the railway station and tongas are readily available.

Another thing to keep in mind while travelling is though Indian Railways is a boon to a traveler, at the same time it can ruin your travel plans all together. Our train from Patna to Rajgir was late by over two hours, so do set aside buffer time to accommodate any such delays.

Mahabalipuram - Photo Tour Of Coastal Town With Rich Legacy

Mahabalipuram, fondly called as 'Mahabs' by locals rides with rich history, legacy and was mostly developed by the Pallava rulers. This town is mentioned in the Vaishnava Hymns written between the 6th and 8th Century. However, evidence such as Roman coins and pottery found here states that the town dates back to early Historic times. This ancient historic coastal town  buzzed with activity as this was a busy seaport and it was from here that Indian traders sailed to South-East Asian Countries. The mariners also called it "Seven Pagodas" as there were Seven Pagodas standing tall on the shore, of which, only one survived- the Shore Temple.

The Pallavas were renowned for promoting unique styles of art and architecture and this town stands as a fine example with its stunning rock cut or monolithic group of monuments and shore temples. 

The Magnificent Lighthouse with its beautiful tales of a bustling trade hub and a seaport.

Climbing the Light House to see the entire town, the roads, the sea and the breathtaking view of the Shore temple leaves you in awe.

There is a museum adjacent to the Light House which is worth visiting to know more about the port History. Deep Sea buoys are laid to mark shipping channels in the Bays and to prevent mishaps from rocks and wrecks. This Buoy was in use at Gulf Of Kutch.

The temples portrayed scenes from the epic Mahabharata depicting the Descent of the Holy Ganges and Arjuna's Penance. The story mentions Arjuna, one of the Pandava Brothers, performed severe austerities in order to obtain Shiva's weapon.

The following panel of Mahishamardani Cave depicts the battle where Goddess Durga killed the demon Mahishasura, who was considered unconquerable. The scene portrays Goddess Durga riding a lion in pursuit of Mahishasura with a bow and arrow.

The other panel of Mahishamardani Cave depicts Lord Vishnu in Tranquility State on a seven hooded serpent.

One of the many Cave temples in Mahabalipuram.

A village scene from the Krishna Mandapa Cave depicting their daily lives.

Varaha Cave Temples

The following panel depicts Four armed Goddess Durga standing on a lotus under an umbrella. This panel stands for victory over ignorance.

Trivikarma Panel depicting Lord Vishnu  overcoming the Demon king Bali.

The most prominent sculpture of the Varaha Cave is Lord Vishnu in his incarnated form of Varaha lifting Bhu Devi, Mother Earth, from the sea.

The Gajalakshmi Panel representing Lakshmi, the Goddess of Prosperity. She is portrayed with her hands holding a Lotus flower surrounded by attendants and elephants.

Lord Krishna lifting the mythical Govardhan hill to provide shelter to villagers from torrential rains showered by Lord Indra.

The Massive Natural rock boulder,  popularly known as Krishna's Butter Ball, atop a hilly slope is no less than a wonder. It does a perfect balancing act defying all rules of Gravity.

Trimurti Cave temple- This is believed to be dedicated to the three Lords- Brahma, Vishnu and Shiva.

The view of Bay of Bengal from the Shore temple.

The Shore Temple, is the only temple of a series of seven temples and the remaining now submerged in the sea.

The Pancha Rathas, perfect examples of Dravidian style architecture are monolithic rock cut temples.

Monolithic Five Rathas or Chariots dedicated to the Five Pandava Princes.

5 km from Mahabalipuram towards Chennai is the Tiger Caves.

Apart from the stellar monuments, there has been proof of many other monuments that have been submerged under the mighty Bay Of Bengal.

Lumbini- Land Of Buddha

"The mind is everything. What you think you become." - Gautama Buddha.

Leaving the mountains behind, we headed to Lumbini The Birth Place of Siddhartha Gautama, ideally the birth place of Buddhism. The Siddhartha highway that runs between Pokhara & Lumbini is a delight for any motorist. There are several ghat sections with views of deep gorges and the river Kali Gandaki for company. The road conditions are pretty good, however, do watch out for signage indicating landslide prone areas. Ideally, the journey can be covered in a day but it would be a good idea to stop over at the historic town of Tansen and check out the Amar Narayan Temple and Tansen bazaar. The roads from Tansen to Lumbini, apart from a few odd kilometers, are pretty good.

Lumbini, a UNESCO World Heritage site, is one of the most sacred places for Buddhists. The Lumbini Development Zone is home to the Maya Devi Temple, Ashoka Pillar, Pushkari Pond, and Bodhi Tree.

Maya Devi Temple- Legend has it that Maya Devi was on the way to her maternal home and it was in Lumbini that she felt labor pains and grasped a branch of a tree for support and gave birth to the Prince in 623 BC. Later, as a mark of respect, a temple was erected here which was renovated and a newer structure stands guard around the birth stone. In order to avoid waiting in long queues it would be a good idea to reach the temple early in the morning. The temple gates are open from 6 am.

Ashoka Pillar- It is believed that Emperor Ashoka visited this place in 249 BC and erected the Ashoka pillar in front of the temple. The inscription on the pillar provides evidence that this is the birthplace of Gautama Buddha.

Puskarni Pond- This is where Maya Devi had taken a bath before giving birth to Buddha. It was in this same pond that Buddha was given his first bath.

Bodhi Tree- This tree is considered sacred and is decorated with prayer flags. One can sit under this tree and meditate. The sacred gardens around the temple add more charm to the place. One can spot remains of virahas, stupas and layers of brick structures with some dating back to 3rd century BC which stand as a testimony that this place was considered a Buddhist pilgrim center from a very early time.

Every Buddhist nation across the globe has its presence in Lumbini by constructing extravagant temples/monasteries in the International Monastic Zone as a mark of respect to Buddhism and help promote Lumbini as a center for World peace. The most extravagant being the Myanmar & German Monastery. Also, do check out the extravagant paintings depicting the life of Buddha on the walls of these monasteries. 

Just a kilometer away from the main attractions is the World Peace Pagoda. It is an ideal place to watch the sunset.

It is a good idea to explore Lumbini by foot, on a cycle or a rickshaw. Take a walk around the village, meet the locals and feel reconnected with nature. The evening breeze not just refreshes your body but also your soul. A beautiful place to watch huge wet lands, kids playing in the fields, birds returning to their nest and the sun setting in the pink sky.

An abode of peace and tranquility, this is a perfect place for soul searching, meditating and spiritual awakening. This place is not just for the pilgrims but is truly a Nature lovers' delight. One can spot Nilgais walking around in the garden, it is a sanctuary for birds and do not be surprised if you see a lot of painted storks, egrets and many other birds welcoming you to the garden early in the morning.

We checked into Hotel Peaceland. This place is highly unprofessional and is a perfect example of how one "Terrible" experience can ruin the entire notion about the place. We stayed here for 3 nights and during the last night's stay we headed to the restaurant for dinner and were taken aback when the waiter asked us to come later as they were expecting guests. Though shocked, we wanted to be considerate and ordered food to be served in our room. Not surprisingly even after more than an hour there was no sign of food despite several calls. Finally, we cancelled our order. This left us questioning if they were expecting guests to arrive who were we then. This was a good enough reason for us to not recommend this hotel to fellow travelers. There are several other properties around such as Lumbini Bamboo Resort, Hotel Zambala.

With Lumbini as our last stop, we wrapped up our Nepal trip and headed to India. Hetauda would be an ideal stop over if you are leaving from Lumbini. It  has quite a few budget hotels and this would be a refreshing stop as there are good eat outs and markets around. We said goodbye to the Himalayan country and headed to our very own Incredible India. It looked like our 21 day road trip across Nepal just flew by at the blink of an eye. From here on, we continued to explore the Himalayan ranges of North East.

Next stop Darjeeling.