A small village in Nepal, 27 kms from Sonauli on the Indo-Nepal Border is Lumbini grove, the sacred site of Lord Buddha's birth. Three hundred years after the Mahaparinirvana, Emperor Ashoka visited Lumbini and erected a pillar there. This pillar, though broken, still remains at the site. It is known as the Rummendei Pillar after the earlier name of the place (modern name Rupandhei) in Nepal.

How to Reach
Road
Buses ply up to the Indian side of the border,from where the passengers have to disembark and take another bus after crossing the border check post.

Rail
The nearest railway station is Gorakhpur 123 k.m. away.

Air
Nearest airport is Varanasi (323 k.m)and Bhairawha, Nepal.

        The Chinese traveller, Fa Hien, in the 5th century AD and other travellers and pilgrims were aghast to see that jungles had swallowed the entire place, and nothing existed of the scenic pleasure garden. Excavations beginning in the 19th century have once again drawn attention to this holy place. The story of Prince Siddhart is an interesting one. The heavens filled with light and the devas (gods), showered flowers on the young Prince Siddhartha who descended from his mother's womb on a lotus pedestal. The prince took seven strides in all the four directions and announced that this would be his last birth.

        Queen Mahamaya departed to the heavenly abode soon after giving birth. An old sage, Asita, prophesied that the prince would become a world renouncer if he ever experienced suffering. In order to avoid this occurence, Suddhodhana kept the prince in the royal luxuries of his palace at Kapilavastu, but to no avail. However, destiny had to took its course and Prince Siddhartha renounced his royal heritage and set off on the course to find a solution to end human misery. The Mayadevi temple and the tank nearby are part of the sacred complex. There are two beautiful panels in the temple, the older one in stone and the other in marble. Both panels show Mayadevi holding the Sal tree and the young prince emerging out of her right side. Just outside the temple is a tank where Queen Mahamaya had her bath before the delivery and it was also here that Prince Siddhartha had his first purificatory bath. The sacred site of the Buddha's birth is at the southern end of Lumbini grove.

        Excavations have revealed a series of rooms and a stone slab which is now believed to mark the exact location at which the Buddha was born. The place where the miraculous birth took place is today a mound that has been cordoned off for further excavations. Lumbini Dharmodaya Samity Dharmashala, a Theravada Buddhist Vihara, established in 1956, is just outside the complex. Built in the style of modern Nepalese temples, it has intricately carved woodwork in the doorways and windows, and colourful murals depicting events from the life of the Lord in its specious interiors.

        Dharmaswami Maharaja Buddha Vihara, a Tibetan gompa belonging to the Sakyapa Order, is also outside the complex. His Eminence Chogya Trichen Rinpoche and the Raja of Mustang established it. Every morning around sixty monks who reside here contuct the Tara Puja. At the end of September, two thousand monks congregate for the ten-day peace puja and on 13th December each year for the Mahakala Puja, which lasts for 10 days.

        A couple of kilometres away, a complex of monasteries is being constructed on a grand scale. Monasteries in the respective national styles of Myanmar (Burma), China, Japan, Korea and Thailand are among those that are being built. Also in the vicinity are the Lumbini Research Institute, which has an impressive collection of Buddhist literature, and a Museum.