| This one day tour takes
you to the major Buddhist stupas and
monasteries of the valley. Buddhism
and Hinduism are the two main religion
of Nepal though one cannot be distinguished
from the other in many cases. Though
essentially a Hindu country, both the
religion are practiced and believed
equally. Buddhism mainly deals with
spirituality and is believed to have
emerged in the 6th century B.C. The
founder of Buddhism, Buddha or 'The
enlightened one' was born around 543
B.C. near Lumbini, Nepal. Though born
as a prince he soon abandoned the lavish
lifestyle and roamed from place to place
searching for the answers to the questions
he had about life and death. He became
enlightened one day while meditating
under a pipal tree near Benares, India.
Buddha's teachings are mainly the "Four
noble truths" and the "Eight
fold path". Buddhism teaches that
all life is a suffering. We suffer because
of our sensual desires. We can get rid
of these sufferings and attain Nirvana
or the extinction of 'self' only by
following the 'Eight fold path'. But
one must go through a series of rebirths
in this world of sufferings. And our
Karma or our deed in this life decides
what we will have to go through the
next life. His teachings were spread
far and wide by his disciples and his
followers, the most famous of them being
the great emperor Ashoka. The Ashokan
stupas found in Nepal are the evidence
of the emperor's visit to Nepal especially
in Lumbini where there is a pillar marking
the emperor's visit to the birth place
of Buddha.
We start from the stupas of Kathmandu
city. We start with an early morning
drive to the great stupa of Swayambhunath
. Situated on a hilltop and believed
to be 2,500yrs old, this stupa with
the all seeing conspicuous eyes of
the Buddha, a symbol of universal
peace and unity, is the most recognized
and revered of all. The morning at
the Swayambhunath is particularly
important because people regardless
of their caste and creed come here
to offer their prayers. The sounds
of the rolling prayer wheels and the
dazzling effect of the flickering
butter lamps makes us get in touch
with our spiritual side. There are
people everywhere, some for praying,
others to watch the sun peacefully
rise over the horizon and then there
are people who jog up to the top and
enjoy a physical as well as a spiritual
work out. Then there are the natural
entertainers who never fail to make
you smile- the famous monkeys of Swayambhunath
whom you will find everywhere are
always ready for a mischief. We leave
Swayambhunath and after the breakfast,
we drive to the another famous stupa
of the valley, the Bodhnath which
is the largest stupa of Nepal. It
is a site of pilgrimage for the Tibetan
Buddhists who come here from as far
as Bhutan and India at the start of
Tibetan New year to watch Lamas performing
the year opening rites. The sense
of peace around here is immense. The
flickering butter lamps, the fluttering
prayer flags and the rolling prayer
wheels can easily touch the spiritual
side that all of us have.
We stop for a traditional Nepali
lunch. After that we drive to the
south of Kathmandu i.e. the city of
Patan also known as one of the oldest
Buddhist cities of the world. It is
the center of Newari Buddhist religion
and also the center for the superb
works of arts and architecture that
contributed Patan to be also known
as 'The city of Fine arts'. We visit
the famous Rato Machhendranath temple
which is the home of the god Rato
or the red Machhendra, the god of
rain and plenty and a popular tantric
expression of god Avalokiteshwara.
Though a Buddhist god he is also worshipped
by the Hindus as the God Shiva. This
is the reason why a Nepali is as much
a Buddhist as a Hindu. The biggest
festival of Patan happens to be the
parade of the god in a chariot which
concludes with the chariot taken to
the southern entrance of Patan called
Jawalakhel. From here we go to the
Maha Baudha or the 'temple of thousand
Buddhas'. This architectural masterpiece
built in Shikhara style is entirely
covered by the terra-cotta plaques
depicting the Buddha. From here we
go to the 'Golden temple' otherwise
known as Kwa Bahal or the Hirana Varna
Mahavihar. Within the shrine are many
images of Buddha and Avalokiteshwara.
This Buddhist monastery is one of
a kind in beauty as well as in craftsmanship.
From patan we drive further to Bungamati,
a small town lying south of Patan.
The road from Patan to Bungamatri
is very picturesque with terraced
rice fields, open ponds and small
votive chaityas along the road.This
is the original home of god Rato Machhendranath
who resides in a beautiful Shikhara-style
temple. There is a custom of leaving
the Rato machhendra in Bungamati during
the winter months and the rest of
the time in Patan where he has a second
residence.
From here we drive to the third city
of the valley which is Bhaktapur.
Though Bhaktapur isn't essentially
a Buddhist city but here too we can
find many Buddhist shrines. The Dattatraya
square or the Tachupal Tole is the
oldest part of Bhaktapur and the center
for the ornate monasteries known as
Maths, the most famous being the Pujari
Math. These maths are known for their
excellent woodwork and their beautifully
embellished peacock windows. We then
drive back to Kathmandu. We conclude
this trip with a dinner at a traditional
Nepali restaurant accompanied by Nepali
folk dance and music.
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