India Tourism

Of all India’s states, Bihar is the one most intimately linked to the Buddha’s life, resulting in a trail of pilgrimages which have come to be known as the Buddhist circuit. The very name Bihar is derived from the world ’vihara’, which means Buddhist monastery. The Buddhist trail begins at the capital city, Patna, where a noteworthy museum contains a collection of Hindu and Buddhist sculptures. The Khuda Baksh Oriental Library has rare Muslim manuscripts including some from the University of Cordoba in Spain. 40 km away, Vaishali was the site for the second Buddhist Council as the presence of ruins testify. 90 km south of Patna is Nalanda which translates as ’the place that confers the lotus’ (of spiritual knowledge). A monastic university flourished here from the 5th to the 11th century. It is said to have contained nine million books, with 2,000 teachers to impart knowledge to 10,000 students who came from all over the Buddhist world. Lord Buddha himself taught here and Hieun Tsang, the 7th century Chinese traveller, was a student. Ongoing excavations have uncovered temples, monasteries and lecture halls.

Rajgir, ‘the royal palace’, 12 km south, was the venue for the first Buddhist Council. The Buddha spent five years at Rajgir after having attained enlightenment, and many of the remains at Rajgir commemorate various incidents, the hill of Gridhrakuta being perhaps the most important, as this is where the Buddha delivered most of his sermons. Bodhgaya is the spot where Lord Buddha attained enlightenment, with the Mahabodhi Temple marking the precise location. Bihar’s Buddhist circuit has modest back-up facilities by way of accommodation, international dining and surface transport. (For those interested in the Buddhist circuit, it may be worthwhile to note that Sarnath, in Uttar Pradesh, close to Varanasi, is an important part of the circuit, and has been beautifully developed. Besides the excavated sites, a museum here houses several Buddhist icons, among them the Ashoka Lion, India’s national emblem).

Giridh:
32 kms from Madhupur, Giridh is now a District Town of Bihar. Regular Buses connect Giridh with Munger, Dhanbad, Bhagalpur, Koderma and other places. Usri falls is only 11 kms away from Giridh. Tongas are available as the main local transport here.
Restaurants: Khalsa Hindu Hotel, Lakshmi Hotel, Sinha Hotel, Nandan Hotel, Padam Hotel.
Bar: Milan Bar
Club: Lions Club, Giridih Club.
Banks: United Bank of India,UCo Bank,Bank of India,State Bank of India.

Jasidih (29 kms):
An Important Railway Junction for Baidyanathdham Trains.
Where To Stay: Jugal Kishore Dharamsala - Opposite Railway Station.
Restaurants: Dinabandhu Hotel, Janata Hotel, Railway Catering etc.
Banks: Allahabad Bank.

Shimultala:
A popular Health Resort. Deoghar (55 kms) is connected by Bus.
Local Transport: Cycle Rickshaw, Tongas and Station Wagon.
What to see: Haldi Jharna (3 kms), Soikitia (3 kms), Lattu Pahar (2 kms).

Vihara:
An ancient land
Like in many ancient civilisations Indian way of life was also clustered around its magnificent rivers. And, few rivers of the world have moulded the culture, economy and personality of the people evolving on their banks as the great river Ganga. Cutting straight across Bihar from west to east, the bounteous Ganga had made the region so fertile and plentiful that its natural prosperity nurtured to veritable fountainhead of political and cultural civilizations down the millennia. And, the unbelievable range and quantity of mineral wealth buried under the region certainly helped. To this day, the coal belt in Bihar is the mainstay of thermal energy in north India. Bihar has 41% of the total mineral wealth of India. Here, kingdom after kingdom rose and fell, leaving their indelible mark on history. Rival kings fought legendary battles, devastating the land and people. Yet, by some strange alchemy, the same land saw the birth or maturity of some of the most gentle and progressive religious teachers like the Buddha, Mahavira and Guru Gobind Singh. Then came the Muslims, ruling with panache for five centuries, to be eliminated in their turn by the ever expanding colonisation of the English, who ruled till the middle of this century. Bihar today is a quaint interface of the old and new.

Hallowed by the footsteps of the Buddha, the fertile plains remain rich in farm lands growing paddy, cotton, sugar cane, wheat, maize, barley, jute and fruit. Bihar’s modern visage sports some of India’s largest steel and mining industries.

Arts & crafts

Bihar has its usual assortment of rural handicrafts of hand painted wall hangings, wooden stools, miniatures in paper and leaves, stone pottery, bamboo and leather goods and appliqué work. But Bihar’s most famous indigenous art is Madhubani paintings. Originally humble expressions of the sheer creativity of the rural women, this village wall paintings now adorn gracious city homes and are exported. This art is a strict monopoly of the women of Mithila. Done in primary colours of natural origin on paper and cloth, they narrate mythological and religious events. However, the ancient designs in bright colours can still be seen on the mud walls in the districts of Champaran, Saharsa, Muzaffarpur, Vaishali, Darbhanga, Samastipur. Begusarai, Purnea, Bhagalpur and of course, Madhubani the trade centre for this unique art.

Wildlife sanctuaries

Hazaribagh wildlife sanctuary – 107 km from Ranchi, February - March, October - November.
Palamau tiger reserve - February - March, October – November. 180 km from Ranchi. Lawalong wildlife sanctuary - October - June, 100 km from Gaya.
Mahuadanu wildlife sanctuary – November – June, 80 km from Daltanganj.
Dalma wildlife sanctuary –October - June, 10 km from Jamshedpur.
Rajgir wildlife sanctuary – October – June,102 km from Patna.
Topchanchi wildlife sanctuary – October – June, close to Dhanbad.
Valmikinagar wildlife sanctuary - October - June, 100 km from Bettiah.
Gautam Buddha wildlife sanctuary – 45 km from Gaya.
Kabar Lake bird sanctuary – November – March, 22 km from Begusarai.

Fairs & Festivals

In the true spirit of its multi religious heritage, Bihar celebrates its many religious festivals and fairs of great local appeal. Like most ancient fairs in India, Sonepur fair is also steeped in mythology and folklore. Today, it is a fantastic cattle fair, perhaps the largest in Asia. The fortnight long fair is held on the full moon day of Kartik (November) and all manners of domestic and farm animals are bought and sold.

Buddha was born, attained enlightenment and passed away, all on the same full moon day of April/May, Thus, Vaisakhi Poornima, one of the most beautiful full moon nights in the year, is celebrated as Buddha Jayanti.

Bihar being a holy land for the Jains as well, two major Jain festivals are celebrated here - Mahavir Jayanti at Parasnath Hill in April and Deo Deewali, which commemorates the final liberation of Lord Mahavira.

Unique in Bihar is Chhath Puja, or worship of the sun god. Most famous one is at the sun temple in Baragaon near Nalanda, where new paddy, sweets and fruits are offered in worship. Traditional Indian festivals of Ramnavami, Dassehra, Diwali and Holi are also celebrated with great extravaganza in Bihar.

The Region