Vaishali, Vesali or Vaiśālī was an ancient city located north of

Patna Patna (; , ISO 15919, ISO: ''Paṭanā''), historically known as Pataliputra, Pāṭaliputra, is the List of state and union territory capitals in India, capital and largest city of the state of Bihar in India. According to the United Nations, ...

in present-day

Bihar Bihar ( ) is a states and union territories of India, state in Eastern India. It is the list of states and union territories of India by population, second largest state by population, the List of states and union territories of India by are ...

India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...

. It is now a Buddhist pilgrimage site that also contains two important

stupa In Buddhism, a stupa (, ) is a domed hemispherical structure containing several types of sacred relics, including images, statues, metals, and '' śarīra''—the remains of Buddhist monks or nuns. It is used as a place of pilgrimage and m ...

s of

the Buddha Siddhartha Gautama, most commonly referred to as the Buddha (),* * * was a śramaṇa, wandering ascetic and religious teacher who lived in South Asia during the 6th or 5th century BCE and founded Buddhism. According to Buddhist lege ...

,Robert Beer, ''The Encyclopaedia of Tibetan Symbols and Motifs''. Boston: Shambhala, 1991. the ''

Relic Stupa of Vaishali The Relic Stupa of Vaishali is a brick and clay stupa built by the Licchavi king to contain relics of the Buddha. It has been dated to c.5th century BCE and is considered to be the earliest archaeologically known stupa. Since 2010, the stupa has be ...

'' and the ''Stupa of Complete Victory''. As an archaeological site it forms part of the Vaishali District in Tirhut Division. It was the capital city of the

Vajjika League The Vajjika (Pāli: ) or Vrijika () League, Confederacy, or Sangha, also called simply Vajji (Pāli: ) or Vriji (), was an ancient Indo-Aryan league which existed during the later Iron Age period in the north-eastern Indian subcontinent. Na ...

of Vrijji

mahajanapada The Mahājanapadas were sixteen kingdoms and aristocratic republics that existed in ancient India from the sixth to fourth centuries BCE, during the second urbanisation period. History The 6th–5th centuries BCE are often regarded as a ...

, considered one of the first examples of a

republic A republic, based on the Latin phrase ''res publica'' ('public affair' or 'people's affair'), is a State (polity), state in which Power (social and political), political power rests with the public (people), typically through their Representat ...

that dates from c.6th century BCE.

Gautama Buddha Siddhartha Gautama, most commonly referred to as the Buddha (),* * * was a śramaṇa, wandering ascetic and religious teacher who lived in South Asia during the 6th or 5th century BCE and founded Buddhism. According to Buddhist lege ...

preached his last sermon before his

mahaparinirvana In Buddhism, ''Parinirvana'' (Sanskrit: '; Pali: ') describes the state entered after death by someone who has attained ''nirvana'' during their lifetime. It implies a release from '' '', karma and rebirth as well as the dissolution of the ''sk ...

in , and Vaishali is also home to two important stupas directly related to the Buddha, the

, which is said to contain the ashes of the Buddha, and the ''Stupa of Complete Victory'' that represents the prolongation of the Buddha's life by three months when he was eighty years old. In 383 BCE the

Second Buddhist council Since the Mahaparinirvana of the historical Buddha, Siddhartha Gautama, Buddhist monastic communities, the "''sangha''", have periodically convened for doctrinal and disciplinary reasons and to revise and correct the contents of the Buddhist ...

was convened here by King Kalasoka, making Vaisali an even more important place to both Jains and

Buddhist Buddhism, also known as Buddhadharma and Dharmavinaya, is an Indian religion and List of philosophies, philosophical tradition based on Pre-sectarian Buddhism, teachings attributed to the Buddha, a wandering teacher who lived in the 6th or ...

s. It also contains one of the best-preserved of the

Pillars of Ashoka The pillars of Ashoka are a series of Monolith, monolithic columns dispersed throughout the Indian subcontinent, erected—or at least inscribed with Edicts of Ashoka, edicts—by the 3rd Mauryan Emperor Ashoka the Great, who reigned from to ...

from the 3rd century BCE, topped by a single

Asiatic lion The Asiatic lion is a lion population of the subspecies ''Panthera leo leo''. Until the 19th century, it occurred in Saudi Arabia, eastern Turkey, Iran, Mesopotamia, and from east of the Indus River in Pakistan to the Bengal region and the Narm ...

. The city finds mention in the travel accounts of Chinese explorers,

Faxian Faxian (337–), formerly romanization of Chinese, romanized as Fa-hien and Fa-hsien, was a Han Chinese, Chinese Chinese Buddhism, Buddhist bhikkhu, monk and translator who traveled on foot from Eastern Jin dynasty, Jin China to medieval India t ...

(4th century CE) and

Xuanzang Xuanzang (; ; 6 April 6025 February 664), born Chen Hui or Chen Yi (), also known by his Sanskrit Dharma name Mokṣadeva, was a 7th-century Chinese Bhikkhu, Buddhist monk, scholar, traveller, and translator. He is known for the epoch-making ...

(7th century CE), which were later used in 1861 by British archaeologist

Alexander Cunningham Major General Sir Alexander Cunningham (23 January 1814 – 28 November 1893) was a British Army engineer with the Bengal Sappers who later took an interest in the history and archaeology of India. In 1861, he was appointed to the newly crea ...

to first identify Vaiśālī with the present village of

Basarh Basarh is a village in the Vaishali district of Bihar Bihar ( ) is a states and union territories of India, state in Eastern India. It is the list of states and union territories of India by population, second largest state by population, ...

in the

Vaishali District Vaishali district is a district in the Indian state of Bihar. It is a part of Tirhut division. Vaishali is known for being the birthplace of Mahavira of the Jain religion. Hajipur, its largest city and district headquarters, is known for its ba ...

Etymology

Vaishali derives its name from

King Vishal Vishala () is a king in Hinduism, featured in the Ramayana. He is the son of Ikshvaku and his queen, Alambusha. He is said to have built a city called Viśālā, near which Ahalya was transformed into stone. He had a son named Hemachandra. The ...

of the

Mahabharata The ''Mahābhārata'' ( ; , , ) is one of the two major Sanskrit Indian epic poetry, epics of ancient India revered as Smriti texts in Hinduism, the other being the ''Ramayana, Rāmāyaṇa''. It narrates the events and aftermath of the Kuru ...

age.

History

Even before the advent of

Buddhism Buddhism, also known as Buddhadharma and Dharmavinaya, is an Indian religion and List of philosophies, philosophical tradition based on Pre-sectarian Buddhism, teachings attributed to the Buddha, a wandering teacher who lived in the 6th or ...

and

Jainism Jainism ( ), also known as Jain Dharma, is an Indian religions, Indian religion whose three main pillars are nonviolence (), asceticism (), and a rejection of all simplistic and one-sided views of truth and reality (). Jainism traces its s ...

, Vaiśālī was the capital of the

an Licchavi state. In that period, Vaiśālī was an ancient

metropolis A metropolis () is a large city or conurbation which is a significant economic, political, and cultural area for a country or region, and an important hub for regional or international connections, commerce, and communications. A big city b ...

and the

capital city A capital city, or just capital, is the municipality holding primary status in a country, state (polity), state, province, department (administrative division), department, or other administrative division, subnational division, usually as its ...

of the

of the Vaiśālī state, which covered most of the Himalayan Gangetic region of present-day

state, India. However, very little is known about the early history of Vaiśālī. The

Vishnu Purana The Vishnu Purana () is one of the eighteen Mahapuranas, a genre of ancient and medieval texts of Hinduism. It is an important Pancharatra text in the Vaishnavism literature corpus. The manuscripts of ''Vishnu Purana'' have survived into ...

records 34

king King is a royal title given to a male monarch. A king is an Absolute monarchy, absolute monarch if he holds unrestricted Government, governmental power or exercises full sovereignty over a nation. Conversely, he is a Constitutional monarchy, ...

s of Vaiśālī, the first being ''Nabhaga'', who is believed to have

abdicated Abdication is the act of formally relinquishing monarchical authority. Abdications have played various roles in the succession procedures of monarchies. While some cultures have viewed abdication as an extreme abandonment of duty, in other soci ...

his

throne A throne is the seat of state of a potentate or dignitary, especially the seat occupied by a sovereign (or viceroy A viceroy () is an official who reigns over a polity in the name of and as the representative of the monarch of the territory ...

over a matter of

human rights Human rights are universally recognized Morality, moral principles or Social norm, norms that establish standards of human behavior and are often protected by both Municipal law, national and international laws. These rights are considered ...

and believed to have declared: "I am now a free tiller of the soil, king over my acre." The last among the 34 was ''Sumati'', who is considered a contemporary of

Dasaratha Dasharatha (, IAST: Daśaratha; born Nemi) was the king of Kosala, with its capital at Ayodhya, in the Hindu epic ''Ramayana''. Dasharatha married Kausalya, Sumitra and Kaikeyi. He was the father of Rama, the protagonist of the epic Ramayana, ...

, father of the

Hindu Hindus (; ; also known as Sanātanīs) are people who religiously adhere to Hinduism, also known by its endonym Sanātana Dharma. Jeffery D. Long (2007), A Vision for Hinduism, IB Tauris, , pp. 35–37 Historically, the term has also be ...

god,

Lord Rama Rama (; , , ) is a major deity in Hinduism. He is worshipped as the seventh and one of the most popular avatars of Vishnu. In Rama-centric Hindu traditions, he is considered the Supreme Being. Also considered as the ideal man (''maryāda'' ...

. Vaiśālī is also renowned as the land of Amrapali, the great Indian

courtesan A courtesan is a prostitute with a courtly, wealthy, or upper-class clientele. Historically, the term referred to a courtier, a person who attended the court of a monarch or other powerful person. History In European feudal society, the co ...

, who appears in many

folktale Oral literature, orature, or folk literature is a genre of literature that is spoken or sung in contrast to that which is written, though much oral literature has been transcribed. There is no standard definition, as anthropologists have used va ...

s, as well as in

Buddhist literature Buddhist texts are religious texts that belong to, or are associated with, Buddhism and Schools of Buddhism, its traditions. There is no single textual collection for all of Buddhism. Instead, there are three main Buddhist Canons: the Pāli C ...

. Amrapali became a disciple of

Buddha Siddhartha Gautama, most commonly referred to as the Buddha (),* * * was a wandering ascetic and religious teacher who lived in South Asia during the 6th or 5th century BCE and founded Buddhism. According to Buddhist legends, he was ...

. Manudev was a famous king of the illustrious Lichchavi clan of the confederacy, who desired to possess Amrapali after he saw her dance performance in Vaishali. A kilometer away is ''Abhishek Pushkarini'', the coronation tank. The

sacred waters Sacred waters are sacred natural sites characterized by tangible topographical land formations such as rivers, lakes, spring (hydrosphere), springs, Water reservoir, reservoirs, and oceans, as opposed to holy water which is water elevated with th ...

of the tank anointed the elected representatives of Vaiśālī. Next to it stands the Japanese temple and the Vishwa Shanti Stupa (World Peace Pagoda) built by the Nipponzan Myohoji sect of Japan. A small part of the Buddha's relics found in Vaiśālī have been enshrined in the foundation and in the ''chhatra'' of the Stupa. Near the coronation tank is Stupa 1 or the Relic Stupa. Here the Lichchavis reverentially encased one of the eight portions of the Master's relics, which they received after the Mahaparinirvana. After his last discourse the Awakened One set out for

Kushinagar Kushinagar (Pali: ; Sanskrit: ) is a town in the Kushinagar district in Uttar Pradesh, India, east of Gorakhpur on National Highway 27, Kushinagar is a Buddhist pilgrimage site, where Buddhists believe Gautama Buddha died. Etymology Acc ...

, but the Licchavis kept following him. Buddha gave them his alms bowl but they still refused to return. The Master created an illusion of a river in spate which compelled them to go back. This site can be identified with Deora in modern

Kesariya Kesaria, also known as Kesariya is a town in the district of East Champaran, in the Indian state of Bihar. It is the site of a stupa built by the Mauryan king Ashoka. Geography Kesaria is near the River Gandak and Rampur Khajuria. The neare ...

village, where

Ashoka Ashoka, also known as Asoka or Aśoka ( ; , ; – 232 BCE), and popularly known as Ashoka the Great, was List of Mauryan emperors, Emperor of Magadha from until #Death, his death in 232 BCE, and the third ruler from the Mauryan dynast ...

later built a stupa.

Ānanda Ānanda (Pali and Sanskrit: आनंद; 5th4th century BCE) was the primary attendant of the Buddha and one of his ten principal disciples. Among the Buddha's many disciples, Ānanda stood out for having the best memory. Most of the texts of ...

, the personal attendant of the Buddha, attained Nirvana in the midst of the Ganges outside Vaiśālī. By the time

visited Vaiśālī in the early 7th century, it was on the decline: he wrote of it that "the capital is ruined" and "it may be called a village or town" (as opposed to a city).

Visits of the Buddha to Vaiśālī

Vaishali is well known for its close association with the Buddha. After leaving Kapilavastu for renunciation, Prince Siddhartha came to Vaishali first and undertook his initial spiritual training from

Uddaka Rāmaputta Uddaka Rāmaputta (Pāli; ) was a sage and teacher of meditation identified by the Buddhist tradition as one of the teachers of Gautama Buddha. 'Rāmaputta' means 'son of Rāma', who may have been his father or spiritual teacher. Uddaka Rāmaput ...

(Rāmaputra Udraka) and

Āḷāra Kālāma Alara Kalama (Pāḷi & Sanskrit '), was a hermit and a teacher of meditation. He was a śramaṇa and, according to Buddhist scriptures, the first teacher of Gautama Buddha. History Various recessions of the Mahāparinirvāṇa Sūtra and ot ...

. After the Enlightenment the Buddha frequently visited Vaishali. He organized the

sangha Sangha or saṃgha () is a term meaning "association", "assembly", "company" or "community". In a political context, it was historically used to denote a governing assembly in a republic or a kingdom, and for a long time, it has been used b ...

on the pattern of Vaishalian democracy. It was here that he first allowed females to join the sangha, initiating his maternal aunt Mahaprajapati Gautami into the order. His last Varshavasa (rainy season resort) was here and he announced his approaching

Mahaparinirvana In Buddhism, ''Parinirvana'' (Sanskrit: '; Pali: ') describes the state entered after death by someone who has attained ''nirvana'' during their lifetime. It implies a release from '' '', karma and rebirth as well as the dissolution of the ''sk ...

(the final departure from the world) just three months in advance. Before leaving for Kusinagara, where he died, he left his alms-bowl (Bhiksha-Patra) here with the people of Vaishali.

Jainism at Vaishali

The

Śvetāmbara The Śvetāmbara (; also spelled Shwetambara, Shvetambara, Svetambara or Swetambara) is one of the two main branches of Jainism, the other being the Digambara. ''Śvetāmbara'' in Sanskrit means "white-clad", and refers to its ascetics' practi ...

s state that the final

Tirthankara In Jainism, a ''Tirthankara'' (; ) is a saviour and supreme preacher of the ''Dharma (Jainism), dharma'' (righteous path). The word ''tirthankara'' signifies the founder of a ''Tirtha (Jainism), tirtha'', a fordable passage across ''Saṃsā ...

, Lord Mahavira, was born and raised in Kshatriyakund district, Vaiśālī to King Siddhartha. and Queen Trishala. According to

Jain text Jain literature () refers to the literature of the Jain religion. It is a vast and ancient literary tradition, which was initially transmitted orally. The oldest surviving material is contained in the canonical ''Jain Agamas'', which are wri ...

Uttarapurāṇa ''Uttarapurāṇa'' is a Jain text composed by ''Acharya'' Gunabhadra in the 9th century CE. According to the Digambara ''Uttarapurana'' text, Mahavira was born in Kundpur in the Kingdom of the Videhas Videha ( Prākrit: ; Pāli: ; San ...

'', King Chetaka ruled as a

Republic A republic, based on the Latin phrase ''res publica'' ('public affair' or 'people's affair'), is a State (polity), state in which Power (social and political), political power rests with the public (people), typically through their Representat ...

President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Film and television *'' Præsident ...

in Vaishali and was a famous and complaisant king. He is mentioned as a staunch follower of

. According to the text, Chetaka had ten sons and seven daughters. His sister Priyakarini (also known as Trishala) was married to Siddhartha. His daughter Chellana married

Shrenik Bimbisāra (in Buddhist tradition) or Shrenika () and Seniya () in the Jain histories ( or ) was the King of Magadha (V. K. Agnihotri (ed.), ''Indian History''. Allied Publishers, New Delhi 262010p. 166f. or ) and belonged to the Haryanka dy ...

(also known as

Bimbisara Bimbisāra (in Buddhist tradition) or Shrenika () and Seniya () in the Jain histories ( or ) was the King of Magadha (V. K. Agnihotri (ed.), ''Indian History''. Allied Publishers, New Delhi 262010p. 166f. or ) and belonged to the Haryanka d ...

). As per Indologist

Hermann Jacobi Hermann Georg Jacobi (11 February 1850 – 19 October 1937) was an eminent German Indologist. Education Jacobi was born in Köln (Cologne) on 11 February 1850. He was educated in the gymnasium of Cologne and then went to the University of Be ...

, Vardhaman Mahavira's mother Trishala was sister of King Chetaka. Vaiśālī was also the residence of Kandaramasuka and Pātikaputta.

Notable Buddhist sites in Vaishali

Relic stupa

Near the coronation tank is Stupa 1 or the Relic Stupa. Here the Licchavis reverentially encased one of the eight portions of the Master's relics, which they received after the Mahaparinirvana. After his last discourse the Buddha set out for

, but the Licchavis kept following him. The Buddha gave them his alms bowl but they still refused to return. He then created an illusion of a river in spate which compelled them to go back. This site can be identified with Deora in modern

village, where

later built a stupa. As per recent research, the relic stupa is potentially one of the earliest archaeologically known stupas.

Kutagarasala Vihara

Kutagarasala Vihara is the monastery where Buddha most frequently stayed while visiting Vaiśālī. It is located 3 kilometres from the relic Stupa, and on its ground can be found the Ānanda Stupa, with an Asokan pillar in very good condition (perhaps the only complete Asokan pillar left standing), and an ancient pond.

Coronation Tank

A few hundred

metres The metre (or meter in US spelling; symbol: m) is the base unit of length in the International System of Units (SI). Since 2019, the metre has been defined as the length of the path travelled by light in vacuum during a time interval of of ...

from the Relic Stupa is Abhishek Pushkarini, the coronation tank. The sacred waters of the tank anointed the elected representatives of Vaiśālī.

World Peace Pagoda

Next to the coronation tank stands the Japanese temple and the ''Viśvā Śānti Stūpa'' ( World Peace Pagoda) built by the Japanese

Nichiren Buddhist Nichiren Buddhism (), also known as ''Hokkeshū'' (, meaning ''Lotus Sect''), is a branch of Mahayana Buddhism based on the teachings of the 13th-century Japanese Buddhist priest Nichiren (1222–1282) and is one of the Kamakura period schools ...

sect Nipponzan-Myōhōji. A small part of the Buddha's relics found in Vaiśālī have been enshrined in the foundation and in the chhatra of the Stupa. The Vaishali Museum was established in 1971 by the Archaeological Survey of India to preserve and display the antiquities found during the exploration of sites around ancient Vaishali.

Recent development

*In February 2019, Chief Minister of Bihar

Nitish Kumar Nitish Kumar (born 1 March 1951) is an Indian politician who has been serving as the 22nd chief minister of Bihar since 22 February 2015, having previously held the office from 2005 to 2014 and for a short period in 2000. He is Bihar's longest ...

laid the foundation stone of Buddha Samyak Darshan Museum and Memorial Stupa to house

relics. *In September 2020, Prime Minister of India

Narendra Modi Narendra Damodardas Modi (born 17 September 1950) is an Indian politician who has served as the Prime Minister of India, prime minister of India since 2014. Modi was the chief minister of Gujarat from 2001 to 2014 and is the Member of Par ...

inaugurated the Vaishali Railway station. This rail line now connects the city with

Hajipur Hajipur ( , ) is the headquarters and largest city of Vaishali district of the state of Bihar in India. Hajipur is the 16th most populous city of Bihar, besides being the second-fastest developing city, next to Patna. It had a total population ...

and

Historical figures from Vaishali

Mahavira Mahavira (Devanagari: महावीर, ), also known as Vardhamana (Devanagari: वर्धमान, ), was the 24th ''Tirthankara'' (Supreme Preacher and Ford Maker) of Jainism. Although the dates and most historical details of his lif ...

, the 24th

of Jainism. Born into a royal

kshatriya Kshatriya () (from Sanskrit ''kṣatra'', "rule, authority"; also called Rajanya) is one of the four varnas (social orders) of Hindu society and is associated with the warrior aristocracy. The Sanskrit term ''kṣatriyaḥ'' is used in the con ...

family in what is now

Vaishali district Vaishali district is a district in the Indian state of Bihar. It is a part of Tirhut division. Vaishali is known for being the birthplace of Mahavira of the Jain religion. Hajipur, its largest city and district headquarters, is known for its ba ...

of Bihar. He abandoned all worldly possessions at the age of 30 and became an ascetic. He is considered a slightly older contemporary of the Buddha. *

Chetaka Chetaka (Sanskrit: ) or Chedaga (Sanskrit: ) was the consul (''gana mukhya'') of the Licchavi republic during the 5th century BCE. Life Ceṭaka was the son of Keka and Yaśomatī, he belonged to the Haihaya clan and he had a sister named T ...

, King and ruler of the

which had its capital in Vaishali. *

Vimalakirti Vimalakīrti ( ' "stainless, undefiled" + ' "fame, glory, reputation") is a bodhisattva and the central figure in the ',Vimalakirti Sutra The ''Vimalakīrti Nirdeśa'' (Devanagari: विमलकीर्तिनिर्देश) (sometimes referred to as the ''Vimalakīrti Sūtra'' or ''Vimalakīrti Nirdeśa Sūtra'') is a Buddhist text which centers on a lay Buddhist medita ...

and a lay practitioner of Buddhism. *

Gayadhara Gayadhara (d. 1103 CE) was an 11th century History of Buddhism in India, Indian Buddhist master and scholar and one of teachers who spread the Lamdre doctrine in Tibet from which he was instructed by the teacher, Virupa. He was also the teacher of ...

, 11th century Buddhist master and scholar

References

External links

{{Tourist sites in Bihar __FORCETOC__ Buddhist pilgrimage sites in India Ancient Indian cities Former populated places in India History of Bihar Archaeological sites in Bihar Former capital cities in India Buddhist sites in Bihar Jain temples in Bihar Hindu pilgrimage sites in India Hindu holy cities Mauryan art Edicts of Ashoka Indo-Aryan archaeological sites Vaishali district Vajjika League Licchavis