BodhGaya Through My Eyes: Part 1

And finally the day came when I packed my luggage and decided to explore Bodhgaya- a place  where prince Gautam Siddhartha obtained enlightenment under "the Bodhi Tree" and became lord Budhha.

It was when I left Delhi for my hometown Muzaffarpur (situated in north-east of Bihar) with a thought to spend some quality time with my parents and side by side exploring my state which I never knew so well.

I had few options of places to visit and the more obvious ones were either the Valmiki Tiger Reserve in Paschim Champaran district or Bodhgaya in Gaya city. 
One of my friends once taunted me that I don't even know my state. How true!! I always wished to see the beauty of Kerala, Manali, Shimla, Goa and many more, but never thought to explore the place which has been a witness of my life's first 20 years. This realization was petrifying but served as an eye opener for me.

Finally after all meticulous, I decided to explore the easiest approachable place- Bodhgaya and wished to come back to spend some more time with my parents.

The Journey Begins

It was 19th March 2012 (Monday) when I woke up early in the morning to get on the bus by 6.am. and headed to Patna. After 2 and 1/2 hours of tedious journey, I reached Patna Junction from where I boarded  the Patna-Gaya Passenger train, which took another 2 and 1/2 hours to reach Gaya (1:00 pm). 

During my stay in Bihar, I stayed at three different places - Muzaffarpur, then few hours in Patna and now in Bodhgaya. And trust me, Bodhgaya was the hottest among these three because it is located on higher altitude surrounded by small & large hills. Summers have maximum temperature ranging from 45 °C to 47 °C. That's the only reason tourists prefer to stay away from visiting the place during April and May. I spoke with some local guys about the best season to see the place, they said winters are the most pleasant time as even monsoon (June to August) offer plenty of rain and makes the environment humid and sultry. So my suggestion, please visit in between September to February to avoid any difficulties.

Some Fast Facts About Gaya

Destinations between places -------------	Distances
Patna to Gaya City --------------------:-	107 KM
Gaya City to Bodhgaya ---------------:-	14 KM
Muzaffarpur to Bodhgaya -------------:-	190 KM
Kolkata to Bodhgaya -----------------:-	485 KM

In Bihar, one will find less transportation charge as compared to other states. Approx travel time & fare from Gaya Railway Station to Bodh Gaya:
~ 30 mins by taxi, approx Rs 250;
~ 40 mins by auto, approx Rs 150 

NOTE: Apart from private bus services and taxis, Bihar State Road Transport Corporation ( BSRTC) also provides bus services to Bodhgaya from Patna, Nalanda and Rajgir. Bodhgaya is at a distance of 74 kms from Rajgir which is another popular Buddhist pilgrimage destination.

Day One: Vishnupad & Mangla Gauri Temple

It was 7am on Tuesday and still scorching sun-rays; but not enough to kill my passion of exploring the city. There are several small and big temples in Gaya, but Vishnupad and Mangla Gauri temples are the most prominent ones because of its historical and mythological importance. So I decided to have their blessings and left my room.

 View of Vishnupad temple built by Rani Ahilyabai of Indore in the 18th century

I first decided to visit Vishnupad temple which has a very interesting story in our Hindu mythology in which lord Vishnu left his 40 cm long footprint after killing the demon Gayasura. In 18th century, Rani Ahilyabai of Indore built this 30 meter high temple which has around 80 kg of gold (shown in the below picture) at the top of its pyramidal tower which stretches up to 100 feet.

Top of the pyramidal tower of Vishnupad temple covered with 80 kg gold

When I entered the main premise of the temple, I saw a huge rush of people forming a circle and all of them were trying to touch the footprint of lord Vishnu. I too collected my nerves and moved forward to touch the lord's footprint and asked for his blessings.

After that I just roamed either and thither within temple premises and appreciated its beautiful architecture which added charm to its overall view from outside. When I went to the back side of the temple, I saw a desert-like field which was spread so long like a brown bed-sheet. I asked some local people and came to know that it is a river named Falgu- also known as Niranjana that is derived from Sanskrit word which means "without water". Yes! A river without water!! That's true, there is no water in Falgu river (except monsoon season), but the moment you dig just 4 feet down, you will see the water flowing underneath. Because of this strange nature, it is also called 'Dhongeshwari Nadi'.

I was enjoying every bit of conversation with the locals who told me several interesting mythological stories related to temple and its origin. After spending around one and half hours, I left for another prominent temple which holds high value - Mangla Gauri temple. This temple is built on a small hillock which is very easy to reach there without even realizing that you are climbing. There are houses on the both sides of the hillock which makes the way even more crowded. If you see the temple from outside, it looks like another normal house built by bricks with no temple-like design or architecture, but it does not lessen the historical importance of the temple in anyway. Out of curiosity, I did some research on its historical background and found that Mangla Gauri temple was built in 15th century and has been mentioned in Padma, Vayu and Agni Purana. Highly cited temple!!

If you want to visit this temple especially on Tuesday, either come at 5 am in the morning or take some extra hours (around 2 to 3 hours) at hand as it is over crowded on Tuesday. I had to wait in a long queue for around 2 hours to get into this shrine. Finally, my number came and I saw the breast symbol of Maa Shakti (the mother Goddess)- revered as a symbol of nourishment.

Day one ends with the feeling of purity in my mind, body and soul

I was very happy the way my first half of the day went. Visited two main temples and spent adequate time  talking to the local people who shared mesmerizing stories from our mythology.

I am equally excited to visit my nest destination Bodhgaya in the evening. Now it's time to regain my lost strength and rejuvenate myself for another beautiful journey- a journey to Bodhgaya. Keep checking my next blog where I will take you to the pious land of Budhha. (^_^)