ALLAHABAD Another Indian city considered very holy, Allahabad is at a distance of 135 km west of Varanasi. It also finds mention in the Vedas, Puranas, the Ramayana and the Mahabharata, by the name of Prayag. Allahabad is located at the confluence of the Ganga and the Yamuna. The confluence, Sangam, is the venue of numerous sacred fairs and rituals and brings thousands of pilgrims all throughout the year. The city was given the name of `Illahabas’ in 1575 by Akbar. He also built a fort on the banks of the Sangam .
BODHGAYA Located in Bihar, Bodhgaya, Sarnath and Kushinagar are important sacred places for Buddhists. It is in Bodhgaya that Buddha attained enlightenment under the famous Bodhi Tree. The tree still stands in the temple premises with the magnificent Mahabodhi temple adjacent to it. The temple is built on the site of the ancient temple erected by King Ashoka in 3rd century BC. The inscriptions describe visits of pilgrims from countries like Sri Lanka, Myanmar and China between 7th and 10th century AD.
KUSHINAGAR About 51 kms from Gorakhpur is Kushinagar, famous for the Mahaparinirvana (meaning death) of Lord Buddha. The town, once celebrated as the center of the Malla kingdom, has many stupas and viharas dating back to 230 BC–413 AD. The Mahaparinirvana Temple houses the famous reclining statue of Buddha which is 20-feet-long and seated on a brick platform.
RAMNAGAR FORT This 17th century fort was the home of the Maharaja of Banaras. It gives an impressive view of the fort from the other side of the river. The museum inside the fort displays a rare collection some of which includes horse-drawn carriages, old motor cars, hookahas, costumes, a collection of minute ivory carvings, gilded and ornate silver howdahs (elephant seats), an astronomical clock, hunting trophies, a replica of the royal bed, vintage silver and brocade palanquins and an array of swords and guns.
SARNATH A major Buddhist centre, this city 10 kms north east of Varanasi was where Buddha preached his message of the ’middle way’ to nirvana. In 234 BC, Ashoka, a great follower of Buddhism, built a stupa here. Between the 3rd century BC and the 11th century AD, a number of Buddhist structures were built here. The Buddha Purnima festival is held here in the month of May to celebrate the birth of Lord Buddha.