Padmasambhava’s early
years in Lakhisarai Dist in Bihar India. This is the report I submitted to the Archaeological Survey of India
Padmasambhava, or Guru Rimpoche,
as the Tibetans lovingly call him, is the subject of intense debate on whether
he was a mythical or historical figure. The latter part of his life is well
documented by Tibetans. I mean the part of his life he spent in Tibet. What
makes his life story sound mythical is the fact that till date the places
connected to his early life in India haven’t yet been discovered. Until my
brother Ajay Singh studied books pertaining to him, there was a lot of
conjecture pertaining to his life in India. Three facts are clear.
Padmasambhava was born on an Island in a lake that went by the name of
Dhanakosha. He was adopted by the king of Urgain, or Orgen, sometimes mentioned
as Oddiyana. Most of his Indian activities and miracles took place in villages
near the country of Zahor where he made the princess his first consort. A
Shaivite king tried to drown him in the Ganges, but a young Padmasambhava flew
out of the water like a mighty Garoor or vulture. He was known as Kheu Khalding
Tsal. Tibetans seem to have wondered around India wondering where these places
could be and did some wild guessing. Educated Tibetans crossed over to India in
the latter part of the nineteenth century and early twentieth century and seem
to have read Samuel Beals translation of Huen Tsangs book “Si-Yu-Ki Buddhist
Records of the western world.” In this book, ‘Oddiyana’ is the second place
Huen Tsang visits in his epic journey to India. His original pronunciation is
‘O-cha-na’ which Beal deciphered as Oddiyana. Tibetans took it for granted that
was the elusive Urgain or Orgen mentioned in the Tibetan seven line prayer.
Oddiyana was never discovered as such a name never existed. So people thought
it was somewhere in the Swat valley or in the state of Orissa in India.
Similarly they searched for Lake Dhanakosha in and around the area of Swat
valley. Wild guess work was done and Lake Rewalsar was chosen as the lake in
which the king of Zahor tried to burn Padmasambhava. They did this because the
lake fell in the district of Mandi which had a verbal resemblance to Mandarva
who was Padmasambhavas first consort and the daughter of the king of Zahor.
Zahor remained elusive, and even wild guess work failed to pinpoint any place
with a similar name. Guesswork continued and Maratika cave in Nepal was chosen
as the cave in which Padmasambhava and Mandarva practiced longevity for three
months and attained the rainbow body. In short wild guessing by Tibetans made
Padmasambhava an unbelievable character who seemed to be flying around all over
north India parallel to the Himalayan foothills. Due to all this guess work the
Tibetan world failed to identify the eight manifestations of the great Guru. Until
my brother took pains to study Tibetan texts everything was conjecture. Ajay Singh
brilliantly identified Uren village as the elusive Urgain or Orgen or the non
existent Oddiyana, Dhanauri lake as the elusive lake where Padmasambhava was
born, Sahur village as the elusive Zahor which even wild Tibetan guess work
failed to identify, and Balguddar village where the Hindu king tried to drown
Padmasambhava in the Ganges where he flew out of the river like a mighty
vulture. This is exactly what Balguddar means. Studying the area between these
villages the entire Padmasambhava and Mandarva story falls into place. We will
start with Uren village.
(1) Uren/Urgain, Orgen, Oddiyana: (a) I will first deal with
Oddiyana. Oddiyana is a nonexistent place which is why it was never discovered.
I have noticed that Tibetans are searching for their holy Buddhist spots
pertaining to Padmasambhava along the Himalayan foothills because it is closest
to Tibet when the entire Buddhist story unfolded in eastern UP and the state of
Bihar. The word Urgain and not Oddiyana is used in the Tibetan seven line
prayer as the country of Padmasambhava or Guru Rimpoche as the Tibetans
lovingly call him. Then why are Tibetans looking for Oddiyana in the Swat
valley? The answer lies in Samuel Beals translation of Huen Tsangs book
“Si-Yu-Ki Buddhist Records of The Western World.” Samuel Beal translated the
book into English 170 years ago when India had no schools or colleges and the
whole country was illiterate. There was literally no educated Indian who could
help Samuel Beal in deciphering Huen Tsangs mispronounced Chinese words. So
Samuel Beal happily cooked up his own words according to what he thought they
really were. The result was none of the places Huen Tsang mentions was found.
This includes the elusive Oddiyana. Huen Tsang mispronounces the places name as
U-chang-na which Beal deciphers as
Udyana. It seems some educated Tibetans crossed over into India searching for
Padmasambhavas country and and came across Samuel Beals epic translation. They
homed in on Oddiyana which is in the beginning of Beals translation of volume
one. They did this because Oddiyana sounded similar to ‘Urgain’ which is the
name used in the Tibetan seven line prayer in thanks to Padmasambhava. The
truth is Udyana or Oddiyana is a concoction of Samuel Beal. Huen Tsangs
mispronounced ‘U-chang-na’ is some other name and not Udyana. If the name
existed the place would have been found. What is important is the Tibetan word
‘Urgain.’ Urgain helped my brother identify Uren village as Urgain. (b) Uren:
Tibetans have several mispronounciations of Uren. Some scholars call it Urgain,
some Orgain, some Oren. We can see all these are slight mispronunciations of
Uren. Geographically Uren matches the description of Urgain. It is in a valley
no doubt with rocky hills just behind the village. LA Wadell explored Uren 150
years ago and wrote about it in his report. He noticed a footmark embedded in
the rock which he mentioned in his report of the place. This tallies with
claims of ancient Tibetan scholars who claimed that they had seen the Buddhas
footmark in Urgain. Another important proof of Uren being the elusive Urgain is
the folklore of Lorik the giant Rakshas. This story tallies with Padmasambhava
defeating and banishing the Rakshas in and near Urgain. Recently a lady by name
of Claudine Bautze Picron did research in the sculptures found in Uren village
as it was littered with statues. She realized the village had once been a
factory for sculpturers whose creation was stylish. A lot of statues were
carted away by the colonial masters. What was left was either stolen or
preserved in the Lakhisarai museum. A lot were Buddha statues and many had the
five petalled crown which was worn by Padmasambhava. And finally the geographic
location of Uren village fits in exactly according to the description given in
the “Padmasambhava Rigpa Wiki.” According to the ‘Rigpa Wiki’ Lake Dhanakosha
was directly north west to Urgain. Exactly northwest to Uren village is Dhanari
lake with an Island in the middle. Dhanari lake is certainly Lake Dhanakosha
the Tibetans are looking for. And so is Uren village.
(2) Lake Dhanakosha/Dhanari lake: According to Tibetan scriptures Padmasambhava
or Guru Rimpoche was born in an Island in the lake of Dhanakosha. I will quote
Rigpa Wiki. “In the north western part of the land of Oddiyana, on an Island in
the lake of Dhanakosha, the blessings of all the Buddhas took form in the shape
of a multicolored Lotus flower.” Padmasambhava was supposed to be born in the
multi colored Lotus flower. We realize that Lake Dhanakosha was northwest to
Oddiyana or Urgain or Oren. Exactly five kilometers slightly northwest of Uren
village, which my brother and me have identified as the elusive Urgain or Orgen
or Oddiyana, is Dhanari Lake with a big Island in the middle. The reader will
realize Dhanari Lake with its Island and Uren village fulfill the geographical
description of Lake Dhanakosha where Padmasambhava was born and Uren village
whose king adopted him. Now why is Lake Dhanakosha known today as Dhanari Lake.
I will quote Rigpa Wiki again. “Moved by compassion of the suffering of
sentient beings, the Buddha Amitabh sent out from his heart a golden Vajra,
marked with the syllable HRIH, which decended onto the lotus blossom. It
transformed into an exquisitely beautiful eight year old child, endowed with
all the major and minor marks of perfection, and holding a vajra and a lotus.”
Now if we remove ‘kosha’ from Dhanakosha and add HRIH in its place, the lakes
name becomes Dhanahrih pronounced as Dhanari. The reader will now realize that
Dhanari Lake with its Island fits in perfectly with the description of Lake
Dhanakosha and its geaographical whereabouts.
(3) Zahor/Sahur: The third place the Tibetans have been searching
for and even their wild guesswork has failed to locate is, the country of
Zahor. They suspect it is the area around Lake Rewalsar in Mandi district in
Himachal Pradesh. This is because Mandi sounds similar to Mandarva who was the
Dakini daughter of the king of Zahor. However Rigpa Wiki states that Zahor and
Oddiyana were either the same place or closely neighboring regions. So Zahor
must be close to Uren village which I have identified with the country of Oddiyana
or Urgain in the Tibetan seven line prayer. I will quote Rigpa Wiki on Zahor. “In more recent times, Gendün Chöpel stated that
the kings of the Pala dynasty made Zahor their capital. Gendün Chöpel offers
two possible locations for this ancient city, suggesting that the ruins of
Zahor may be found either “on the banks of the Brahmaputra in Bengal” or “on
the southern banks of the Ganges near Bihar.”[17] Thus Gendün Chöpel connects Zahor
directly with the Pāla dynasty (750-1199). Given the time frame that Zahor
existed, based on the Buddhist scholars associated with Zahor this seems very
plausible.” The village of Sahur is exactly 1500 meters southwest of
Dhanari Lake and exactly six and a half kilometers west of Uren village. It is
north east of Bodh Gaya and south of the Ganges. This tallies exactly with
Rigpa wikis statement that Zahor and Oddiyana were closely neighboring states.
(a) We realize that Gendun Choppel is most accurate. He suggested that Zahor
may be a deviation of Sahora which he believes was the Sanskrit original word. He
states that it was somewhere on the northern tip of the Magadh empire and south
of the Ganges. Sahur village is certainly on the northern tip of ancient Magadh
and south of the Ganges. (b) Another proof of Sahur village being the elusive
Zahor is the villages from where great Buddhist scholars Atisha, Tilopa, and Naropa
were born which were in the country of the mispronounced Zahor or the present
day Sahur. Lotsaba Tsultrim Gyalwa, one of Atishas main disciples and the
author of Atishas earliest biographies, states that Atisha was born in a large
city in the country of Zahor/Sahur in Bengal, which is believed to be in
Bikrampur. Exactly eleven kilometers north east of Sahur village and four
kilometers north east of Uren village is Kajra railway station and town with a
colony that goes by the name of Bikrampur and Narotimpur. The railway station
was built in Kajra village so the word Kajra was superimposed over Bikrampur village
and Narotimpur village, and made them Kajras colonies. This happened because
the railway station carried the name and the area near it became Kajra town.
Bikrampur is Atishas home and Narotimpur will certainly be Naropas village. The
proximity of these two villages to Sahur strenghthen the latters claim to be
the country of Zahor. (c) Karma Ranjung Dorje in his biography of Tilopa states
that the latter was born east of Bodh Gaya in the country of Zahor. Sahur is
definitely slightly north east of Bodh Gaya with a village called ‘Tilakpur’,
which sounds similar to Tilopa, one and a half kilometers south of Sahur. (d) Gendun
Choppel further strengthens Sahurs claim of being the elusive Buddhist Zahor by
stating that it was one of the capitols of the Pala kings. According to Wikipedia the Palas had shifting
capitols in Zahor, Ramavati, and the clan started from the capitol of ‘Gauda’.
West of Sahur is Gadua village, which sounds similar to the Tibetan Gauda, and
two kilometers north of sahur is ‘Rampur Garh’ which sounds similar to
wikipedias ‘Ramvati’. These three villages are dominated by the Bharaduaj
Bhumihar Brahmin cast. An ancient Lama of the Jonang school of Tibetan Buddhism
who goes by the Sanskrit name of ‘Taranath’, states that the Pala kings were
Bharaduaj Chatriyas while other Tibetan scholars state that they were Bharduaj
Brahmins. This confusion is natural as the Bharduaj Gotra Brahmins were once
Chatriyas and today can be found in both Brahmins and Chatriyas. So Sahur and
Rampur village are populated by the Bharduaj Brahmins who claim their ancestors
migrated from Gadua village which has been mispronounced as ‘Gauda’ by Tibetan
scholars and historians and is also populated by Bharduaj Brahmins of the same
clan. If the Bharduaj Brahmins of Sahur, Rampur Garh (mispronounced as
Ramvati), and Gadua were the Pala kings, then their migration from Gadua tallies
with the historical fact that the Tibetan
mispronounced Gauda or Gadua was the first Pala capitol amongst the
shifting/migrating Pala capitols. (e) Lastly and most important is the
statement by Tibetans that the Dakini called Mandarva was the daughter of the
king of Zahor. Now we can safely conclude that Mandarva was a female Bharduaj
Brahmin, a Pala princess and the daughter of Zahor/Sahur. It is interesting to
note that that in the present day, the female village diety of Sahur, Rampur
Garh, Gadua, and a dozen other Bharduaj Brahmin villages near Sahur, is a
Dakini who was the daughter of Sahur village (they don’t know her father was a
king). She is known and prayed to as Dakini grandmother and is the reigning
village diety of the Bharduaj Brahmin villages in this area. This tallies with
Dakini Mandarvas story. For non Bharduaj Brahmins who pray to her she is known
as Maharani Mai (queen mother). After all, the Tibetans have proved she was the
queen of Zahor. All these facts put
together prove that Sahur is definitely the elusive Buddhist country of Zahor
the Tibetans are looking for.
(4) Ramvati/Rampur Garh: I have identified Rampur Garh as one of
the Pala kings capitols and the capitol of the country of Zahor/Sahur. I will
quote Rigpa Wiki. “A much later Pala king,
Ramapala (r.c. 1072-1126) ruled from Ramavatī (Skt. Ramavatī) near
Gauda.” In the Zahor section of this report I
clearly mentioned the Bharduaj Bhumihar Brahmins migrated to Sahur,
mispronounced by Tibetans as Zahor, and Rampur Garh which was also
mispronounced by Tibetans as Ramvati, from Gadua which was again mispronounced
as Gauda. Rigpa wiki also states that northwest of Urgain or Oddiyana, which I
have identified with Uren village, is the capitol of Zahor which is the present
day Sahur. Exactly six kilometers northwest of Uren and and two kilometers
north of Sahur village is Rampur Garh which I have identified as the Pala
capitol Ramvati. So the position of Rampurgarh tallies with Rigpa Wiki. The
village is on a huge mud mound which is why the word Garh has been added to its
name. Infact the mud mound rises up like a stupa with villagers settled on it
and on top of what looks like the stupas dome. The geographical position Rigpa
wiki gives on the Pala capitol Ramvati tallies with Rampur Garh and the former
seems to be a Tibetan mispronunciation of the latter. And it is south of the
Ganges just as Rigpa Wiki says. What further strengthens Rampur Garh as the
capitol whose king tried to burn Padmsambhava because the latter got entangled
with his daughter is because of the fact that the villages male and female
diety are Gobind baba, whom I have identified as one of the emanations of
Padmasambhava, and dakini Mama Mai (grandmother) who was the daughter of Sahur
village and whom I have identified with princess Dakini Mandarva. Actually
Gobind Baba and dakini Mama Mai are prayed to by half a dozen villages,
including Gadua. They all belong to the Bharduaj Bhumihar Brahmin cast who all
claim ancestry from Rampur Garh and Sahur and Gadua. So they are all part of
the Pala kings clan migration. And finally the village of Mano, which is one
kilometer east of Rampur Garh, is proof that the latter was a Pala capitol and
Gobind Baba and Dakini Mama Mai are none other than Padmasambhava and Dakini
Mandarva of Zahor.
(5) Mano village/Mandarva’s palace: In the Padmsambhava and Dakini
Mandarva story it is stated that the king of Zahor made a separate capitol for
his daughter who was a Dakini or a holy learned female monk. Exactly one
kilometer to the east of Rampur Garh is Mano village. There is a lake between
the two villages. Mano is definitely a short form of Mandarva. Manua or Mano is
a choice nickname which rural Bihar would give to their daughter whose name was
Mandarva. Mano village is certainly the palace the king of Zahor built for his
daughter as it is only one kilometer east of Rampur Garh which I have
identified with the Pala capitol of Ramvati. This village is populated by the
Bharduaj Bhumihar Brahmins who live in the section of the village known as
‘Dih’ which is on high ground. They are originated from Rampur Garh. This
tallies with the Mandarva story where it is stated that the king commanded 500
servants to become female bhikshus and look after his daughter. It seems the
bhikshus were all Bharduaj Bhumihar Brahmins like Mandarva herself. What is
unique about the Bhumihar Bharduaj Brahmins of Mano is they own most of the
land in and around Dhanauri Lake which I have identified with Lake Dhanakosha
and which is close to Mano. The name Mano is a short form of Mandarva. Short
nicknames for daughters are common in this area.
(6) Laali Pahar/The Copper colored Mountain: Laali Pahari is
certainly the elusive “Copper Colored Mountain” the Tibetans are looking for.
The ruins of a palatial structure on the top of the hillock is certainly “The
Lotus Light Palace.” According to the Padmasambhava Mandarva story, the king of
Zahor/Sahur realized Padmasambhava and princess Mandarva were entangled. So he
arrested them and incarcerated them separately on two hillocks. I have
identified the two hillocks as ‘Laali Pahari’ and Kaali Pahari. Both are
adjacent to each other and shaped like a shoulder blade with a valley in
between. Laali Pahari or the reddish (hued red) hill has the ruins of a Pala
era palace on its peak which I realized the Tibetans called “The copper colored
mountain.” This is most probably the monsoon palace of the Pala kings. Since I
have concluded Dakini Mandarva was a daughter of the king of Sahur/Zahor, I’m
certain the open cell on the western face of the hillocks palatial ruins is the
dungeon where she was incarcerated. It is natural that a princess will be
incarcerated within the premises of the palace itself. North of Laali Pahari or
the Reddish hill (Which the Tibetans call copper colored mountain) is Kaali
Pahari or the black mountain. I have identified the dungeon on top of the
hillock in which I suspect Padmasambhava may have been incarcerated. It is a
square dungeon cut into rocks on all four sides which has been filled up with
smaller rocks and rubble. A huge rock covers the dungeon like a roof. Local
folklore that varies says that a king trapped his own powerful general in that
dungeon and filled it up with rocks and killed him. He did this because the latter
got entangled with his daughter. Locals attribute the Muslim conquest over
India as a curse by that powerful general for trapping him. This story sounds
similar to the Mandarva and Padmasambhava story, only the Tibetans don’t talk
about Padmasambhava being murdered. So the powerful general may be someone
else. Laali Pahari certainly does fit into the Padmasambhava story of the
latter leaving Tibet for his abode on “the copper colored mountain.” Tibetans
say he stayed in Tibet for 54 years and went back home. Home was Sahur which
the Tibetans mispronounced as Zahor, Dhanari lake which they again
mispronounced as Lake Dhanakosha, and Uren village which they mispronounced as
Urgain. All these places are visible from the palatial ruins on Laali Pahari. Tibetans
say, the copper colored mountain crowned with a palace on top, is in
Padmasambhavas home area and he went back to that mountain. That means he came
back and stayed in the palace on Laali Pahari or what we call the reddish
mountain. The mountain is basically a conglomeration of huge rocks which have a
reddish or copperish hue. Huen Tsang, who came here in the seventh century,
called it the desert mountain’s because of the copperish hue of the rocks. This
is why it is called Laali Pahari or the red hued mountain by locals. The
Tibetans are looking for the copper colored mountain. This mountain is in
direct contrast with Kaali Pahari or the black mountain which is just 300 feet
to the north of Laali Pahari or the copper colored mountain. Kaali Pahari comprises
of a conglomeration of rocks which are dark grey in color. This is why the two
hillocks or mountains are named according to the color or hue of their rocks.
Tibetans don’t say much about the copper colored mountain except that it was on
an Island. Laali Pahari and Kali Pahari are surrounded by a number of lakes to
their north, west, and and south. Actually, it could have been one big lake but
land has been reclaimed with the help of mud filling. So now we are left with
several smaller lakes or ponds. The river Kiul passes to the east of the
hillocks that resemble shoulder blades in satellite pictures. The river name
Kiul seems to be a short form of the Tibetan word “Kheu Khalding Tsal,” which
is one of the manifestations of Padmasambhava. (b) Lotus Light Palace:
On top of Laali Pahari the ruins of a palace with six bastions has recently
been excavated. This is certainly the “Lotus Light Palace” that is in Tibetan
mythology. Basically Laali Pahari tallies with the Tibetan description of the
copper colored mountain. We must remember that after the king of Zahor tried to
burn him, a lake appeared and Padmasambhava was seen sitting on a lotus. The
king was stunned and gave him his kingdom and his entire property including his
clothes. So Laali Pahari or the copper colored mountain automatically became
Padmasambhava’s property. The palace on top of the hillock automatically became
his palace. It is to this palace on the copper colored mountain that
Padmasambhava returned after his 54 year sojourn in Tibet. It was natural that
he would go back home and no where else. Home was in what is the village’s in
and around Lakhisarai district. (c) The Tibetans say that “The Copper Colored
Mountain” is in the country of Camara. One kilometer to the north of the
mountain is the village of Kabaiya. Half of the land below the mountain belongs
to the villagers of Kabaiya. The Tibetan name Camara is certainly a Tibetan
mispronunciation of Kabaiya. This further strengthens my claim that Laali
pahari is certainly the Copper Colored Mountain. (d) Finally the mountain is
also called “Zangdok Palri” which means ‘Glorious Copper Colored Mountain.’
Zangdok Palri’ sounds similar to ‘Jaynagar Pahari’ which is the official name
for Laali Pahari as it has a village called Jaynagar at its base. Jay certainly
means ‘Glorious’. Further the first four letters Z-A-N-G of ‘Zangdok Palri’ are
found in the name Jaynagar too, only the J has been substituted with Z. Zangdok
Palri is certainly a Tibetan mispronunciation of Jaynagar Pahari because the Tibetan
word Palri and the Indian word ‘Pahari’ certainly sound similar. The Indian
word ‘Jay’ means great or glorious. So Jaynagar Pahari is certainly the
Glorious copper colored mountain or Zandok Palri. This also strengthens my
claim that the Tibetan ‘Copper Colored Mountain’ is ‘Laali Pahari’ mountain in
Lakhisarai town.
(7) Sansar Pokhar and stupa: Tibetan scriptures again say that
when princess Mandarva refused not to stop her interaction with Padmasambhava
and refused to leave her dungeon cell in Laali Pahari or the copper colored
mountain, the angry king took Padmasambhava and burnt him. But water appeared
and a lake was formed with Padmasambhava and Mandarva sitting on a lotus
meditating with a garland of skulls as a symbol of them liberating all beings
from samsara through compassion. They were freed from the cycle of birth and
rebirth from samsara. This is why this lake is called SANSAR POKHAR. One
hundred feet to the east of the lake is an adjacent lake which was previously a
part of SANSAR POKHAR. This lake has a stupa in the middle which can be easily
seen in satellite pictures. It is jungle now and people say it belonged to a
king and queen. We all know that Padmasambhava was king of Uren/Urgain and
Sahur/Zahor And Dakini Mandarva was the princess of Sahur/Zahor. The colony in
which this stupa and Sansar Pokhar lie goes by the name “Kiul.” Kiul seems to
be a Tibetan word or short form of the Tibetan “Khiu Khalding Tsal” which is a
name of Padmasambhava and means, “Mighty youth soaring in the sky like a
Garuda.”What is interesting is today Sansar Pokhar is still very important
spiritually. All immersions of Gods and goddesses take place her. There are
several other lakes adjacent to Sansar Pokhar which Alexander Cunningham
mentions in his report of Lakhisarai. He has clearly stated that some of the
lakes had the ruins of Buddhist temples on the banks. Unfortunately the banks
of most of these lakes has been encroached upon by locals and the ruins
Cunningham mentioned have disappeared. Tibetans have done wild guess work and
identified Lake Rewalsar in Himachal Pradesh simply because the lake lies in
Mandi district which sounds similar to Mandarva. We must remember Padmasambhava
got freedom from Samsara. This is why the Lakhisarai lake is called Sansar Pokhar.
(8) Bichway hillock and cave: Here we find some places connected
with the Padmasambhava Mandarva story. (a) The Cave: After Padmasambhava and
Mandarva come out unscathed from the stupa in Sansar Pokhar, a dazed king gives
Padmasambhava his everything. He gives him his country, his clothes and
permission to reside with Mandarva as both of them have passed the test of
fire. This is called in Hindi “AGNI PAREEKSHA.” He even gives Padmasambhava his
clothes. The robes and hat Padmasambhava is depicted in Tibetan thangka
paintings belongs to the king of Zahor/Sahur. It was after this episode that
Laali Pahari (red hued mountain) or the Tibetans elusive ‘copper colored
mountain’ fell under Padmasambhavas kingdom. That is why the Tibetans say that
Padmasambhava went back to his palace on ‘the copper colored mountain.’ From
Sansar Pokhar Padmasambhava and Mandarva go to Bichway hillock where there is a
lovely cave around fourty feet in depth and twenty feet wide. Here they
practiced longevity for three months and acquired the rainbow body. The cave is
full of rubble to the roof allowing a man to crawl around. There is a
possibility some termas may be hidden in the rubble. The hillock name Bichway
sounds verbally similar to Halesha. The inner walls of the cave is cut and
polished with passages leading away. The
roof is cut in rectangles four inches deep. So the cave was the abode of someone
important. I have traced the manifestation of the rainbow body as ‘Jakhraj’
which is the village diety of some of the villages in the area. (b) Polished
meditation rock: On the same hill face as the cave but at a slightly lower
level on the western side are two layers of cut and polished rocks. A third
polished rock which is smaller in size has a recession cut into it which I fail
to understand what it is. The lowest polished rock is long from east to west
and short in breath. On the western side of the polished surface is an
engraving of a beautiful lotus flower. Unfortunately local villagers didn’t
understand what it was and vandalized the engraving by adding a pot to the
lotus. The pot sculpture is crude compared to the lotus. We all know that Padmasambhava
was known as the Lotus born. He is always depicted sitting on a lotus. Infact
when they burnt him he was found sitting on a lotus in the middle of Sansar
Pokhar. So this is most probably Padmasambhavas seat on Bichway (mispronounced
as Halesha by Tibetans) hillock next to the cave where Padmasambhava and
Mandarva acquired the rainbow body. There is some writing on the rock face and
the sculpture of a man on the opposite side of the cave and polished rock. Near
the mouth of the cave there is an engraving of an elephant facing a stupa. The
elephant has the mandatory bells with a mahout on top.
(9) Jallappa sthan: According to the Padmasambhava story, after
Padmasambhava and Mandarva attained the rainbow body, the two decided to see
Padmasambhavas country in Uren. They went to Uren disguised as beggars but were
recognized. They were burnt on a pyre when a miracle happened. Water came and
douzed the flames and they were found sitting on a lotus. Everyone was
astounded. Jallappa could mean water dousing flames. If we break up Jallappa
into ‘Jal’ and ‘Lappa’. Jal means water and ‘lappa’seems to be an ancient
rendition of the rural word ‘Lapka’ which means ‘flames’. Finally the last two
letters of Jallappa, ie ‘pa’ could be an ancient slang for the rural word ‘kha’
which means to devour. So put together Jallappa means water devouring or
dousing flames. It is said that Maa Jallappa was burnt there inferring to
Dakini Mandarva being burnt there. Some people say she came out of the flames
alive. But Tibetans say there was an attempt to burn the two of them and the
two came out alive. This is what Jallappa means. I have two concrete proofs of
this episode. That is the main temple in the middle of the temple complex.
There is a life size statue of a male figure in the sanctum sanctorum. The
figure has plaited hair, a masculine body, with a child below him. The male
statue is holding a trident which is aimed at the child’s bottom. It is clear
that the man with the plaited hair is Padmasambhava who was then known as the ‘Shikhaband
Raja’. The child and the trident/trishul is the child he killed with his
trishul which is why the people of Uren/Urgain were angry with him. Brahmin
priests claim she is Durga Devi. Basically the statue is about 1300 years old
and prayer to Goddess Durga started only 150 years ago with the advent of the
railways when white collared Bengalis came over and brought their Durga Devi
along. Prayer to Durga spread after that.
(10)Balguddar/Mighty child like a vulture: Balguddar village is to
the west of the northern tip of Lakhisarai town. The village is settled on a
huge stupa which in ancient times was called Balguddar. It was here that
Padmasambhava as a young child went to stop a Hindu king from destroying
Buddhist holy artifacts and sanghrammas. The king thought he was a simple child
so tried to drown him in the river. The child used his power to fly out of the
danger like a mighty vulture. Padmasambhava manifestated as ‘Khiu Khalding
Tsal’ or the mighty youth who flew out of the water like a vulture.” This is
exactly what Bal-garoor’ means; the mighty boy who flew like a vulture.
Alexander Cunningham did extenseive survey of this area. During his
explorations he found a pillar with a human headed bird engraved on it, No one
knows where Cunningham deposited that pillar. Cunninghams report that he had
seen the human headed birds engraving is proof that this fight took place here.
Another proof is the Indradamaneshwar Shiva Linga itself. When locals dug below
the Shiva Linga they found a big lotus flower. Shiva Lingas aren’t found on
Lotus flower. This is a hint that it could be a Buddhist pillar. The pillar was
too thick to break so the king filled the place with mud leaving the top of the
pillar where he adjusted an ‘Argha’ or the circular drain that surrounds the
base of a Shiva Linga. When one fills a place with mud and levels it, it is
called Chowkana. Hence the village in which the temple is situated is called
‘Chowki’. I attribute the name ‘Chowki’ to the mud filling that hid the stone
Lotus flower and pillar base from the human eye. So Indradamaneshwar Shiva
Linga is certainly a proof of some fight that took place here.
(11)Singh Rhi Rhi valley: In the Padmasambhava story, the latter
was tutored by a Guru called Singh Rishi. In Tibetan texts it is stated that
Singhrishi ashram was in a valley. ‘Singh Rhi Rhi’ is certainly in a valley. It
is today a Dham and a pilgrimage spot. The valley has a stream flowing out of
the hillside that flows into a beautiful lake that has been dammed up. There is
a temple below the cliff with several sculptures. One is of Amitabh and another
is of six women and a male. The male is Padmasambhava and the six females are
Padmasambhavas five principal consorts and his wife Prabhavati. Inside the
temple are more sculptures with a brand new five feet high black stone statue
of the Godess Durga. This is a replacement of the old statue of Padmasambhava
killing a child with a Trishul, which was stolen. The Brahmin priest didn’t
know the Padmasambhava story and thought the statue of a young man killing a
child with his Trishul was Durga. So he got the stolen statue replaced with a
stone Durga one. Other than Singh Rhi Rhi’, there are many more villages and
places we can connect to the Padmasambhava story.
(12) Shitla Sthan or Shital Van: Tibetan texts stated that after
killing a ministers son in Urgain, the king banished Padmasambhava to the
dreaded charnel ground of ‘Shital Van’. Sital Van is a forest like what the
name suggests. It is also today a Charnel ground for adivasis or jungle folk.
Padmasambhava meditated here and attained supernatural powers after which he
visited seven other charnel grounds to do siddhi or meditate. They are Suraj
Raushni which I have identified with Surajgarha village, Bhairava which I have
identified with Barhaiya village, Nandnama village, and Sahur itself.
After analyzing these twelve points we can safely state that the elusive countries of
Urgain and Zahor are the villages of Uren and Sahur. And the much sought after
Buddhist lake Dhanakosha is simply Dhanari Lake next to Dhanari village which
is situated between Uren and Sahur villages. And finally and most important is
Laali Pahari in Lakhisarai town which is certainly the Tibetan Glorious ‘Copper
Colored Mountain’ the Tibetans are looking for. These places will prove
important revenue earning tourist spots equal to the importance of Bodh Gaya
because Uren in mentioned in the seven line prayer to Guru Rinpoche which is
recited by devout Tibetans every day. Elderly Tibetans pray that they may be
reborn on “THE COPPER COLORED MOUNTAIN,” which is simply the palace ruins
excavated on Laali Pahari. Tibetans believe that Guru Rinpoche and Mandarva
still reside in that palace. So please study this report and give a report to
“The Ministry of Tourism. Government of India”, and Bihar tourism department.
Thanking you, yours
faithfully
Ashok Kumar Singh
Mobile- 7004814370 
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