Mahaparinirvana Sutra 

Ref: Proof that the Buddha died in Raxaul in north Bihar and not in Khushinagar. I am attaching the link of a youtube video showing all the places he visited in satellite maps. Heres the link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RUHSlGNK7ns&t=39s

       Sir,

         This is to inform you that I have successfully pinpointed all the places the Buddha stayed in his last journey in the Mahaparinirvana story from Gridh Kuta to Khutwajabdi in Birgunj where he was cremated. My source is the “Maha-parinibbana sutta: Last days of the Buddha (translated from the Pali by sister Vajira &Francis Story). I will start from Giriak in Rajgir. What is important is the Buddha definitely didn’t die in Khushinagar. He died in Raxaul in Bihar. Please study this report and move the Bihar Government to lay claim for Raxaul as the spot of the Buddhas mahaparinirvana.

          (a) Giriak/Ki-li-tho-kiu-cha (Ghridhrakuta) Khirkiya: The Mahaparinirvana story starts from the Gridhakuta mountain. Unfortunately there was no mountain by that name. I will quote page 152 last para where Huen Tsang writes, “To the north east of the palace city going 14 or 15 li, we come to the mountain of Gridhrakuta (Ki-li-tho-kiu-cha). Touching the northern slope of the southern mountain, it rises as a solitary peak to a great height, on which vultures make their abode. It appears like a high tower on which the azure tints of light are reflected.” I now realize the villages adjacent to the mountain gave its name to it. The village of Giriak is just below the mountain. The following are the places that should be found on that mountain. (a) There should be Bimbisaras stairs 10 paces (25 ft wide) and 6 li’s long. There should be two stupas up those steps. (b) The mountains summit should be long from east to west and narrow from north to south with a brick vihara on the western side of the mountain. (c) To the east of the vihara is a long stone. All these places can be found on a mountain by the name of Giriak. Huen Tsang mispronounces it as “Kie-li-tho-Kiu-cha” which Samuel Beal deciphers as ‘Gridhrakuta’. This is clearly guess work. Huen Tsangs ‘Kie-li-tho-kiu-cha’ sounds very similar to the name of a cave on the mountain which the locals call ‘Khirkiya’. Huen Tsang says that vultures hovered around which is why Samuel Beal calls it the vultures peak. It is from Giriak mountain and Khirkiya cave that the Buddha starts his Mahaparinirvana journey. From here he goes to Ghora Katora village.

           (b) Ghora Katora/Kiu-she-kie-lo-pu-lo: Ghora Katora was the mountain palace residence of king Bimbisara till his ministers and son changed the capitol and took it to Horidih (which today is simply a village). The words Rajagaha and Kusagarpura are concocted words by Samuel Beal and other orientalists. These names never existed. In page 149 last para Huen Tsang writes, “From this spot proceeding eastwards through the mountains about 60 li, we arrive at the city Kusagara-pura (Kiu-she-kie-lo-pu-lo) or the royal city of best grass.” Here Huen Tsang or the translator has made a big mistake. It is only four and a half kilometers from the stone chamber to Ghora Katora. Instead of 60 li Huen Tsang should have written 16 li. Huen Tsang has described the old capitol as being a city with the best grass. That is exactly what Ghora Katora means. Ghora means horse and Katora means a trough for the horse to eat in. So this area was a trough for horses to eat in. The valley like terrain certainly looks like a horses trough and certainly has a lot of greenery with a lake in the middle. This is perfect for a giant horses trough.  And the trough had the best grass. Samuel Beal was a foreigner which was why he took Huen Tsangs ‘Kiu-she-kie-lo-pu-lo’ at face value and deciphered it as ‘Kusagara-pura’ or the city of grass. He did this because Huen Tsang says it was the city of grass. Huen Tsang meant figuratively ‘the horses trough’ has the best grass while Samuel Beal took it literally. Satellite pictures show how apt the name is for the place. The entire Ghora Katora area is like a bowl or trough and fit to grow grass for horses to eat. Huen Tsang goes on to say the city is broad from west to east and thin from north to south. We all can see that in satellite pictures. Ghora Katora means grass and the two words match Huen Tsangs mis-pronounced ‘Kiu-she-kie-lo-pu-lo’. The Mahaparinirvana story also mispronounces Ghora Katora as ‘Ambalatthika’. But it makes it clear that the Buddha stayed in the kings guest house. The kings guest house will be in the palace and the palace was in Ghora Katora. So this is where the Buddha goes to from Giriak mountain which was mistakenly called the vultures peak. From here the Buddha and his group go to Nalanda which I have identified with Mahmuda.

Nalanda Sanghdharma/Mahmuda: (Si-Yu-Ki page 167 to 175) From the kings guest house in Ambalatthika which I have identified with ‘Ghora Katora’, the Buddha goes to Nalanda. Here again Nalanda is a British historian concoction because such a name never existed. The correct name is Mahmuda. In his travelogue Huen Tsang goes 30 li’s north from Horidih village to Nalanda Mahavihara. Exactly 30 li or eight kilometers north of Horidih village (mispronounced by Huen Tsang as ‘Ho-li-shi-ki-li-hi’) is Mahmuda village. It is important to understand Huen Tsangs descriptive stories of places because in the story is hidden the places name. In the case of the famous sanghramma Huen Tsang says it was a place where debates were held. A new entrant would be given a topic by the gateman who himself was highly learned. The newcomer would have to debate with the gateman on that topic. He could enter the sanghramma only if he won. The topic in hindi is called ‘Muds’ and ‘Maha’ means a tough question. So ‘Mahmuda’ means a tough topic for debate. The Buddha comes here and stays at the mango grove of ‘Pavarika’. Pavarika is another foreign Buddhist mispronounciation of the word ‘Kapasia’. I have identified ‘Pavarika’ mango grove as the village of ‘Kapasia’ which is slightly north of ‘Mahmuda’ village which gave its name to the famous sanghramma. It was here the Buddha preached to Sariputta and the bhikshus. From here the Buddha goes to Pataligama which again the historians have mistaken for Patna. I have identified Pandarak village as Pataligrama because of the fact the Buddhas footmark can be found there.

           (a)Pandarak village, the Buddhas fording point of the Ganges on his way to Vaishali/Pidhauli: This is the place where the Buddha forded the river Ganges when he looked at Magadh for the last time on his way to Vaishali. There are two reasons why I chose Pandarak village. Thanks to Huen Tsangs accurate description and mileage. (1) King Ashokas first Buddha relic stupa which he built within his royal premises. Huen Tsang had seen it in a ramshackle condition and according to him the only saving grace was the cupola. Today that cupola is prayed to as the sun God and a sun temple has been constructed on top of the stupa. (2) Huen Tsang further says that north of the Buddha relic stupa is a rock with the Buddhas footmark on it. According to him the Buddha left the footmark on the rock when he looked for the last time at Magadh before fording the river on his way to Vaishali. He further says that king Shashank broke that rock and threw it into the river. It always jumped back out of the water and reached its original place. Villagers showed me the broken rock pieces which today is known as Koyla Rani. They revere it, cut the grass and weeds around it and fear to touch it. A foot mark is clearly discernible on a rock complete with the chakras the Buddha was famous for. Though there are differences in the Theravada and Mahayana versons of how the Buddha forded the river, the river bank directly in front of the rock is certainly the spot where the Buddha forded the river. This has been pin pointed by the shattered pieces of rock called ‘Koyla Rani.’ Theravada sources don’t mention this rock. That doesn’t mean it isn’t the fording point. 

          (b) Kotigama/Godhna village (Godhna is mispronounced as ‘Kotigama’): Theravada sources say that after fording the river the Buddha told Anand, “Come Anand let us go to Kotigama village.” This is Godhna village which is exactly on the opposite bank of Pandarak where the footmark bearing rock is. According to Huen Tsang the Buddha crosses over to Pidhauli which he mispronounces as ‘Fi-she-li’ and which Samuel Beal mistranslates as Vaishali. Huen Tsang does mention Godhna as a sanghramma where they study teachings of the little vehicle of the Sammatiya school. In page 67 first line of his book Huen Tsang writes, “north west of the royal city 5 or 6 Li’s is a sanghramma with a few disciples. They study the teachings of the little vehicle according to the Sammatiya school.” The royal city is Pidhauli (Huen Tsangs mispronounced ‘Fe-she-li’) village. I chose Godhna village to be the sangharamma because it is on high ground which will have ancient structures below. This village is exactly two kilometers north east of Pidhauli village which I strongly believe is Huen Tsangs ‘Fe-she-li’. Chasing Huen Tsang a pattern has emerged which makes it easy to do some guesswork. In Mathokhar village or Huen Tsangs mispronounced Kapotika or pidgeon monastery lives the Goraiya sub cast of the Jadav clan. They pray to the ‘Gor’ or feet which I suspect is the Lord Buddhas feet. They call the temples in which the feet have pride of place a ‘Goraiya.’ Now Godhna which is north east of Pidhauli sounds very similar to Goraiya, because here too Jadavs reside. So Godhna will be the sanghramma Huen Tsang mentions. By fixing Godhna as the sanghramma all the other villages fit into the Mahaparinirvana story.

 (c) Nadika/Navada village (Navada is mispronounced as Nadika): According to the Theravada mahaparinirvana story, when the Buddha stays as long as he wants in Kotigama/Godhna he says, “Come Anand let us go to Nadika.” I have identified Nadika as Navada village which is just 1200 meters east of Amjadpur Bitholi village and two kilometers north east of Pidhauli or Huen Tsangs mispronounced ‘Fe-she-li’. In page 67 second para second last line Huen Tsang writes. “To the east of this is a stupa.  It was here Sariputra and others obtained perfect exemption (became Arahats).” Exactly 1200 meters east of Amjadpur Bithouri is the village called Navada. This is the sanghramma in which Sariputra and the others became arhats. So through Huen Tsang we know that Theravada Buddhisms Nadika, which sounds verbally similar to Navada, was a sanghramma. It wasn’t an ordinary one because great bhikshus like Sariputra and others became arhats. It would be natural that the Buddha stayed there as he loved staying in sanghrammas. The word Navada itself means the ‘eight fold path.’Theravada sources state he stayed in a brick structure where he and his disciples discussed the various deaths that took place recently in that area.

(d) Vaishali/Pidhauli village: When the Buddha had stayed for as long he desired at Navada (mispronounced as Nadika) he told Anand, “Come Anand let us go to Vaishali.” And they went to Vaishali. I would like to remind the reader there was never a city by the name of Vaishali. Huen Tsang makes it clear by pointing out that the city was opposite Pandarak village (identified by the Buddhas footmark on the rock) and its name was ‘Fe-she-li’. He actually mispronounces ‘Pidhauli’ as ‘Fe-she-li’. Samuel Beal translated “Si-Yu-Ki Buddhist records of the western world” into English and in his translation he mistranslated ‘Fe-she-li’ as Vaishali. Samuel Beal actually never visited any of the places whose names he deciphered. He simply sat on a table and chair and translated the book into English. In the process he cooked up most all the words which had to be deciphered. He had to do this because in his time there was no school and college in India. There was literally no educated Indian around who could supply him pan Indian words as India was totally illiterate. Thus he triggered a wild goose chase by British orientalists who believed in the authenticity of his cooked up names of places. People of that time took Samuel Beals translation as the final word and the mistranslated word stayed. This is why none of the actual sites were discovered. The entire Indian history fraternity were searching for names that matched Samuel Beals cooked up ones. In Pidhauli/Vaishali the Buddha stays in various Sanghrammas which he praises. Some of them are Udena, Gotamaka, Sattambaka, Bahuputta, Sarandada, and Capala. These mispronounced names have to still be deciphered.

(e) Chak Munni (The grove Amrapali presented to the Buddha): Chak Munni is the grove Amrapali presented to the Buddha. It is a stupa with a village settled on it carrying that name.  While the Buddha was staying in Pidhauli (Vaishali) in Amrapalis grove, where, according to Huen Tsang, “the ‘Amra girl’ had presented to the Buddha.” The beautiful courtesan Amrapali heard about his stay. She comes over to meet him here and invites him and his disciples to have dinner at her place. The Buddha accepts the invitation. The place is today called Chak Munni because Munni denotes a female child and according to Huen Tsang “The Amra girl” donated it to the Buddha. The Buddha would regularly stay there. Amrapali comes with her chariot and invites the Buddha to dinner. The Buddha accepts it by remaining silent so a delighted Amrapali rides away.

(f) Chak Muda (pronounced locally as Chak Mura. This is where the interaction between the Lichavis and Amrapali took place): Chak Mura is one kilometer distance from Pidhauli and another Kilometer from Chak Munni where the Buddha resided. Mura means to turn around or swerve around. After Amrapali invites the Buddha, she rides away in her chariot. On the way she sees some Lichavis riding down the road towards her on their way to where the Buddha was to invite him for dinner. Huen Tsang is silent on this story but according to Theravada sources the courtesan stopped and confronted the Lichavi princess shoulder to shoulder, harness to harness, axle to axle, and yoke to yoke. She clicked her finger and announced that the Buddha was engaged that night as he had accepted her invite to dinner. The Lichavis try to buy her off but she refuses. For her, feeding the Buddha was more important. The reader will realize that to bring her chariot shoulder to shoulder, axle to axle and yoke to yoke to the Lichavi chariots she would have had to swerve sharply and bring her chariot around abruptly in a U turn. Then only could she be shoulder to shoulder, axle to axle, and yoke to yoke to the Lichavi chariots. This is exactly what Mura (spelt Muda) means. Mura means to turn around. So Chak Muda, with its position between Pidhauli/Vaishali and ‘Chak Munni’, is the place where the interaction between Amrapali and the Lichavis takes place. After this the Lichavis go to Chak Munni where the Buddha is and invites him to which he declines as he has already accepted Amrapalis invitation.

(g) Chak Amla/Amrapalis home: In the last para of page 68 Huen Tsang states, “Not far from this is a stupa; This is the old house of the lady Amra. It was here the aunt of Buddha and other Bhikshunis obtained nirvana.” Chak Amla falls in line according to Huen Tsangs description. We see him moving south wards placing the villages next to each other very accurately. The names are there according to his description. Chak Amra is no doubt Huen Tsangs lady Amra. This is the spot Buddha’s aunt and other bhikshunis died. The Buddha accepts Amrapalis invitation to a meal and arrives here with his disciples in the night and eats in the garden of her house with the courtesan herself feeding the bhikshus.

(e) Beluha/Amjadpur Bithouri: From Chak Munni the Buddha goes to Amjadpur Bitholi. In the Mahaparinirvana sutta when the Buddha stays in Pidhauli (Vaishali. The exact spot is Chak Munni) he tells Anand, “come Anand let us go to Beluha.” This is Amjadpur Bitholi as it is just one kilometer northwest of Pidhauli and 1200 meters west of Navada (mispronounced as Nadika). Verbal resemblance of Beluha and Bitholi is obvious. Huen Tsang also mentions this village. In page 67 second para of his book Huen Tsang writes, “By the side of it is a stupa. It was here that Tathagat delivered the Vimalakirti sutra (Pi-mo-lo-kie-king), and the son of a household Ratnakar, and others offered precious parasols to the Buddha.” Amjadpur may be a new name added to Bithouri after the coming of Muslims. Bithouri is an ancient Bihari word. Vimalakirti or Huen Tsangs mispronounced ‘Pi-mo-lo-kie-king’ could be a foreign mispronounciation of Vithouri or Bithouri or Vimalakirti. People today sometimes mispronounce the letter V with a B. Amjadpur Bithouri village is certainly on a low stupa. In the Mahaparinirvana sutta Bithouri has been substituted with a mispronounced Beluha, or Belutha, or Veluha, or some other similar mispronunciation depending on the translator. The fact that these villages were never discovered tells us the translator sat on a table and read the Chinese texts trying to decipher the original Indian words. He cooked up all the words according to what he thought they were. The entire historical community took this as the final word of an expert and with this knowledge they set out to search for lost cities and lost stupas. Result was they never found any and simply forcibly renamed cities and towns according to Samuel Beals mistranslations. The Buddha tells his disciples that he will be spending the rainy season in this village. He advises them to fan out and take up abode in other places that will accommodate them. In Beluha or Bitholi he becomes sick which worries Anand.

(f) Chak Mehro/Capala shrine: Today there is no place with the name of Capala shrine. But the fact that in the Mahaparinirvana sutta the Buddha goes to the Capala shrine where he asks Anand about his own life span. Anand is too involved in admiring Mara that he fails to reply to the Buddhas query. This means Mara too is in the Capala shrine. The Buddha asks this question three times and all three times Anand fails to ask the Buddha to live on and lengthen his life span. He is concentrating on Mara. That means Mara is still in the vicinity of the Buddha in the Capala shrine. The Buddha then tells Anand he may go. The latter goes to a nearby forest to think (the forest is today called ‘Burhi Van’). Seeing the Buddha alone Mara siddles up to him and tells him that now he is successful, when will his nirvana take place? This means this interaction takes place in or around the Capala shrine. The Buddha tells Mara that his nirvana will take place within three months. A happy Mara walks off. This part of the story in the Mahaparinirvana is very important because the Buddha predicts his own death. This interaction with Mara seems to be the cause why the Capala shrine name disappeared and was supeseeded by ‘Chak Mehro’. Mara seems to be another foreign Buddhist mispronounciation of Mehro. We can safely concede that Chak Mehro is a stupa marking the spot where the Capala shrine once stood and where the interaction between Mara and the Buddha took place. From Chak Mehro (or the Capala shrine) it seems the Buddha goes back to Chak Munni where he usually stays and where Anand comes from the “Great Forest” (identified as ‘Burhi Van’ 2 kilometers east to Chak Muni and Chak Mehro) and interacts with him. The Buddha tells Anand about his interaction with Mara in the Capala shrine and that he will die within three months. When Anand requests him to live he admonishes Anand and tells him it is too late.

(g) Burhi Van (the great forest): The account of what happened in ‘Burhi Vana’ difers slightly in Theravada Buddhism and Huen Tsangs account. From the Capala shrine which I have identified as Chak Mehro the Buddha goes with his disciples to what in the Maha Parinirvana is called the gabled hall in ‘the great forest’. This is clearly “Burhi Van” which means the old or great forest. Here the Buddha preaches to his disciples on how to behave after he is gone. He tells them that his time is near. In Huen Tsangs account the gabled house and the meeting that took place isn’t mentioned. He mentions Anands bad dream. Today the forest no longer exists though the name has stuck to the land. The land has been usurped for agriculture. It is here that Anand withdraws to think in the forest. I will quote the second para of page seventy. Huen Tsang writes, “Meantime Anand in the wood had a strange dream and coming to the Buddha told it to him.” The wood or forest is no doubt Burhi Van because it is near Chak Mehro where the Buddha predicted his own death to Mara. It was from Chak Mehro that Huen Tsang says Anand retired to the seclusion of a forest to think. Today there is a tiny village by the name Burhi Van. And Burhi Van village is close to Chak Mehro where the Buddha predicted his death to Mara while Anand was thinking in the forest. Anand has a bad dream in this forest. He dreams that there is a big tree in the forest with a huge canopy giving shade to everything below it. But one day a storm comes and blows it away.Anand goes back to Chak Munni and asks the Buddha the meaning of his dream. Then only does the Buddha tell him about his impending death. The Buddha replies that he had asked Anand whether he should remain in the world. But Anand was so fascinated with Mara that he didn’t reply to the Buddha.  Anand had missed a chance to save the Buddha. This is what his dream in Burhi Van meant. The Buddha was going to die. This episode isn’t mentioned in the Theravada mahaparinirvana sutta.

(h) Chak Rukiya: Here again there is a difference in Huen Tsangs account and Theravada Buddhism. In page 69 first para Huen Tsang writes, “To the north of the sanghrama 3 or 4 Li is a stupa: this indicates the place where Tathagat stopped when about to advance to Kusinagara to die, whilst men and Kinnaras followed him.” According to Huen Tsang the people of Vaishali followed the Buddha and forced him to stop, exhorting him not to die. This is a clean case. Chak Rukiya is the stupa. Rukiya means to stop in the local Bihari language. Satellite pictures show this place to the east of the railway line and north of ‘Burhi Van’. Theravada sotrces don’t mention this stupa and this interaction with the laymen of Vaishali.

(i) Garahiya Chak (the elephants look): This place is mentioned both by Huen Tsang and Theravada sources. In the Mahaparinirvana sutta the Buddha begs in Vaishali/Pidhauli and then leaves the city. Once out he turns and gives a last look. This is the elephant look. Elephants are known as ‘Gaj’. Garahiya has taken the first two letters from the word Gaj. Garahiya certainly means the elephant look. In page 69 first para fourth line Huen Tsang writes, “From this not far to the northwest is a stupa; here Buddha for the very last time gazed upon the city of Vaishali.” From the phrase ‘From this’ we realize that Huen Tsang means from Chak Rukiya where the villagers stopped the Buddha, not far to the northwest is a stupa where the Buddha gazed for the last time at Vaishali. Exactly northwest of Chak Rukiya are two places with the same meaning. First is Garahiya Chak. Garahiya sounds verbally similar to the word ‘gaharaie’ which means to concentrate or gaze at something. Gahuni is a rural Bihari word to concentrate on something. Gahuni will most probably be the sanghramma connected to Garahiya Chak. And both Gahuni and Garahiya start with the letters ‘Ga’ of Gaj which means elephant.  The village is certainly on top of a stupa by the name of Gahuni. It is here that the Buddha exhorts Anand and his disciples to accompany him to Bandagama which I have identified as Bhatgawan.

(j) Dalsinghsarai/Bhatgawan/Bhandagama: (a) Bhatgawan -The Mahaparinirwana story in Theravada sources say that from Garahiya Chak, where the Buddha looked back at Vaishali for the last time with the elepehants look, the Buddha went to Bhandagama. I have identified Bhandagama with Bhatgawan because of the unique similarity in the names. The second reason is the fact that it is a part of Dalsinghsarai town. According to Theravada sources the Buddha stayed here for a few days and preached the four noble truths. They are noble virtue, noble concentration, noble wisdom, and noble emancipation.He then teaches them on the importance of virtue, concentration, and wisdom. (b) Dalsinghsarai - Huen Tsang however doesn’t mention the Mahaparinirvana as it is mentioned in Theravada sources. He mentions Dalsinghsarai and not Bhatgawan. According to him 60 li northwest of ‘Fe-she-li’, which I have identified as Pidhauli village, is a river the Buddha created by magic to force the Lichavis to go back. They were trailing hime and lamenting that he was going to die. Sixty li is approximately 17 kilometers. Dalsinghsarai is exactly 17 kilometers to the northwest of Pidhauli village as Huen Tsang states. It is on the banks of the Balam river. On the eastern bank is an Ashokan stupa on which the town of Dalsinghsarai is settled. The stupa is known locally as ‘Gola Patti’. According to Huen Tsang this stupa marks the spot where the Buddha gave his begging bowl to the Lichavis. The town’s people say that ‘Gola Patti’ area is the main Dalsinghsarai. That means the real name isn’t Dalsinghsarai. It is Dal-sangh-sarai. ‘Dal’ means group and ‘sangh’ means to come accompanied with. Put together Dalsangh means to come with a group. This is exactly what happened. Groups of Lichavis followed the Buddha exhorting him not to die. According to Huen Tsang the Buddha created Balam river to force the Lichavis to go back. What is important is both the places, Bhantgawan of Theravada Buddhism and Huen Tsangs Dalsinghsarai, are twin places adjacent to each together. Dalsinghsarai has become a town while Bhatgawan is its colony. Most probably Dalsinghsarai, which is on a crossroad, was a sanghramma incharge of the upkeep of Bhatgawan stupa on which the village today has settled.

(f) Musrighrari/Hathigama: From Bhatgawan or the mispronounced Bhandagawa the Buddha goes with his disciples to another mispronounced name. That is Hathigama which I have identified as Musrigharari which is on a crossroad. It is approximately 20 kilometers northwest of Dalsinghsarai. The words are similar to each other if one breaks them down properly. The first two letters of Musrigharari namely ‘Mu’ have been mispronounced as ‘Ha’ in Hatthigama. This is because of the problems of translating from one language to another. The next three letters of Musrigharari, namely ‘sri’, have been replaced by ‘tthi’ in Hatthigama. And finaly ‘gharari’ is replaced by ‘gama’ is Hatthigama. Theravada sources state that the Buddha traveled north. Musrigharari is slightly northwest to Dalsinghsarai. (b) What strengthens Musrigharari’s claim as the mispronounced Hatthigama is the village of Udapati which is a kilometer slightly south west to Musrigharari. According to Theravada sources Hatthigama (read Musrigharari) was the residence of ‘Ugga gahapati’ who was a follower of the Buddha. Gahapati is certainly a foreign mispronounciation of ‘grihapati’ which means master of the house. So Ugga was the master of the house. ‘Gharari’ of Musrigharari means the residence of someone and master of the house. According to Buddhists that someone was, ‘Ugga’ who was the ‘gahapati’ or ‘grihpati’ which means master of the house. The village of ‘Udapati’ sounds very similar to ‘Ugga Gahapati’. So ‘Udapati’ is certainly the home of ‘Ugga gahapati’. We can now safely conclude ‘Ugga’ is a direct foreign mispronounciation of ‘Uda’ of ‘Udapati’. So Musrigharari is certainly the elusive ‘Hatthigama’ of the Mahaparinirvana story.

(g) Muradpur Bangra/Ambagama: From Musrigharari (Hatthigama) the Buddha and his followers travel 15 kilometers northwest to the village of ‘Muradpur Bangra’ which is mispronounced in Theravada sources as ‘Ambagama’. This is a tricky one which is strengthened by the Buddhas next destination which is ‘Jambugama’. Basically the Buddha is travelling northwest from Pidhauli/Vaishali to Pava which I have very accurately identified with Parsa village. The road that connects these two is today a highway. Ambagama is supposed to be between Hatthigama which I have identified as Musrigharari, and ‘Jambugama’ which I have very accurately identified with ‘Chainpur Bangra’. Basically Ambagama has to be on this route between ‘Chaipur Bangra’ and ‘Musrigharari’ town. The only similar sounding place to Ambagama is ‘Muradpur Bangra’. Just as the other stops have a sanghramma on crossroads ‘Muradpur Bangra’ has ‘Tajpur’ town on a crossroad which is most probably the sanghramma of the former.  If we break up ‘Muradpur’ and compare it with ‘Amba’ of Ambagama we realize three letters are used in both the words. That is ‘abm’. What has happened is this is an extreme case of mispronounciation where the letters are all ‘topsy turvy’. But the letters are there. And the ending of ‘Gama’ and ‘bangra’ are the saving grace which sound the same. What strenghthens my claim that Ambagama is Muradpur Bangra is the fact that the ‘gama’ of ‘Jambugama’ is is also a ‘Bangra’ (Chainpur Bangra). Why do both ‘Muradpur Bangra’ and ‘Chainpur Bangra’ end with ‘Bangra’. There is a possibility because the Buddha repeated the same teachings in these two places similar to what he taught in Bhatgawan or the mispronounced Bhandagama.

(h) Chainpur Bangra/Jambugama: Chainpur Bangra is approximately 30 kilometers northwest of Muradpur Bangra. It is certainly the actual name of the mispronounced Jambugama. ‘Chainpur Bangra’ certainly sounds similar if you break up ‘Jambu Gama’ from ‘Jambugama’. What strengthens my claim that ‘Chainpur Bangra’ is Jambugama is the fact that the former lies on the border of a village called ‘Chainpur’. In Theravada sources it is stated that ‘Jambugama’ was a superb of the country of ‘Campa’ which sounds very similar to ‘Chainpur’. So you have it all there. Jambugama is Chainpur Bangra and Campa is Chainpur village. We can safely conclude that Chainpur Bangra is Jambugama. Chainpur Bangra also safely strengthens my claim that Ambagama is ‘Muradpur Bangra’.

(i) Motihari/Bhoganagara/Dhumnagar Nuniyarwah Tola Bettiah/ Anand Dham Mandir: From Chainpur Bangra or the mispronounced Jambugama Huen Tsang goes on to what Buddhist scriptures call Bhoganagara. My first choice for Bhoganagara was Bhagwanpur Chowk in Muzaffarpur town. But it was just eight kilometers distant from Chainpur Bangra. This was too close. Bhoganagara is important because the Buddha stays in the Anand Chaitya. From Chainpur Bangra to Parsa village, which I have identified with the mispronounced Pava, the only place with an Anand temple is Anand Dham which is in Motihari town. This temple is a ‘Dham’ which means it is a pilgrimage spot and most probably ancient. North of Anand Dham is a colony of Motihari by the name Dhumnagar Nuniyarwah. Dhumnagar sounds verbally similar to ‘Bhoganagara’ which is why I am sure Dhumnagar is the Bhoganagara because the Anand Dham temple is within its vicinity. This means Motihari is a new name of the place which superseded ‘Dhumnagar’ and reduced the latter into a simple colony of the town. But the name Motihari also has its origin in the Parinirvana story. I was suspecting Motihari was Bhoganagara because the name Motihari suited the teachings the Buddha imparted to his followers here. Motihari means to lose a jewel. This is important because it is here that he preaches the four great references. Actually it is directions to the disciples that if a Bhishu says he heard from an elder bhikshu the Buddhas teaching, or from a group of students, or from a group of learned elders, or from a single elder, the bhikshus weren’t to accept it or reject it at once. They were to study what was said and compare it to his teachings, then only could they give a final verdict on the authenticity of what was said and heard. It is clear that in Dhumnagar (Bhoganagara) in the Anand Dham temple (Anand Chaitya) the Buddha was prepairing his disciples on how to behave when his teachings were recited after his death. The Buddhas impending death was a dampener. The disciples wanted the Buddha to live and were hoping the Buddha would change his mind. They must have felt they were fighting a losing battle and the Buddha was preparing them for his death. They must have felt they were losing the jewel. This is what Motihari means. I suspected that and, the discovery of Anand Dham and Dhumnagar as Bhoganagara verified it. But there is a problem here. The distance from Chainpur Bangra to Dhumnagar/Motihari is 94 kilometers. From Pidhauli to Chainpur Bangra the group was stopping at every 20 to 30 kilometers. Chainpur Bangra to Motihari was a jump of 94 kilometers with nothing between. There should be two stops in between. I suspect they are Kanti village and Chakia village. The Mahaparinirvana story is silent on this 94 kilometer stretch. My suspicion lies on the fact that in Muradpur Bangra and Chainpur Bangra the Buddha repeats what he taught in Bhatgawan. There is s possibility the Buddha did the same in the 94 kilometer stretch till Motihari/Dhumnagar. When the arhats compiled the teachings in Jethian, they decided to omit the stops in this stretch. If there were stops my guess is Kanti and Chakia villages were the stops.

(j) Parsa/Pava: From Dhumnagar in Motihari town, the Buddha goes to the country of Pava which I have identified with Parsa village. There he stays in Cunda the blacksmiths Mango grove. According to Huen Tsang the Mallas were the rulers who lived in Pava/Parsa. I have identified the Mallas with the Mall’s which are a sub cast of the Kashyapa gotra of Bhumihar Barhmins who live in this village. I have identified the mango grove as (i) the small bazaar of ‘Sugauli’ and (2) Sagauli or the name of the railway station that has a slightly different name from ’Sugauli’. This area is definitely Cundas mango grove because it is here that the Buddha eats pig meat and his disciples eat spinach locally known as Saag.

 (k) Malla’s of Pava (Parsa village): I will quote Wikipedia, “Malla was one of the solasa (16) mahajanapadas of ancient India mentioned in the Anguttara Nikaya. It was named after the ruling clan of the same name. The Mahabharata (VI.9.34) mentions the territory as the Mallarashtra (Malla state). The Malla mahajanapada was situated north of Magadha. It was a small mahajanapada. The mahajanapada was divided into two main parts and the river Kakuttha (present day Kuku) was probably the dividing line. The capital of these two parts were Kusavati (modern Kasia near Gorakhpur) and Pava, modern Fazilnagar, 12 miles from Kasia.^[1] The reader will realize that the historians are doing guess work as till date they still haven’t discovered where the real Malla country is and who the Mallas were. Parsa village is inhabited with the Bhumihar Brahmin community of the ‘Kashyapa gotra’. For those who don’t understand Brahminism and Gotra, the Brahmins are divided into various sub casts called Gotras, one of which is the ‘Kashyap’ sub cast or Gotra. The Kashyaps are again divided into various sub casts of which one is ‘Mall’. The Bhumihar Brahmins who live in Parsa village belong to the Kashyapa Mall sub cast. So you have your ‘Mallas of Pava’ which is a direct mispronounciation of “Mall Bhumihar Brahmins of Parsa village’. Wikipedia states the Malla janapada was situated north of Magadh. This is wikipedias only accurate description in the Parinirvana story because Parsa, Sugauli and Raxaul (mispronounced as Kusavati), which I and Huen Tsang claim is the country of the Mallas, are bang north of Rajgir and Gaya which was once central Magadh just as Wikipedia says and just as Buddhist scriptures suggest. Historians claim the name Pava disappeared and was replaced by Fazlinagar in the state of UP and Kusavati disappeared and was replacesd by ‘Kasia’ which is a colony of Khushinagar (Khushinagar itself is a British historian concocted word and not the original name). This is pure guess work as Fazilnagar is a Muslim name. Fazilnagar and Kasia bazaar in Khushinagar are situated in the extreme northwest of Gaya and Rajgir which is the central part of Magadh. This is directly opposite to what Buddhist scriptures say. Buddhist scriptures state clearly that the Malla country was north of Magadh. The Parinirvana in Wikipedia states a report by LA Wadell in the section “location of Gautam Buddhas death and parinirvana” which I will quote. “It has been suggested by Wadell that the site of the death and parinirvana of Gautam Buddha was in the region of Rampurva. “I believe that Kusinagara, where the Buddha died, may be ultimately found to the north of Bettiah, and in the line of the Ashoka pillars which lead hither from Patna (Pataliputra) in Bihar. It still awaits proper archaeological excavation.” Khutwajabdi north east of Birgunj town where the Buddha died is exactly 56 kilometers as the crow flies north east of Bettiah town which tallies with Wadell. From this quote the reader will realize that amongst the British colonial historians Wadell was honest and accurate and most everywhere he agrees with Huen Tsangs bearings.  We can finally conclude that Parsa village to Birgunj is the Malla country divided by the Burhi Gandak river, which in this area is called ‘Sikrauna river’, which is mispronounced in Buddhist scriptures as the Kukkuta river.

(j) Cundas house/ ‘Parsa Tola Arazi Chakwa’: In the vicinity of Parsa village is a satellite village of the former by the name of ‘Parsa Tola Arazi Chakw’. ‘Parsa Tola’ means a colony or part of Parsa village. ‘Arazi’ means plot owned by someone, in this case plot owned by Chakw. Put together ‘Parsa Tola Arazi Chakw clearly means “a colony of Parsa village owned by Chakw.” The reader will realize Chakw is the Buddhist scriptures mispronounced ‘Cunda’, the man who fed the Buddha with pig meat. So the area near ‘Parsa Tola Arazi Chakw’ is clearly the mango grove of Cunda/Chakw where the Buddha (ate his last meal) and his disciples ate. This is clearly Sugauli and Sagauli.

(1) Sugauli: Sugauli can be easily divided into ‘Su’ and ‘gauli’. ‘Suga’ is certainly a short form of ‘sugar’ pronounced as soogar which means pig. In the Mahaparinirvana story it is clearly stated that the Buddha ordered meat of a pig that had died naturally. The last four latters of Sugauli, namely ‘gauli’ can be easily deciphered as ‘Khauli’ which means to eat. Put together Sugauli is easily deciphered as ‘Soogar Khauli’ which means to eat pig meat. After eating the meal the Buddha forbids Cunda from feeding it to the disciples and orders Cunda to bury the left overs. The reader may not know why the Buddha gave the order to bury the left over meat. In India the guru is exteremely revered and it is regarded as a pleasure and blessing to eat the left overs of a gurus meal. The Buddha had ordered meat of a dead pig knowing full well it would most probably be rotten and poisonous. The Buddha had prepared to die. He made sure his disciples didn’t eat the meat.

(2) Sagauli: The Sugauli railway station goes by the name of Sagauli. Sagauli can be broken up into ‘Sag’, pronounced as ‘Saaga’, and ‘gauli’. Saag is a common spinach the locals of Bihar eat and relish. It is simply leaves fried in a minimum of oil and grounded on the fire till it is cooked. A bit of salt is added. “Gauli’ is clearly deciphered as ‘khauli’ which in the local language means to eat. Put together Sagauli is easily deciphered as ‘Saag Khauli’ which means to eat Saag or spinach. In the mahaparinirvana story the Buddha and his disciples sit down to eat. It doesn’t state where they sat to eat other than Cundas house. Ground reality is that there is a distance of 600 meters between Sagauli (railway station) and Sugauli bazaar. In Bihar it is a strict rule that vegetarians don’t eat food in the same place or in the vicinity of non vegetarian food. It is a sort of holy law which I trace to the Buddhism left in us. So when the Buddha ate pig meat it was impossible for his disciples to be seated next to him while they also ate. IT WAS IMPOSSIBLE AND UNTHINKABLE. So the distance of 600 meters between the two places where the Buddha and the disciples ate fits in with the local custom of a sworn vegetarian avoiding a non vegetarian. If the disciples were present next to the Buddha on the same spot where he ate the rotten meat, it would be regarded as though they had also eaten it. For Buddhists and today for rural north Indians this is taboo. We can end the pig and spinach eating episode with the fact that there is a 600 meters distance between the two fits in with the local behavioral pattern of vegetarians. Today the railway station is called Sagauli so I have concluded the Britishers who constructed the station did so because the stupa there provided them with high ground and saved money on mud filling. So basically the stupa marking the spot where the desciples ate spinach will have been submerged by the railway tracks and station platform.

(l) Patkhaulia/Ubbhataka: According to wikipedia’s definition and proof of Pava or Parsa as the country of the Malla’s, it should have a preaching hall which the Buddha inaugurated. I will quote the Pava section of Wikipedia. “According to the Sangitti Sutta, at the time the Buddha was staying at Pava, the Mallas had just completed their new Mote hall, Ubbhataka, and, at their invitation, the Buddha consecrated it by first accupying it and then preaching in it. After the Buddha had finished speaking, Sariputta recited the Sangiti Sutta to the assembled monks.” From this quote we realize that the country of Pava or Parsa must have a preaching hall which the Buddha inaugurated. Buddhist scriptures mention the name of the preaching hall is ‘Ubbhataka’ which again is a foreign Buddhist mispronounciation of the Indian name. Five hundred meters south west of ‘Parsa Tola Arazi Chakw’, which is Cunda or Chakw’s house, is a hamlet on a mud mound called ‘Patkhaulia’ which sounds similar to the mispronounced Buddhist ‘Ubbhataka’. Patkhualia, in the local language, simply means to open the doors of a temple so that people can pay homage to it. It also means to inaugurate a temple. ‘Pat’ is the door of the sanctum sanctorum of a temple which is opened and closed at fixed times of the day. ‘Khaulia’ means to open or to inaugurate. So ‘Patkhaulia’ means to inaugurate a holy spot which is exactly what the Buddha did. So Patkhaulia or the mispronounced Ubbhataka is another spot which the Indian historians never found because they identified Pava with the wrong place. Pathkhaulia definitely strengthens my claim that Parsa village and the area surrounding it including Patkhaulia, Sugauli, Sagauli, and ‘Parsa Tola Arazi Chakw’ is the country of the mallas of Pava.

(m) Nimuee Belaith: Nimuee most probably is the ancient rendering of the rural word ‘nimuha’ which means speechless or mouthless. It also means speechless with a dry mouth. Belaith is most probably the ancient rendering of the rural word ‘Bilatna’ which literally means to squirm with pain. Put together ‘Nimuee Belaith’ clearly means “a speechless man with a parched mouth squirming in pain”. The name of this place clearly describes the condition and predicament of the Buddha according to the mahaparinirvana story in Theravada sources.  After a severe bout of diaorrhea, from Cundas mango grove, the Buddha continues moving northwestwards on his way to his nirvana. But he is badly affected by diaorrhea and decides to rest under a tree on the side of the road. This is in Nimuee village slightly two kilometers north west of Sugauli and Sagauli. According to the Mahaparinirvana story the Buddha was tired and extremely thirsty. He was desperate to drink water so he asks Anand to fetch water from a nearby shallow rivulet. Anand goes to the rivulet and realizes 500 bullock carts have just crossed it muddying the water. Anand comes back and informs the Buddha about the muddy water. But the Buddha is desperate to drink so he forces Anand to go back. Anand comes back saying it is still muddy and undrinkable. He advices the Buddha that the Kukkuta river (Kukkuta is once again mispronounced. It is the Burhi Gandak river locally known as Sikrana river. Kukkuta seems to be a mispronounciation of ‘Sikrana’) is closeby. The river was just three quarters of a kilometer away from Nimuee Belaith where the Buddha was begging Anand for water. Nimuee is situated on the banks of that muddy rivulet which flows for three quarters of a kilometer into the Burhi Gandak river or Sikrana river.

(n) Kohra rivulet: The Kohra rivulet is the thin river next to Nimuee Belaith hamlet. It is near the road where the Buddha rested and begged Anand for water next to Nimuee village. Kohra in the local rural language means misty or muddy. The name of the river clearly states it was named Kohra after the incident when the Buddha was squirming in pain and was desperate to drink water even after 500 carts had crossed the rivulet and muddied it. The name of the river is according to the Mahaparinirvana story and clearly states that incident took place on the banks of this river. The rivulet flows for three quarters of a kilometer and empties into the Burhi Gandak river which in this area is called the Sikrana river and which Buddhist scriptures mispronounce as Kukkuta river. Kohra river is another proof of Parsa being the Malla country of Pava.

(o) Burhi Gandak river/Sikrana river/ Kukkuta river: The Kohra rivulet flows into the Burhi Gandak river which Buddhist scriptures call the Kukkuta river. Kukkuta is actually a foreign Buddhist mispronunciation of Sikrana. It is interesting to note that this river is known as Narayani in Nepal, Burhi Gandak in India, and Sikrana in this particular stretch of the river. The Buddha forded the river after drinking water from it and bathing in it. We must remember his condition in Nimuee Belaith. The place was named to express the extremely painful condition of the Buddha. Sikrana or Sikurna in the local rural language means to shrivel down to such an extent as to look grotesque.Basically the reader will realize that this was the condition of the Buddha when he forded this river. He had become thin and frail. This is why the river in this area is called Sikrana.

(p) Gudra/Cundaka: When the Buddha crosses the river he rests in Cundakas mango grove. On the opposite side of the river from Nimuhee Belaith is the village of Gudra. The position of this village half a kilometer from the river states the Buddha must have come here. Like the rest of the mispronounced Buddhists words Cundaka is also mispronounced. It sounds similar to Gudra and certainly is a mispronunciation of that word. The gist of the Buddhas stay at Cundaka’s mango grove is ‘he asks Cundaka to fold his robe in four’. There are two possible meanings of ‘Gudra’. Gundri is a Bihari word for a robe made out of patches from different clothes. This is usually used by the poor who can’t afford whole cloth. They scavenge patches and stitch them together. The Buddha was a bhikshu so most probably his robe was a ‘Gundri’. The fact that the Buddha asked Cundaka to fold his robe in four and lay it down in the mango grove could mean the village was named ‘Gudra’ after the robe. “Gudra’ could be an ancient rendition of the present day name of the village, namely ‘Gudra’. (b) The second meaning of Gudra is it is simply a mispronunciation of Cundaka. The area is still a mango grove. Gudra village is inhabited by poor people of the Jadav cast. What is special about this village is the temples in this village, which are ancient, are too big and expensive for the people of this village, or their ancestors, to afford to make. They were certainly made by rich people long time ago. The people pray to a local diety by the name of ‘Goraiya Baba’. I have noticed this in several other places where the Buddha visited and which was populated by the Jadav community. They are the Goraiya sub cast of Jadavs who pray to statues of a pair of feet. Basically I came to the conclusion the feet belong to the Buddha. Huen Tsang says about these people that, “they follow the Sammatiya school of Buddhism.” (I would appreciate it if someone explained sammatiya to me). In the rural local language feet are called ‘Gor’ so it seems that this sub clan of Yadavs pray to the Buddhas Gor. I came across the same thing in Mathokhar Duh which Huen Tsang mispronounced as Kapotika which he calls the pidgeon monastery. I have happily come to the conclusion Cundaka is a foreign mis-pronunciation of Gudra who belonged to the Jadav community, and who prayed to the Buddha’s feet. I mean the Buddhas ‘Gor’.

(q) Lal Parsa Dhumni Tola/Pukkusa: In the Mahaprinirvana story before crossing the Kukkuta river the Buddha is sitting at the base (root) of a tree when ‘Pukusa’ the son of a Malla comes and sits near him. He tells the Buddha about Alara Kalama and his ability to meditate even when 500 bullock carts passed by him so close that the dust from their wheels fell on Alara Kalama. The Buddha then tells Pukkusa about his own concentration during meditation. Once he was meditating when a storm struck with thunder and lightning. The lightning struck so close that two people and some oxen died. But the Buddha was deep in meditation and didn’t notice it. Pukkusa is overwhelmed by this story and decides to replace Alara Kalama with the Buddha as the perfect guru. He then presents the Buddha and Anand with golden robes and goes on his way. When Anand drapes it on the Buddha, the latter’s body is so radiant, that the golden robe looks dull. I realize the name ‘Lal Parsa Dhumni Tola’ fits this story well. Pukkusa is certainly a mispronunciation of Parsa. Lal means son. Pukkusa is the son of the Mallas. He is called in that manner. This is exactly what Lal means. It means son. Even today parents lovingly call their son Lal. Lal Parsa definitely means Parsa the son of the Mallas. Dhumni of ‘Lal parsa Dhumni Tola’ seems to be the ancient rendering of ‘Dhoom’ which means faded or dull. We must remember that when the Buddha wore the golden robe it looked faded on his bright body. The word ‘Dhumni’ is referring to the golden robe episode in the Mahaparinrvana story. ‘Lal Parsa Dhumni Tola’ is certainly the spot where Pukkusa the Mallas son discoursed with the Buddha and became the latter’s follower. It was in Dhumni Tola that Pukkusa gave the golden robe to the Buddha and Anand and when the Buddha wore it it looked pale like Dhoom or mist. There is a hitch. According to the Theravada Mahaparinirvana sources this interaction takes place before the Buddha crosses the Kukkuta/Sikrana river. I mean three quarters of a kilometer to the south of the Kukkuta/Sikrana river. ‘Lal Parsa Dhumni Tola’ village is on the other side of the river which is to the north of it. It means the Buddha crossed the river and stayed in Cundas grove after which he carried on his journey. He got tired soon and rested under a tree. It was here that the ‘Pukkusa son of the Malla’ story took place. Basically ground reality says that the sequence of events in the Mahaparinirvana sutta is flawed. According to the Mahaparinrvana sutta the Buddha is sitting under a tree when ‘Pukusa son of the Malla’ sees him and sits near him discoursing with him. After Pukusa leaves, the Buddha goes to the Kukkuta/Sikrana river and crosses it to rest in Cundakas mango grove. Ground reality is between ‘Nimuee Belaith’ where an exhausted and parched Buddha pestered Anand for water, and the Kukkuta/Sikrana river there is no village or place with which could carry ‘Pukusa the Malla’s sons’ name. The reader will notice each and every incident has a village dedicated to it. ‘Lal Parsa’ village means ‘Parsa the son’ is on the other side of the river. We must remember the story is 2400 years old and has been coming down the ages from mouth to mouth so changes in the narration could have taken place.

(r) Kie-se-kie-na-lo/Sirsiya Kala: From Lalparsa Dhumni Tola the Buddha and his group travel to what the world calls Khushinagar or Kusinara. Actually Khushinagar is a word concocted by Samuel Beal who translated Huen Tsangs book into English. The village of Sirsiya Kala is definitely Huen Tsangs ‘Kiu-sie-na-kie-lo’. I will quote page 31 second last para.“After this going north east through a great forest, along a dangerous and difficult road, where wild oxen and herds of elephants, and robbers and hunters cause incessant trouble to travelers. After leaving the forest we come to the kingdom of ‘Kiu-shi-na-kie-lo.” Huen Tsang tells us that the place where the Buddha died was north east to Lauriya Nandangarh. Sirsiya Kala is directly north east to Lauriya Nandangarh.The wild jungle infested with wild and dangerous oxen and elephant’s with robbers, Huen Tsang describes, is the Bhaisa Loten jungle of Bettia district. Even today it is wild and lawless. The name Bhaisa Loten means wild oxen lolling in mud so the name tallies with Huen Tsangs description. It is still a highly criminalized zone and highly dangerous. Today it is part of Valmiki tiger reserve. Samuel Beal took Huen Tsangs ‘Kiu-se-na-kie-lo’ at face value and translated it as Khushinagar. Actually ‘Kiu-shie-na-kie-lo is a Chinamans attempt to pronounce Sirsiya Kala. The latter sounds verbally similar to Huen Tsangs Kiu-se-na-kie-lo’. Finding ‘Sirsiya Kala’ was tough because here Huen Tsang fails to give mileage or distance and only states the north easterly direction. So it took me three whole days to study the entire area north east of Lauriya Nandangarh and choose ‘Sirsiya Kala’ village as Huen Tsangs “Kiu-se-na-kie-lo.” I did this by finding names of places connected to the Buddhas nirvana and realized Huen Tsangs Kiu-shie-na-kie-lo was nothing else but Sirsiya Kala. Huen Tsang says the capitol was 10 li in circuit. Ten Li’s is approximately 2 kilomteres in circuit. Within a two kilometer circuit of Sirsiya Kala village are three stupas with villages settled on them carrying the name Sirsiya. I have identified these as stupas described by Huen Tsang and the Mahaparinirvana story. British historians took Samuel Beals mis deciphered and concocted ‘Khushinagar’ and started a wild goose search of a similar name. It is clear Samuel Beal never visited any of the places of the names he created which is why none of the holy Buddhist spots were discovered. British historians identified Kasia Bazar as Khushinagar or Huen Tsangs ‘Kiu-shi-na-kie-lo’ simply on the basis of a sleeping Buddha statue found in a stupa. They removed the name of Kasia bazaar and re-christened the place Khushinagar. So Khushinagar is a concocted word by British historians who thought that was what Huen Tsang meant. The reader will realize Huen Tsang goes nowhere near present day Khushinagar. Sirsiya Kala is definitely the real Khushinagar where the Buddha went for his Mahaparinirvana.  

(s) Harannavati river/Sirsiya river (locally pronounced Surasiya river): In Sirsiya Kala or the mispronounced Kusinara the Buddha tells Anand let us cross the Hirannavati river to the north and rest in the Mallas Sala grove. Huen Tsang calls this river ‘O-shi-to-fa-ti’. I have identified the Hirannavati or Huen Tsangs ‘O-shi-to-fa-ti’ river as the Sirsiya river dividing the twin towns of Raxaul and Birgunj. The river also travels down the eastern edge of these towns. I have identified Raxaul as the sal grove of the Mallas in the vicinity of Sirsiya Kala. There is a huge stupa in the middle of the town which has a bustling market on it. The Buddha and his group cross this river and reach the Mallas Sal grove. I have identified the Mallas. They are a sub cast of the Bhumihar Brahmin cast of the Barduaj Gotra. Their sub Gotra is Amarya sometimes pronounced as Amalya. They are definitely the Mallas as Amalya sounds similar to Malla.

(t) Raxaul/Sirsiya river: Raxaul is certainly the Mallas Sal grove where the Buddha breathed his last. In page 32 second para first line Huen Tsang states, “To the north west of the city three or four Li, crossing the ‘O-shi-to-fa-ti’river (Samuel Beal translates it as Oshitofati) river, on the western bank not far, we come to a grove of Sal Trees.” The ‘O-shi-to-fa-ti’ river is the Sirsiya river flowing down the eastern border of Birgunj town to Raxaul. The spelling of the rivers name is written Sirsiya, but the locals pronounce the word as Surasiya. Surasiya sounds very similar to Huen Tsangs ‘O-shi-to-fa-ti’.  Raxaul is certainly the place where the Buddha breathed his last. In the third last line of page 32 second para, Huen Tsang writes, “In this wood there are four trees of unusual height, which indicate the place where Tathagat died.” So we understand the Buddha died between Sal trees. In the Mahaparinirvana story it is clearly stated that the Buddhas dead body was kept for seven days for people to pay homage. This is exactly what Raxaul means. To decipher Raxaul we can divide the word in two. They are ‘Rakh-Sal’. ‘Rakh’ means to keep something at a particular spot. Sal which is the second half of Raxaul is simply the Sal tree. Put together ‘Rakh-Sal’ or Raxaul simply means to keep between Sal trees. Today Raxaul is a bustling business town on the Indian border with Nepal with Birgunj town on the Nepal side. There is an Ashokan stupa in this town which certainly is the spot where the Buddha died. Today the top of the stupa has been annexed by a rich market with a cluster of jewellery shops. Basically I realize Raxaul is the stupas name. There are a couple of more stupas in the residential area of the town. Unfortunately they are nameless as the name Raxaul has dwarfed the entire town. To find the stupa names I will have to check land records of the town.

 (u) Vishwa Hillock: Vishwa hillock is a fifty foot high mud stupa to the north east of Gahawa Mai temple in Maisthan chowk. This stupa is definitely an Ashokan stupa and most probably has a chink of the Buddhas relics in it. This stupa is high and strengthens my claim that ‘Gahawa Mai’ temple in Maisthan chowk is the spot where the Buddha died between two Sal trees. I will quote page 32 second para first line of Huen Tsangs book where he writes, “To the north west of the city three or four Li, crossing the ‘O-shi-to-fa-ti’river (Samuel Beal translates it as Oshitofati. It is the Sirsiya river.) river, on the western bank not far, we come to a grove of Sal Trees.” The ‘O-shi-to-fa-ti’ river is the Sirsiya Kalan river flowing down the eastern border of Birgunj town to Raxaul. In the third last line of the same para He says, “In this wood there are four trees of unusual height, which indicate the place where Tathagat died.” So we understand the Buddha died between four Sal trees west of the Sirsiya river. After this Huen Tsang continues to say in the last para of the same page in the third last line. “By the side of this vihara is a stupa built by Ashoka Raja: although in a ruinous state, yet it is some two hundred feet in height.” The stupa marking the spot near where the Buddha died is defenitely the Vishwa hillock in Birgunj. It suits the description Huen Tsang gives as it is next to the Gahawa Mai temple where I believe the Buddha died. Vishwa hillock is a perfect example of a big Ashokan mud stupa. All the places Huen Tsang describes are west of the Sirsiya river.

(v) Murli Chowk Birgunj: In the Mahaparinirvana story the people decide to take the coffin and dead body of the Buddha towards the south to Raxaul or the mispronounced Kusinara to cremate it there. But the coffin is too heavy to lift. When the people fail to lift it they decide to take it northwards. The coffin allows itself to be lifted. The coffin bearers accompanied by a crowd march northwards, and once outside the city gates they turn east to the spot where they cremated it. The road on which ‘Gahawa Mai’ temple is situated is today the Tribhuvan highway which goes through the middle of Birgunj town. North of ‘Gahawa mai’ temple is a cross road named ‘Murli Chowk’. Murli means ‘turn here’. A road branches east from ‘Murli Chowk’ and travels north east to ‘Khutwajabdi’ where Huen Tsang claims the dead body was cremated. This is exactly as it is described in the mahaparinrvana story. The coffin is taken north, and once out of the city gates, it turns east to the cremation place. Huen Tsang states that the cremation spot is 5 kilometers north east to ‘Gahawa Mai’ temple where the Buddha died. Basically Huen Tsang and the Mahaparinirvana narrative agree with each other.

(w) Prasauni: (1) Prasauni village is definitely the spot where the Buddhas dead body was burnt: In page 39 third para Huen Tsang writes, “To the north of the city after crossing the river, and going 300 paces or so, there is a stupa. This is the place where they burnt the body of Tathagat. The earth is now of a blackish yellow from a mixture of earth and charcoal. Who ever with true faith seeks and prays is sure to find relics of Tathagata.” This stupa is north east of Birgunj and is Prasauni village on a stupa. The Sirsiya river passes 700 feet east of the stupa or Parsauni villages east just as Huen Tsang describes in his quote. Prasauni is an Ashokan stupa and like other Ashokan stupas it is simply a low mud mound. And like most other Ashokan stupas an entire village has settled on it. Prasauni village  accurately suits the above quote. Huen Tsang says the burning site is, “To the north of the city.” The city is Sirsiya Kalan village and Prasauni village is exactly north of Sirsiya Kalan. Huen Tsang further states the burning site was 300 paces from the river. That is approximately 700 feet. This is the exact distance of the village from the Sirsiya river. And the name Prasauni means someone fast asleep on something. That is the Buddha fast asleep on a funeral pyre. It is regarded as bad manners to bluntly say someone is dead, especially for a person of the stature of the Buddha. Fast asleep was a perfectly respectable word used to name the stupa. Prasauni village is defenitey the stupa where the Buddhas body was burnt. The next stupa that goes by the name of Khutwajabdi strengthens my claim that Prasauni is the spot where the Buddha’s dead body was burnt.

(x) Khutwajabdi: Khutwajabdi village on a stupa certainly strengthens my claim that Prasauni was the place where the Buddhas dead body was burnt. I will quote the last line of page 39. Huen Tsang writes, “By the side of the place of cremation is a stupa; here Tathagat for Kasyapa’s sake revealed his feet.”  This is certainly the village of Khutwajabdi next to Prasauni village. It is on a stupa no doubt which carried the name Khutwajabdi. We are lucky the stupas name Khutwajabdi was kept alive by villagers. The village is called Khutwajabdi. The road passes over the stupa and has flattened it. I chose this spot as the place where the Buddha revealed his feet forcively for Kasyapa because the name Khutwajabdi fits into the tale Huen Tsang tells. According to him the body was brought here for cremation. It was tied and covered with napkins and put on a funeral pyre. Anand tries to light the fire but fails so he waits for the arrival of Kashyap. The latter requests Anand to open the napkins so that he can pay obeisance to the dead body one last time. Anand refuses as it would be tough untying the napkins and tying them again. So the Buddha forcefully takes out a feet so that Kashyap can see it and pay obeisance to it. The word Khutwajabdi suits this story. Khutwa in the rural Bihari language means feet and ‘Jabdi’ means by force. Khutwajabdi means to show ones feet by force. In the story the Buddha showed his feet by force. Basically Prasauni and Khutwajabdi strengthen my claim that these are the stupas mentioned by Huen Tsang because they are just a stones throw away from each other.

(y) Relic dividing stupa next to Khutwajabdi: Nautan: In page 40 second last para Huen Tsang writes, “By the side of the place where he showed his feet is a stupa built by Ashoka Raja. This is the place where the eight kings shared the relics. In front is built a stone pillar on which is written an account of this event.” Next to the Khutwajabdi stupa is a bigger stupa with the village settled on it. That is Nautan village on a stupa. Nautan means nine adamant people. We must remember that eight kings and a Brahmin divided the relics amongst themselves. The village that settled on top of these stupas thinking them to be simple mud mounds retained only one name calling itself Nautan. The relic dividing stupa has also flattened as the road passes directly over it. But the stupas hump is recognizable as an Ashokan stupa.