Kushinager - The Last Days in India

by Peter

“Yetra nari pujante, gamante sarwa devataha. “ – Where women are worshipped, the gods and goddesses abide.

“Now, another morning has come to timeless India, another day of plowing fields, hauling water, raising children, burning the dead. Beggars sit with bloodshot eyes, matted hair, and gaunt bellies, hands and feet withered and deformed, breathing the oily soot of the streets. They appear crazed, anguished, and despairing, or impartial, proud, and serene, offering the teaching of their existence, asking for generosity.”

“My sense of self is dissolving, as I see my illness reflected in the gaunt faces and sunken eyes around me. I am suffering, yet how much more others must feel the same misery, the same persistent burning in the throat, the same headache, the same twisting of the bowels. In this feverish delirium it is easy to understand the warnings of wise renunciates: from its glamorous heights to its terrifying depths, samsara is a sea of fire and a battlefield of razor-sharp weapons, in which we shall ultimately find nothing but sorrow.”

We came to where Buddha died, and so did a part of me. I hope it is part of the judge. The beauty of this place was telling, from the orange blanket covering the dying reclining buddha to the renovated Ashok Pillar. As for Merit, the number of projects helping to build this poor 1000 person community are numerous. Their is a name for the foundation but I forget exactly what is is. I do remember our guide mentioned establishing a Buddhist University and Medical School with Hospital. The major funders are the Thai and Japanese Governments.