Monks reprise Buddha's walk route after enlightenment

Over 400 Buddhist monks Saturday took part in a 13-km 'heritage walk' in Bihar in a bid to revive the ancient route between Jethian and Venuvan which Gautam Buddha took after attaining enlightenment.

Monks from over 30 monasteries in various countries took part in the first heritage walk. The ancient route was taken by Buddha more than 2,500 years ago.

The heritage walk from Jethian in Gaya district and Venuvan in Rajgir in Nalanda district was organised by the Bihar State Tourism Development Corporation (BSTDC), said tourism department official M. Sohail.

He said the heritage walk was part of the Rajgir festival to popularise the event by following the footprints of Buddha.

"The heritage walk will attract foreign tourists, particularly from Buddhist countries," he said.

Millions of Buddhists from across the world including in China, Japan, South Korea, Nepal, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Myanmar, Cambodia, Vietnam, Laos, Indonesia, Malaysia and in the US and European countries regard the route as the holiest one.

As per legend, Jethian was believed to be the place where Magadha king Bimbisara had received the Buddha during his journey from Bodh Gaya to Rajgir soon after he attained enlightenment.

Bimbisara offered Veluvana (now Venuvan) as a place to stay to Buddha.