Pilgrimage Trip

Pilgrimage Trip to India

There are so many countries, so many wonders, so many ancient cities, so many famous mountains that are worth to visit. In general, the world is big, while India is poor, dirty, crowded. Why India? Even food might not be secure there. The river is too dirty there. Why should every Buddhist visit the Eight holy places in India at least once in this life?These might be the questions in your mind, right?

But, no matter how many questions you have, when hearing about pilgrimage to India, are you intersted? Are you curious? Are you eager to go? Some times, the mind and the soul are separated, especially for people of strong mind. The mind does not know what the soul wants.

Why should every Buddhist visit the holy places in India? First, let’s listen to what the Buddha said before his Pariniravana taken from the Mahaparinibbana Sutta. The Buddha said,

“There are four places, Ananda, that a pious person should visit and look upon with feelings of reverence. What are the four?

“‘Here the Tathagata was born!’ [Lumbini] This, Ananda, is a place that a pious person should visit and look upon with feelings of reverence.

“‘Here the Tathagata became fully enlightened in unsurpassed, supreme Enlightenment!’ [Bodhgaya] This, Ananda, is a place that a pious person should visit and look upon with feelings of reverence.

“‘Here the Tathagata set rolling the unexcelled Wheel of the Dhamma!’ [Sarnath] This, Ananda, is a place that a pious person should visit and look upon with feelings of reverence.

“‘Here the Tathagata passed away into the state of Nibbana in which no element of clinging remains!’ [Kushinagar] This, Ananda, is a place that a pious person should visit and look upon with feelings of reverence.

“These, Ananda, are the four places that a pious person should visit and look upon with feelings of reverence. And truly there will come to these places, Ananda, pious bhikkhus and bhikkhunis, laymen and laywomen, reflecting: ‘Here the Tathagata was born! Here the Tathagata became fully enlightened in unsurpassed, supreme Enlightenment! Here the Tathagata set rolling the unexcelled Wheel of the Dhamma! Here the Tathagata passed away into the state of Nibbana in which no element of clinging remains!'”

The above are the Buddha’s advise to Buddhists. The four places the Buddha mentioned, the place of birth, Lumbini, the place of enlightenment, Bodhgaya, the place of the first turning of the Dharma wheel, Sarnath, and the place of Nirvana, Kushinagar, are the Four Holy Places. What about the Eight Holy Places? Besides the above Four Holy places, there are another Four Holy Places, and they are the two Viharas where the Buddha stayed very long times, Buddha’s first Vihara Kalaṇḍaka Veṇu-vana Vihara in rajagrha (Rajgir in Pali) which was said to be offered to the Buddha by the King of that country, the Jetavana Vihara in Sravasti which was offered by Anathapindika, Sankasia where the Buddha descended from the heaven of Trayastriṃśa after he preached to his mother there, and Vaishali where the Buddha told his disciples that he was going to enter Nirvana soon. Vaishali is also the place where the Buddha accepted women to renounce their family to become nun.During the trip, not only the Eight Holy Places are visited, the Ganges River by the City of Varanarsi, which the Buddha often used in his teachings, the Vulture peak where the Buddha often walked to from the Venuvana Vihara, the Sujata temple (the Buddha accepted chyle from Sujata. In memory of Sujata, people built a temple), the Snow Mountain Dragon Cave where the Buddha stayed for 6 years during his ascetic practice, Ananda Stupa in memory of Ananda, the Buddha’t attendant, and so on, will be talked upon in the following talks.

So what are the benefits of pilgrimage to India? There are many,

1.The trip will help you eradicate karma and accumulate merit. The Holy places are special energy fields. This is where the previous Buddhas and future Buddhas became or will become Buddha. If you know this is where all Buddhas become Buddhas on earth, you would understand it’s energy is different. It’s a place selected and blessed by all the Buddhas.

2.It’s a trip to connect to the Buddha and be blessed by the Buddha. Give yourself two weeks of time and take this pilgrimage trip. This is a trip to clean the body and the mind. Before the trip, you will have to do some homework to prepare yourself, such as reading the Biography of the Buddha, do daily sutra recitation and hold mantra. So when you are there, you know that place well, and you know what the Buddha did in that place. You will have a better connection.

3.It’s a trip to recall past lives. Many who have affinity with the Buddha also have affinity with India. They may like Indian culture, may feel close to Indian people, may like Indian food, Indian clothes because they lived there in their previous lives. Especially for those people who once were the Buddha’s direct disciples and listened to the Buddha’s words, when visiting those Holy places, they might recall their past lives; their might feel those places are so familiar; they may want to cry. Many of these people are lost in this worldly world and have forgot the Buddha, the Dharma and the Sangha. It’s a trip to awaken yourself.

4.It’s a trip to bring forth vows and to shoulder the Buddha’s undertaking. The Buddha came to this world only for one reason, to rescue sentient beings, to transform sentient beings, to bring the light to the sentient beings. Light is wisdom; darkness is ignorance. It’s a trip to resonate with the Buddha, and bring forth vows to do what the Buddha did. True sutra has no words. True sutra is resonating with the Buddha heart to heart. The Buddha is there. The question is can you resonate with the Buddha and obtain the supreme sutra?

5.It’s a trip of test. Would you be able to put down everything behind, not thinking about everything around you in your daily life? Buddha often told us to put down, not attach to anything. Attachment to the people and things around you is just like the gravity of the earth. You will not get liberated if the mind is attached to outer things. For example, if one person’s life is about to end, the Buddha comes and ask this person to leave with him. If this person’s mind is full of his family, his kids, his house, his car, his money, will he be able to leave? Of course no because of the attachment. A free mind is liberation. You may ask: it would be emotionless not to think about my family, my kids. Well, putting down does not mean to give up. Change emotion to compassion. Sometimes, being emotionless is the greatest compassion. Liberate yourself, and so you can liberate others. Break the illusion yourself, so you can help others to break through. This is another topic that we can talk about in the future.

It’s a sacred thing to make the vows on the Vulture Peak and make vows in front of the Buddha. Vulture Peak is the root of all Buddhists.