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Patna |
Gaya |
Bodh Gaya |
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Area : 174,000
Sq.Kms.
Language : Bihari, Hindi
Bihar which takes its name from the word ‘Vihara’ or monastery was
the early home of Buddhism and the birthplace of one India’s most
revered emperors Asoka. His Buddhist legacy has left its imprint in
some of the state’s most visited pilgrimage sites while on the
outskirts of modern Patna. Kumrahar still has fragmentary remains of
the early Mauryan capital. In Bodhgaya and Nalanda Buddhism’s
tradition is powerfully visible. Akin to the great ancient
civilizations Indian way of life was also clustered around its
magnificent rivers. And few rivers of the world have moulded the
culture economy and personality of the people evolving on their
banks as the great rivers Ganga. Cutting straight across Bihar from
west to east the bounteous Ganga had made the region so fertile and
plentiful that its natural prosperity nurtured a veritable
fountainhead of political and cultural civilization down the
millennia.
All the major religious of India have left a mark most notably
Buddhism, Jainism and Sikkhism. The world’s first university of
Buddhist learning was founded at Nalanda .
Historically Bihar has been closely linked with the life of Buddha
as he spent most of his time here and attains enlightenment at
Bodhgaya.
Kingdom after kingdom rose and fell to leave their indelible mark on
the history of Bihar.Rivals fought legendary battles devastating the
land and people. Yet by some strange alchemy the same land saw the
birth of some of the same land saw the birth of some of the most
gentle and progressive religious teachers like the Buddha Mahavira
and Guru Gobind Singh. Then came the Muslims who outlet the region
with panache for five centuries to be eliminated in their turn by
the ever expanding colonization of the English who ruled till the
Indian Independence.
Hallowed by footsteps of Buddha the fertile plains of Bihar remain
rich in farmlands growing paddy, cotton, sugarcane, wheat, maize,
barley, jute and fruit. These plains are peopled largely by Hindus
but five centuries of Muslim Political dominance has resulted is a
significant Muslim Population.
Modern Bihar is marked by the sharp contrast between densely
populated and desperately poor Ganges plains and the still forested
uplands of the Chota Nagpur Plateau. This is scenically beautiful
but increasingly a region of major industrial development as its
rich seams of coal and huge deposits of iron ore contribute to
India’s economic modernization. |
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