New Stamp on Lumbini – A world Heritage Site

Date of Issue 14 September 2009

Hi ! Here of the beautiful set of stamps issued on Lumbini, The Birth Place of Buddha. It is also the World Heritage site. The set of five stamps were issued on 14 September 2009 in se-tenant form. It is the first time that I have received information from a philatelist of Nepal, Mr Shankar Shreshtha.I am pleased to give here information about these stamps in a separate Post. Thanks Mr Shreshtha for sharing this information with the Readers. Mr Shrshtha has sent details of other stamps issued on 14 September 2009. The FDCs are given below. These are the recent nice issues from our neighboring country Nepal which has a large population of Hindu Community. This is all for this Post…..Till Next Post…..Have a Great Time !

Lumbini

Lumbini is the place where the Buddha, known as the Tathagata* was born. The birthplace of the Gautama Buddha, Lumbini, is the Mecca of every Buddhist, being one of the four holy places of Buddhism. It is said in the Parinibbana Sutta that Buddha himself identified four places of future pilgrimage: the sites of his birth, enlightenment, first discourse, and death. All of these events happened outside in nature under trees. While there is not any particular significance in this, other than it perhaps explains why Buddhists have always respected the environment and natural law.

Lumbini is in the foothills of the Himalaya, 25 km east of the municipality of Kapilavastu, where the Buddha is said to have lived till the age of 29. Kapilvastu is the name of the place in question as well as of the neighbouring district. Lumbini has a number of temples, including the Mayadevi temple, and others under construction. Also here is the Puskarini or Holy Pond - where the Buddha's mother took the ritual dip prior to his birth and where he, too, had his first bath - as well as the remains of Kapilvastu palace. At other sites near Lumbini, earlier Buddhas were, according to tradition, born, achieved ultimate awakening and finally relinquished earthly form.

In the Buddha's time, Lumbini was a beautiful garden full of green and shady Sal trees (Shorea). The garden and its tranquil environs were owned by both the Shakyas and Kolias clans. King Suddhodana, father of Gautama Buddha was of the Shakya dynasty belonging to the Kshatriya or the warrior caste. Maya Devi, his mother, gave birth to the child on her way to her parent's home in Devadaha while taking rest in Lumbini under a sal tree in the month of May in the year 642 B.C. The beauty of Lumbini is described in Pali and Sanskrit literature. Maya Devi it is said was spellbound to see the natural grandeur of Lumbini. While she was standing, she felt labor pains and catching hold of a drooping branch of a Sal tree, the baby, the future Buddha, was born.

More New stamps from Nepal issued on 14 September 2009

Date of Issue of all above stamps is 14 September 2009. Mr Shankar Shrestha may be contacted for more details about these new issues from Nepal. E-mail shankar765@yahoo.com