Lumbini: After Buddha

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After the death of the Buddha Lumbini became an important site for Buddhist pilgrims near and far a continuous flow of who came with faith and devotion, seeking peace and the purification of their minds.
There is no evidence or records mentioning visits made by any high authorities before the 3rd century BC. The religious complex has yielded cultural deposits belonging to that century, while ample archaeological finds from the village mound of Lumbini date back to the 7 1h Wh century BC. 
The 3rd century BC is a landmark era in the history of Lumbini. The conversion of Emperor Asoka after the massacre and bloodshed in the devastating battle of Kalinga (present-day Orissa state in India) was a milestone in the history of Buddhism. 





The patronage of a great and powerful emperor provided a strong stimulus to the spread of Buddhism. Among many other things, Emperor Asoka, in exhibition of his intense devotion to the Buddhist faith, instituted dharma-yalras ('state pilgrimages to hallowed Buddhist places') to replace Whara-yatras ('pleasure tours'). Evidence of such pilgrimages can still be seen in the inscriptions on pillars in Lumbini, Niglihawa and Gotihawa (though the pillar in Gotihawa is now broken, and its upper part missing). 
Emperor Asoka took great interest in the well-being of the Buddhist Sangha and undertook measures to safeguard it against schisms. The Calcutta-Bairat rock edict (an inscription of Asoka) shows that he recommended the study of certain Buddhist texts to monks and laymen alike, and advised tolerance and understanding in matters of religion. He erected memorial columns in different parts of the land and inscribed on them simple rules of morality, such as loving-kindness to man and beast, truthfulness and respect towards elders, care for the destitute and nonacquisitiveness. He is also credited with having built throughout his vast empire stupas enshrining the relies -of the Buddha and with having appointed a special class of officers, called dharmamahamatras, to propagate righteousness among the people. 
Under the auspices of Asoka a third Buddhist council of Theravadins held in Pataliputra led to the compilation of the Kathavastu, and it is said that after this council ended Asoka sent missionaries in different directions as far as Macedonia, Syria and Egypt in the west and Ceylon in the south to propagate the Buddhist doctrines. It is even believed that his son and daughter (Mahindra and Sangharnitra) went to Ceylon to preach the law of the Buddha. 
Asoka's pious activities also led to the formation of schools of art, their main concern being in propagating and popularising the Buddhist religion through artwork. His noble examples were followed by the rulers who succeeded him. In fact, the history of Buddhism from the days of Asoka is intimately linked with that of Buddhist art (P.D., 308:1956).

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