Excursion to Sarnath

Day trip to Sarnath , one of the four holy cities of Buddhism: the place where Buddha gave his first sermon after achieving enlightenment in Bodhgaya, giving birth to the Dharma, and the cradle of the first Buddhist community, giving birth to the Sangha.

Sarnath is about 40 minutes from Varanasi and is a pilgrimage site for Buddhists from India and other countries. As it is a sacred place, one must dress respectfully when visiting the religious sites. In 640 BC, a 100-meter-high stupa stood here, and more than 3,000 monks lived in the monasteries of the area. All of this was lost after the city was sacked and devastated by the Muslim Turks. It wasn’t until 1835 that it was rediscovered by British archaeologists.

We will visit several temples and the Dhamekh Stupa: the most sacred site in the excavated area. This circular stone and brick structure is over forty meters high and almost thirty meters wide, where it is believed the Buddha gave his first sermon to his five disciples after attaining enlightenment. Legend says that many deer grazed here, and the carvings on the base depict many species that must have been found there. Nearby, we will see the Chaukhandi Stupa , made of stacked bricks with an octagonal tower.

We will see many vestiges of ancient Sarnath, its former splendor, the pillars of Ashoka , columns that commemorated the visit of this king in the 3rd century BC. The Sarnath pillar is the best preserved of those that still exist, and the four stone lions that crown the column are unique and, in fact, are the national emblem of India .

Sarnath, with its archaeological remains, has it all : history, legend, religion, and spirituality. It’s a perfect day trip if you’re in Varanasi.