Lumbini, Nepal
A small village on the Nepalese border with India, Lumbini is the place where the Buddha was born as Prince Siddhartha circa 400 BC. The site is also close to the ruins of Kapilavastu, the ancient kingdom of the Shakyas, the clan to which Prince Siddhartha belonged. The ruins of the royal palace where he grew up still stand on the outskirts.
“The Ganga, especially, as the river of India, beloved of her people, round which are intertwined her racial memories, her hopes and fears, her songs of triumph, her victories and her defeats. She has been a symbol of India’s age-long culture and civilisation, ever changing, ever flowing, and yet ever the same Ganga.”– Jawaharlal Nehru, first Prime Minister of India, born on the banks of the…