BALRAMPUR AND JETAVANA
Balrampur is a city in the state of Uttar Pradesh near the Rapi River. It is one of the areas where there is a high consentration of minorities. We pulled into town which seemed to be like any typical Indian town. It was crowded but a little shabbier then most that I had gone through. We made it to the Pathik Hotel which was a real dive. I checked in and put my luggage in the room and got settled a little then went to the monastery in the park called Jetavana located a few miles south of the city called Sravasti. It is the place where Buddha spent twenty-four rainy seasons. It was called Jeta's Grove and mango trees used to grow there.
Map of Uttar Pradesh This place used to be a monastery since the time it was donated for the Buddha's use, and for many centuries afterwards. Buddha lived in a building called The Hall of Fragrance. It was here that Buddha taught the Dharma. The monks lived in cells all around the property. Also included in the park were temples, meditation halls, bathing places, a hospital, tanks and a library with reading rooms.
It was near here in a forest that Buddha was almost attacked by a man who wore a garland around his neck of the fingers of people who he had killed. When this man met Buddha he wanted to kill him too but Buddha eventually convinced him not to kill people and the man came to his senses and became a follower of Buddha and became a monk. Although his karma still afflicted him from time to time he never harmed anyone after that. There are many miracles that Buddha preformed while staying here.

I was met by the guide at the entrance of the park and we walked to the other end where the monestary once was. The place is now in ruins, but is kept up and is very neat. He pointed out the most interesting places, such as where Buddha stayed and the cells of the monk and also the well that Buddha used to get water. There are also quite a few stupas and ruins of temples from the 1st and 2nd centuries AD. One of the stupas is of the man who once tried to kill him. He had remained a monk for the rest of his life and his ashes were put where the stupa now sits.

There is also a Bodhi tree that was planted by Ananda. The guide said that it was the origional tree that was planted there. It is located at the entrance of Jetavana. It was to be a shrine when Buddha was away. People would come and leave garlands and fragrant wreaths as offerings there. The tree came from a shoot of the origional Bodhgaya tree and was sent up from Sri Lanaka. When the tree was first planted Buddha spent an entire night meditating under it to dedicate it.

After this tour I went back to the car where Raja was waiting. He knew of a couple more places around the area that were related to the Buddhist history of the area. He took me to the cave where the man lived that tried to attack him, then a few other stupas. Then it was back to the hotel.

Buddha country The next morning I got up and opened the bathroom door and there were two lizards on the wall. One immediately darted toward the window and escaped. The next one stayed where it was and eyeballed me. Then I moved the shower curtain to see if there were anymore and the second one scurried out the window quick as lightning

Village resturant.For breakfast I had a vegatable sandwich which was about a quarter of an inch thick, deep fried cheese sticks with plum sauce and chai masala. After that Raja and I took off for Lucknow which was 171 km from the edge of Balrumpur. We passed all the familiar scenes of people, horse drawn carts, oxen carts, old and young walking along the highway.

Shrine dedicated to Ganesh. On the way we had to stop for a train to pass. There were quite a few cars lined up. The train was long and it was going to take a while for it to pass so everybody got out of their cars and started selling their wares. It was instant bazaar. You could get almost anything you would want. I bought four guavas for ten rupees for the train trip I would be taking the next day.

We stopped for tea at this place. Just before we arrived in Lucknow we stopped for a tea break at a roadside cafe. By this time I was getting tired of ordering black tea with no cream or sugar. It seemed to be getting more and more bitter and strong at each stop. People of India don't understand the concept of tea with nothing in it. It either has to have some kind of masala in it or cream and sugar. Finally I succumed to their tradition. I had my tea with cream. They serve their tea in tiny little glasses.