Kaushambi Varanasi
India - Chennai - Goa - Bodhgaya - Mysore - Pondicherry - Puri - Shimla - Srinagar - Trivandrum - Agra - Bangalore - Chandigarh - Varanasi - Delhi - Cochin - Hyderabad - Jaipur - Kerala - Kolkata - Pune - Udaipur - Darjeeling - Mumbai - Ahmedabad
The district of Kaushambi, Varanasi is situated in the west of Allahabad district. It falls under the state of Uttar Pradesh in the northern India. The district covers a total geographical area of 2012.8 square kilometers. Kaushambi, Varanasi is 185 km from Varanasi. It is about 57 km away from modern Allahabad. River Yamuna give this ruined city a great panoramic view.
HISTORY
Kaushambi, Varanasi has been the most famous and the largest center for Buddhist culture and heritage. Buddha visited this prehistoric city of Kaushambi (earlier known as Kosam) in the 6th and 9th year after his enlightenment. It was then the capital of Vatsa Janpad and ruled by King Udyana. This ancient city, which is ascribed to the Pandav brother of Mahabharata, had the privilege of being the place where Lord Buddha delivered his first sermons and thus uplifting the place to the center of learning of the Buddhists. The city was of great importance as large number of Chinese pilgrims like Fa- hien and Yuan- Chwang came here in the 6th century AD to be a part of the rich Buddhist culture and heritage. Kaushambi, Varanasi was then considered to be one of the six most significant and flourishing town of India.
POINTS OF INTEREST IN KAUSHAMBI
Large number of excavations is carried out in Kaushambi, Varanasi by archeologists and yielded numerous sculptures, figurines, coins, punch-marked, cast coins, terracotta sculptures which bears testimony to the city’s antiquity. A large number of ancient relics and ruins are also excavated. All these collections are now exhibited in the Allahabad museum. Other major points of attraction in Kaushambi, Varanasi incorporate an Ashokan Pillar, an old fort and the Ghositaram Monastery. There are large number of stupas in Kaushambi which enriches this ancient city.
HOW TO REACH KAUSHAMBI
- By Air: The nearest domestic airport near Kaushambi is that of Varanasi.
- By Rail: the nearest railway station is Allahabad
- By Road: the nearest road terminal is Allahabad.
The city of Kaushambi, Varanasi is of historical importance because of the presence of large number of temples like Sheetla temple of Kara, Jain temple of Prabhasgiri to name a few. The city is also surrounded by large number of places of interest like Allahabad, Kanpur, Varanasi, Chitrakoot and Vindhyavasini. So one can easily take a short trip to these cities and enrich themselves.
