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The Buddha was born   in Lumbin i (in modern-day Nepal) which was located in the Koshala  kingdom and the kingdom was one of the sixteen Mahajanapadas . He was born into the Shakya  clan . The Shakya tribe was located in the Himalayan foothills and this small republic (ganarajya)  was one of the vassal states of Koshola  Mahajanapada. The Buddha was the son of a chief of the Shakyas.   It was primarily in such ganasanghas during the Age of the Mahajanapadas when there was the emergence of some prominent monarchical and non-monarchical political formations in the Indian subcontinent that we find the growth of various heterodox sects, including Buddhism.  Because the Buddha was born into the Shakya clan , h e is also known as Shakyamuni   as  he belonged to the Shakya tribe.  Also, the Buddha was born into the Suryavanshi (solar dynasty) of the Kshatriya varna or caste.  In Buddhist literature, he is also called Siddhartha Gautama ...

Tucked away on the fringes of the holy city of Varanasi, Sarnath (in present-day Uttar Pradesh) entices with its age-old charm and has immense relevance in understanding the Buddha’s path to enlightenment.  During the Age of the Mahajanapadas i.e. by 600 BCE in ancient India, there emerged sixteen major kingdoms or oligarchic republics called Mahajanapadas. Kashi was one of the Mahajanapadas. Its capital was Varanasi and Sarnath was part of this Mahajanapada.  It is located near the confluence of the Ganga and Varuna rivers. Come, let’s explore Sarnath and its fascinating history, architecture and spiritual significance that draw tourists from all over the world.   Buddha in a past incarnation as a deer and Mrigadava : The word Sarnath is derived from  Sarangnath  (the master of deer). Sarang means spotted deer in Sanskrit. In ancient India, Sarnath was known as Mrigadava, Migadaya, Isipatana or Rishipattana. The word for deer in Sanskrit is mriga...