Bihar Tourism

Patna
    
    The ancient capital of the Mauryan empire, Patna is a major destination for religious tourists and people seeking an educational experience.  2,500,000 tourists visit Patna each year, and the city is covered in sites of interest to both pilgrims and tour groups alike.

Ganga River

    The river Ganges in patna is lind with ancient forts and is a major tourist destination for pilgrims washing in its holy waters.  It has the longest river bridge in the world, the Mahatma Gandhi Setu.

Mahavir Mandir

    This is among the holiest temples in India dedicated to the deity Hanuman.  It is the second most visited shrine in Norther India.  For non-religious tourists, its best to go on a day that is not Saturday or Tuesday, as those are the traditional days of worship to the Lord Hanuman.

Takht Sri Patna Sahib

    This famous Takht, one of five in Sikhism, is built in remembrance of the 10th Sikh Guru Gobind Singh.  It has some of the most beautiful architecture in the city and its iconic white domes glisten in the mid-day light.  It is also called Takht Sri Harmandir Sahib.

Gurdwara Ghai Ghat

    This Gurdwara, more formally known as Pahila Bara, is dedicated to the Guru Nanak Dev, who stayed here durign his visit to Patna in the 16th century.  It is a short cab ride from the Takht Sri Patna Sahib, and is the oldest Gurdwara in the region.  

Gurdwara Bal Lila Maini

    Located in a back street of Patna, the beautiful former palace of King Fateh Chand Maini.  As his queen was fond of the child Guru Gobind Singh, who, legend goes, came to sit in her lap to give her joy.  In recent decades it hs been reconstructed but it does have a wood carving on the front door dating back to 1668.

Gurdwara Guru ka Bagh

    Just east of Takht Sri Hamrandir Sahib is Gurdwara Guru ka Bagh, commemorating where Guru Tegh Bahadur and Guru Gobind Singh first met.  It is a sacred site for many Sikh pilgrims visiting Patna.

Maner Sharif

    A popular Islamic pilgrimage, the Maner Sharif is where the famous Makhdum Daulat passed away.  It is surrounded by gorgeous gardens and is one of the finest examples of architecture in the whole city of Patna.  Within are two Muslim tombs very popular among pilgrims, for Makhdoom Yahya Maneri, called the Bari Dargah, and the other is for Shah Daulat, called the Chhoti Dargah.  The tomb was built by Ibrahim Khan in 1616, and it is accompanied by a mosque.  This is a must-see site for anyone visiting patna.

Patna Planetarium

    This is among the largest planetariums in Asia is a important local spot.  it was dedicated to the Indian Nation in 1993.

Patna Museum

    Built by the British in 1917, this Museum houses the artifacts found throughout Bihar.

Golghar

    A famous local granary in Patna is the Golghar, a rather quizzical structure built after a horrible famine in 1786.  The Golghar was one of the largest in the subcontinent when it was first made, although it has never been filled to maximum capacity because of a design flaw that makes it impossible to access if it is full.  It it still used by resident Patnaites.

Gandhi Maidan


The Gandhi Maidan, known during the British Raj as the Patna Grounds, is the center of all civic life in Patna is a nationally historic gathering ground.  It was where the Champaran and Quit India movements first began, and Mahatma Gandhi, who the park is now named after, prayed regularly here.  Dozens of famous leaders of the Indian Independence Movement, including Jawaharal Nehru, Sardar Patel, Sri Krishna Sinha and Gandhi held many rallies here as well.

Patna Golf Club

    Businessmen visiting Patna may want to play a couple holes of golf, and the 165 acres golf course is a well-maintained option with some difficult holes.  It has holes for both amateurs and pros.

Moin-ul-Haq Stadium

    The second largest stadium in India, games of cricket are frequently played here, providing a entertainment for tourists and locals alike.

Aga Kuan

    The "unfathomable well", Aga Kuan dates back to the time of Ashoka.  It is said the Mauryan Emperor Ashoka threw his 99 brothers into the 105 foot deep well in order to become emperor.  Other myths claim it was built by Ashoka for torturing people.  It is just outside Patna.

Gaya

    About a 100 kilometers south of Patna is the city of Gaya, and has the only international airport in Bihar or the neighboring state of Jharkhand.  Good, clean hotels can be found here at low cost, including Hotel Heritage India, Hotel Royal Suria, and Ajat Satru.  It is a short train ride from Patna. Gaya is very close to some important ancient sites, including the UNESCO World Heritage Site Mahabodi Temple and the Bodhi Tree, both sacred sites to Buddhists.

Mahabodi Temple and the Bodhi Tree

    A UNESCO World Heritage Site, Mahabodi Temple is built entirely out of brick and is one of the finest surviving examples of the ancient Indian art of bricklaying.  At 55 meters tall, it towers over the surrounding complex. Mahabodi Temple was built to commemorate the exact spot of the Buddha's enlightenment, and as such thousands of devout Buddhists travel from all over the world to pay their respects here.  Mauryan Emperor Ashoka is the founder of the temple, although the structure in its current form dates centuries later, in the 5th century AD.  Somehow, the temple survived the Muslim invasions, and although it suffered its share of wear and tear over the centuries it remained largely unscathed.  In the 1800's, it underwent a major restoration. The adjacent Bodhi Tree is the descendent of the very tree under which the Buddha achieved Nirvana. It is a major pilgrimage site as well, and many tourists come to see it, too.

Vishnupada Mandir

    This beautiful temple is a major pilgrimage site for Hindus worshipping Lord Vishnu.  Hindus believe the temple covers a footprint of Lord Vishnu in a bed of basalt.  Nearby is a hill with a 1000 step stone staircase, where visitors often climb to get a better view of the temple.  Many Buddhist also believe it is where Siddartha Guatama, the Buddha, meditated for six years.

Barabar Caves

    These are the oldest rock-cut caves in India, carved into the hills nearby Gaya in the 3rd century BC.  The ancient emperor Ashoka, known for his promotion of religious freedom, allowed Jains to live in the caves, and consequently ascetics lived in them for many years.  The caves are cut out of granite and consist of many chambers, and walking in them, one can't help but realize how long ago it was that king Ashoka himself was walking their halls.


Bihar Sharif

Bihar Sharif was for a time a center of Muslim culture and learning, and served as the regional capital for Muslim governors.  The town itself is on top of a rocky outcropping, and the old town has some excellent medieval architecture.  It is also a great departure point to the ruins if Nalanda, a major tourist attraction in the area, as well as the Jain temples at Pawapuri.

Bihar Sharif Old Town

    The old town of Bihar Sharif is composed of some ancient ruins of Magadha, such as the tombs of Malik Ibrahim Vaya and Baba Maniram.  It has a wonderful and rare view over the usually flat Bihar.

Nalanda

    Very close to Bihar Sharif are the ruins if Nalanda. From 427 to 1197 AD, Nalanda was a center of Buddhist scholarship and one of the first universities on earth where students lived and studied.  It had at its peak some 10,000 students and 2,000 teachers, and it was widely thought as one of the most beautiful architectural masterworks with its eight compounds, ten temples, and dozens of smaller buildings, all surrounded by lakes.  The library was among the largest in the world, some nine stories tall and full of scrupulously copied texts covering everything from religion to the sciences.  People from as far as Japan and Turkey traveled by foot, over deserts and mountains, to study there.  Sadly, Nalanda was destroyed by invading Muslims led by Bakhtiyar Khilji in 1193.  Khilji is said to have cared nothing about the vast texts of knowledge within, only asking if there was a Koran in there before he burned it to the ground.  It is said the famous library burned for months before finally settling down. Nowadays, archeologists have excavated a small portion of the ruins, but scholars estimate some 90% of the university is as yet uncovered. People wanting to visit the ruins can travel from Patna or Rajgir by bus.  As one of the most historically influential area ever, it is worth the trip.

Pawapuri

    Nearby Bihar Sharif is Pawapuri.  Many Jains visit this town, the place where Lord Mahavira, a Jain prophet and the last of the 24 Tirthankaras, died in 500 BC.  Here, it is said he reached Moksha, also called Nirvana, and was cremated.  People so wanted to collect his ashes that a pond was accidentally dug by people seeking them.  Today, a lovely white marble temple occupies the site on a lotus shaped pond, called the Jalmandir.  Nearby is the Samosharan temple, dedicated to the last teaching given by Lord Mahavira.

Sasaram

    Sasaram is a sleepy, ancient city which is most famous for being the birthplace of Sher Shah Suri, a powerful ruler of Delhi who defeated the Mughal Emperor Humayun.  His mausoleum is in the town, and is one of the most beautiful tombs in all of India, often called the second Taj Mahal.  The red sandstone mausoleum is in the middle of a reflecting lake. There is also a large temple in town, the Maa Tara Chandi Temple, and the Kaimur mountain, renowned for its waterfalls and natural beauty.

Rajgir

    Rajgir was the ancient capital or the Kingdom of Magahda, the state that turned into the Mauryan Empire.  Famous for its hot springs, Rajgir has long been a center of religious life in Bihar, and there are monasteries built by Japanese Buddhist monks in the hills surrounding the town.

Lakshmi Narayan Mandir

    This pink-colored Hindu temple is built on top of the hot springs of Rajgir.  Many pilgrims visit the site each year to bathe in its waters, said to have healing effects.



Bihar History and Culture

    Bihar has one of the longest histories of any place on the planet.  It is the birthplace of Jainism and Buddhism, and its landscape is dotted with places where the Buddha walked and lived at himself.  The Mauryan Empire, the only Indian empire to rule almost the entire subcontinent, was ruled from Patna, the modern capital of the state.  The Mauryan Emperor Ashoka, argued by many to be one of the greatest rulers ever, reigned from the city and, after conquering all of India, became a devout Buddhist and sponsored the establishment of many places of learning.  Bihar has many ruins of massive ancient universities, destroyed by invaders centuries later.  Bihar was known as Magadha, and was the most important regions in the ancient world, a center of education, culture, and religion.  
    The Gupta Empire, another of India's great empires, was centered in Bihar as well, and this empire exerted a tremendous influence over every empire to follow.  It was a contemporary of the Roman Empire and the Han Dynasty, and traded frequently with both. The era of the Guptas, beginning in 240 AD, is often called the Golden Age of India, because of the great advances made in science, mathematics, religion, philosophy and astronomy.  Like the Mauryans, the Guptas left their mark on Bihar, and its soil is full of coins, icons, and other relics of its past.  
    Bihar, the birthplace of Buddhism and always a hotbed of its philosophy, went into decline after the Muslim invasions of the 12th century AD.  The great universities of Nalanda and Vikramshila were burnt, and thousands of monks were educated.  It would regain its influence briefly under the reformer Sher Shah, who instituted laws that would persist to this day, but Bihar took a backseat in terms of national importance after its conquest by the Mughals.  Its anonymity persisted during the British era, where it was ruled from Bengal.
    Bihar had a central role in the struggle for Indian independence, where Mahatma Gandhi launched his civil-disobedience movement and protested the mistreatment of Bihari peasants by Europeans.  It was and remains to this day a center of agrarian agitation and a desire for reform.
    The state is a massive alluvial plain crisscrossed with many minor rivers and bisected by the mighty Ganges, the most important feature in the state.  Dolphin and tigers live along it, although both are endangered in Bihar.  In the north of the state, near the Himalayas and Nepal, are more forested areas and wildlife.
    Bihar is largely Hindu, with a sizable Muslim minority.  The state is overwhelmingly rural in character, with some 90% of people living in the countryside.  It is one of the poorest regions of India, and has chronic problems with corruption, unemployment, and health.  Most Biharis live off less than two dollars a day.  However, its people are renowned for their perseverance, and Biharis take great pride in their cultural heritage.  Most Biharis speak a form of Hindi, though some care is taken to distinguish the language of Bihar from the forms of Hindi spoken elsewhere in the country.  The literacy rate in Bihar is under 50%.  
    Bihar has a magnificent cuisine built around vegetarian staples, and has distinct dishes.  One of the most famous and favorite dishes is Litti-Chokha, a dumpling of potatoes, tomatoes, and eggplant.  Religion is a very big deal in the area, and during Chhath, a festival that happens twice a year, almost every Hindu in Bihar fastes without water for 24 hours.  The 10th Guru of Sikhism was born in and lived in Patna, making it a pilgrimage site for Sikhs.
    Tourism in Bihar is becoming increasingly popular, and there are very, very ancient ruins in many of its cities.  For Buddhist, Sikh, and Hindu pilgrims, some of the holiest sites in their religions can be found.  For Western tourists, there are some of the oldest and most beautiful sites in all India, including the Choti Dargah, the UNESCO World Heritage Site Mahabodi Temple, and the massive excavated ruins of Nalanda University, at one time one of the biggest centers of learning in the ancient world.