Orissa As A State
Located in the eastern part of India, Orissa is bordered by Jharkhand in north, West Bengal in the north-east, Bay of Bengal in the east, Chhattisgarh in the west and Andhra Pradesh in the south. The state occupies a total area of 155,707 sq km and is an extensivce plateau in the inner areas and huge coastal plains in the foreground.

The best time to visit the state is in between the months of November to March. The major attractions that tourists look forward for in the state comprise both natural beauty and cultural heritage. There are quiet beaches, beautiful blue hill, winding rivers, cascading waterfalls, green woodlands, rock caves, exotic wildlife, along with picturesque mud villages, sculptured temples, colourful gay tribals and varied handicrafts.


Significance of Buddhism in Orissa
In earlier times, Orissa was the mighty Kalinga Empire. At that point of time, it was important from both commercial and cultural point of view. Then, in a major change of events, Kalinga war raged out with the Mauryan Emperor, Asoka in the 3rd century BC. He was a pretty ambitious king but the bloodshed that he witnessed during the Kalinga war shook him completely and filled him with deep remorse. He embraced Buddhism and also did a lot in subsequent years to spread the philosophies of the religion that Prince Siddharta (Gautam Buddha) preached. Asokan edicts that still exist are testimony to this conversion that took place in the powerful king and his attempts to spread peace and love amongst people of the world. With the death of Asoka, Buddhism in Orissa faced a setback because of the emergence of Jainism.


Today, the Buddhist are a minority, yet the there are many people in the state who still continue to practice the religion, specially in the villages of Badamba-Narasimhapur, Nuapatna and Tigiria areas.


Major Buddhist Places In Orissa

• Udaigiri :Udaigiri is located around 100 km from Bhubaneswar and 20 km from Cuttack. It is an important Buddhist piligrimage destination in Orissa. Excavation have unearthed remains of Buddhist brick monastery that perhaps flourished between the period of 7th and 12th century AD. Recently, it has also come to light that the ancient name of the monastery was Madhavpura Mahavira.
  
  There is yet another brick monastery in the complex which still remains unexcavated. Apart from the two monastery, the remains also consist of a brick stupa, a beautiful stepped stone well with inscriptions on it and rock-cut sculptures at the top of the hill behind. Figures of Dhyani Buddha have been discoverd from the ruins as well. The entire complex lies at the base of a hill.
  
  
• Lalitagiri : The excavations at Lalitagiri have led to the discovery of the earliest Buddhist complex in the area which dates back to the 1st century AD. Buddhist attractions here include ruins of a large brick monastery, the remains of the chaitya hall, a number of votive stupas and a renovated stone stupa at the top of a small rugged sandstone hill. Additionally, there is also a museum that exhibits numerous Mahayana sculptures including colossal Buddha figures, huge Boddhisattva statues, statues of Tara, Jambhala and others. Also, what is exciting is that most of these sculptures have brief inscriptions on them. There is a figure of Standing Buddha with knee length draperies over the shoulders.
  
  A casket consisting of sacred relics, perhaps belonging to the Tathagat himself has been discovered from the stone stupa at the top of the hill. This has led to the increased importance of the Lalitagiri in the hearts of the Buddhist from all over the world. It is considerd the same remarkables stupa which the Chinese traveller Hieun Tsang spoke about in his accounts. The stupa he wrote about was situated atop a hill at Pushpagiri Mahavira and radiated spectacular light due to its sacredness. The excavations have unearthed inscriptions strengthening the belief that it is the Langudi hill in Jajpur district which may be identified as Puspagiri.
  
  Cuttack and Bhubaneswar are the good base to start off a trip to this famous Buddhist destination in Orissa.
  
  
• Ratnagiri : Exacvations at Ratnagiri in the Birupa river valley in Jajpur district, have so far been the richest in terms of cultural treasures. The discoveries here include two large monasteries, a big stupa and numerous votive stupas that indicate towards the powerful impact that Buddhism had in the times of the Gupta king Narasimha Gupta Baladitya (first half of the sixth century A.D.). Buddhism progressed in this region leaps and bounds till the 12th century AD. Findings have also revealed that the region was an important centre of Tantric Buddhism and Vajrayana art and philosophy in the 8th and the 9th century.
  
  
  Cuttack and Bhubaneswar are yet again the base for visiting Ratnagiri. Infact, Ratnagiri along with Udaigiri and Lalitagiri form the Diamond Triangle.
  
  
• Dhauli : Down the Puri - Konark Highway (coming from Bhubaneswar) stands the significant Dhauli hill on the banks of Daya river. It was here that the bloody battle of Kalinga forever changed the course of life of the Mauryan Emperor Asoka. He renounced violence in favour of peace and carved out 13 edicts in the rocks with sculptued elephant at the top ( the universal symbol of Budddhism). There are two special edicts here that highlight Asoka's desire and instruction to his administration, to rule with gentleness and fairness. The instruction in the edict reads
  
  '...these are my instructions to you. You are in charge of many thousands of living beings. You should gain the affection of men. All men are my children, and as I desire for my children that they should obtain welfare and happiness both in this world and the next, the same do I desire for all men...'
  
  A Peace pagoda or Shanti Stupa lies further up the hill. It was constructed by Japan Buddha Sangha and the Kalinga Nippon Buddha Sangha jointly in the 1870's. A monastery by the name of Saddharma Vihar was also constructed during the same time by them.

Other Buddhist Places in Orissa

• Padmapur : Padampur is located in the Rayagada district and is mainly an agricultural centre today. However, in earlier times it housed the monastery of the well known Buddhist logician-philosopher Dharmakirti. An inscription dating back to 7th century testifies that the monastery was located at the Jagmanda Hills.
  
  
• Balasore District :Located in the north Orissa, the district of Balasore has quiet a few significant Buddhist sites. In Kupari, remains of an old Buddhist temple and monastery have been discovered while findings in Solampur have unearthed images of Buddha. Images of Buddha have also been found here and there at Khadipada and Soro. The ideal base to visit these places is undoubetedly the town of Balasore.
  
  
• Banpur : Findings in Banpur have sprung up a large number of bronze statue of Buddhist pantheon which connect the place to the Vajrayana cult of Buddhism. The ideal base to visit Banpur are Balugaon and Chilika.
  
  
• Kuruma : A small village not far away from the Sun Temple of Konark (8 km), Kuruma is believed to be one of those sites where a Buddhist stupa mentioned by Hiuen Tsang existed. Excavations here have brought to notice ancient Buddhist antiquities like the image of Buddha seated in Bhumisparsa Mudra along with the image of Heruka. The ideal base to explore Kuruma is ofcourse Konark or Puri.
  
  
• Biswanath Hill : This hill housed the ancient monastery of Dignag, the Buddhist Logician and Philosopher.
  
  
• Jaugada : Jaugada is second place in the state of Orissa that houses the Asokan rock edict with inscription addressed to Kalinga. Around 2 km away, at Buddhakhol, images of Buddhist pantheon attract tourists in large number.
  
  
• Sambalpur District : At Gandhamardan Hill, excavations have led to the discovery of the remains which is believed to be of a monastery called 'Parimalagiri'. Mention about it is found in the accounts of Hiuen Tsang. Ganiapali is yet another site in the district which is significant for the Buddhist.
  
  
• Naraj : Naraj is beautiful spot which was an important centre of Buddhist culture and learning in the erstwhile era.
  
  

Other Major Attractions in Orissa

• Bhubaneswar : The capital of Orissa, Bhubaneswar is widely famous as the temple city. This is due to the presence of large number of temples in the town. Most of them are located around the immensely sacred Bindu Sarovar tank. Apart from temples, other attractions of Bhubaneswar include State Museum, handicrafts Museum and tribal Museum.
  
  
• Puri : Puri is one of the most renowned Hindu pilgrimage centre with a temple dedicated to Lord Jagannath. It is one of the four holy dhams for the Hindus. An annual Path Yatra or Chariot Festival in the month of June July attracts the attention of entire country towards Puri. Tourists also love to walk on the beautiful Puri beach during their visit.
  
  
• Konark : The erstwhile capital of Bhubaneswar, Cuttack's attraction lies in its blue granite ruins of the Barabati Maratha Fort and a dome like building which houses the footprints of the Prophet Mohammed.