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Fort of King Vishal (Bihar,Vaishali)

This one kilometer long fort is said to have housed the parliament of those times. This fort is named after King Vishal. The fort was a part of the oldest democracy in the world. The construction of this fort is worth giving a look. Apart from the fort, the museum of Vaishali is worth visiting. This museum has some of the excavated artifacts from Vaishali. Then there are the Stupas, Abhishek Pushkarni and the Dargah of Miran ji are some of the tourist places in Vaishali. The stupas found in Vaishali had stone caskets which contained the ashes of Budha. About the Abhishek Pushkarni is said that a king anoint with the water of this tank before his coronation.

Fort of King Vishal (Vaishali)

Believed to be the first republic in the world, Vaishali has taken its name from King Vishal of the Mahabharat age. He is said to have constructed a great fort here, which is now in ruins. Vaishali is a great Buddhist pilgrimage and also the birthplace of Lord Mahavira. It is said that the Buddha visited this place thrice and spent quite a long time here. The Buddha also delivered his last sermon at Vaishali and announced his Nirvana here. After his death, Vaishali also held the second Buddhist Council.

The great Lichchavi clan ruled Vaishali in the sixth century BC, and the empire extended up to the hills of Nepal. The Lichchavi state is considered to be the first republican state of Asia. According to the Jataka stories, (Buddhist story books giving the account of different births of the Buddha), Vaishali was ruled by some 7707 kings of the Lichchavi clan. Ajatshatru, the great Magadh King, annexed Vaishali in the fifth century BC and after that Vaishali gradually lost its glory and power.

Mahavira, the last Tirthankar of Jainism, was born in Kundupur near Vaishali. The father of Mahavira was King Siddartha and his mother Trishala was the sister of King Chetaka of Vaishali. Since the wealth of his father's kingdom had increased during the pregnancy, the child was called Vardhaman. He was named Mahavira because he showed great courage in a very young age. After the death of his parents at the age of 30, he renounced the world after fasting for two days under an Ashoka tree in Vaishali.

Vaishali is also famous as the land of Ambapali, the great Indian dancer who is related to many folktales. Ambapali was a beautiful and talented courtesan, who later took sanyas to follow the path of the Buddha.

Information
Location around 55 km from Patna
Distance Hajipur (35 kms), Muzaffarpur (36 kms)
STD Code 06225
Language Hindi, Vajjika, Maithili, & English
Climate / best Season/ Best Time To Visit Summer : Max. 44 Min.21
Winter : Max. 23 Min. 6
October to March.
Entertainment
Raja Vishal Ka Ghar, Museums, Stupa, Temple, Durgah, Coronation Tank.
How to Reach
Air: The nearest airport is Patna 56 km connected by Indian Airlines to Bombay, Calcutta, Delhi, Ranchi and Lucknow.
Rail: Hajipur (35 km) on the North Eastern Railway is the nearest railway station
Road: Regular bus services connect Vaishali to Patna via Lalgunj, Hajipur and Muzaffarpur. Vaishali is connected by road to Patna (55 km), Muzaffarpur (36 km) and Hajipur (35 km).

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