Sarnath

Sarnath, just outside Varanasi, is the site Indian history records as the place at which Buddha preached his first sermon upon gaining enlightenment. The grounds include a temple and a very large stupa, the Dhamekh (sometimes Dhamekha) Stupa (stupa: a dome-shaped monument, used to house Buddhist relics or to commemorate significant facts of Buddhism). Although Sarnath 1 below was taken inside the temple (a 20 rupee camera fee), of a monk delivering a sermon to a group of Sri Lankan pilgrims, I otherwise took no photographs of the facilities themselves. I did find fascinating, however, a group of Buddhist monks (from perhaps Thailand or Cambodia) gathered at the stupa, and being honored by a group of pilgrims (who themselves appeared to be Japanese).

The Littlest Hawker (Sarnath 2) is my favorite photo of the group, and one of my favorites of the trip. A very small boy, a shrimp among the hordes of boys hawking souvenirs, reached through the fence hoping to find a buyer for his simple Buddhist icon.

Ironically, although India is the historical foundation for Buddhism, Buddhists represent only about 1% of the Indian population.

Sarnath 1	The Littlest Hawker [Sarnath 2]	Sarnath 3	Sarnath 4
Sarnath 5	Sarnath 6