Photo: Sir Benjamin Simpson / Wikimedia Commons, Public domain
📍 West Champaran, North Bihar, Bihar
Lauriya Nandangarh preserves one of the finest and best-preserved of Emperor Ashoka's polished sandstone pillars, standing tall since around 245 BCE and crowned by a single seated lion. The column still bears Ashoka's edicts inscribed in Brahmi script, a direct link to the Mauryan age. Nearby stands the great Nandangarh mound, one of the largest ancient stupa sites in the region.
The Lauriya Nandangarh pillar is a monolithic column of polished Chunar sandstone, about 10 metres tall, and one of the few Ashokan pillars still standing at its original site with its lion capital intact. The nearby Nandangarh mound is a massive brick stupa believed to date from the Mauryan period, surrounded by a cluster of earthen burial mounds.
Key things to see:
October to March, when the Champaran plains are cool and comfortable.
Wildlife & Sanctuaries Bihar's only tiger reserve and its sole national park, set in the Himalayan Terai forests along the Nepal border. Spread over roughly 900 sq km, it shelters Royal Bengal tigers, leopards, sloth bears, wild elephants, gaur and hundreds of bird species. Jeep safaris from Manguraha and Gobardhana ranges offer a genuine wilderness experience in one of North India's richest, leastcrowded jungles.
Nature & Waterfalls A scenic riverside town at Bihar's northern tip on the India–Nepal border, where the Gandak (Narayani) enters India. The Gandak Barrage, a major India–Nepal irrigation and power project, spans the river beside forested hills and the Triveni confluence. Gateway to the Valmiki Tiger Reserve, it blends nature, pilgrimage and crossborder scenery.
Buddhist Circuit Kesaria is often described as one of the tallest and largest Buddhist stupas in the world, its huge terraced brick dome rising dramatically from the plains of Champaran. Believed to mark the spot where the Buddha, on his final journey, gave his alms bowl to the Licchavis, it dates back to the Mauryan and later Gupta and Pala periods. Its sheer scale and peaceful rural setting make it an aweinspiring, uncrowded destination.
Hindu Temples Revered as the birthplace of Mata Sita, consort of Lord Rama. Tradition holds that when King Janaka ploughed a barren field, infant Sita emerged from the earth at this very spot. The complex houses the Janaki Janmasthali Mandir and the sacred Janaki Kund, and forms part of a 'sacred triangle' with Sitamarhi and Janakpur (Nepal). A grand redevelopment is underway to build a major Sita temple and pilgrim corridor.
