The Great Ashoka, celebrated ruler of the Mauryan dynasty, is said to have converted to Buddhism after witnessing the horrors of the Kalinga war in 261 bc. He is credited with spreading the new religion across the Subcontinent. Through his patronage, Buddhism and its symbolism became associated with Ashoka’s imperial doctrine, visible today in the so-called Ashokan pillars and rock edicts.

The historical Buddha, Siddhartha Gautama, was born and spent his life in India. The religion based on his preaching flourished here for over 1,200 years, receiving a huge boost by being taken up by Ashoka. By the twelfth century, however, Buddhism had been eradicated – assimilated and subordinated by resurgent Hinduism and extirpated by conquering Muslims. The religion of peace and enlightenment became confined, as today, to the periphery of East Asia and insular Sri Lanka.

This itinerary includes the Buddhist heartland and most of the major Buddhist sites in India: Bodhgaya, where the Buddha attained enlightenment, Sarnath, where he preached his first sermon, the pillar at Vaishali and the Great Stupa at Sanchi. Visits to the most relevant museums in India provide insight into the development of Buddhist art, from the early aniconic period to the anthropomorphic sculptures of the later centuries.

A feature of the tour is that time spent in places where few tourists go. Bihar was the crucible of Indian civilisation and the birthplace of Buddhism, but is now one of India’s most underdeveloped states, with poor infrastructure, villages where life has scarcely changed for centuries and quintessentially Indian cities where ancient and modern coexist in pullulating, congested streets. The lush countryside presents a captivating scene of simple agriculture and unchanging rural life. It may be that for days you will not see other westerners.

Kolkata (Calcutta) is also surprisingly little visited, a bewitching city which from 1690 to 1911 was the principal city of British India. The outstanding Buddhist sculptures in the Indian Museum draw us here, but there is time to see something of the rest of the city with its broad avenues, extensive parks and monumental buildings in European styles, Classical and Gothic. A hectic, teeming place, the infamous poverty is retreating and the city is enjoying a revival on the back of the new IT wealth.

Bhopal is not on the tourist map at all, but it is a charming city built around two lakes with pleasant corniche roads and crumbling palaces.

Read the itinerary

For a personal account of a visit on this tour, please read Hubert Giraud's blog post.