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Journey of Faith and Inclusion at Neranjana River in Bodhgaya in India

 #Travelling is not just about reaching destinations—it is about experiencing freedom, dignity, and connection. For persons with #disabilities, the opportunity to travel holds immense importance as it breaks #barriers, promotes #inclusion, and allows one to fully participate in cultural and spiritual experiences.

#Accessible #tourism ensures that these journeys are open to everyone, regardless of ability. A shining example is the Buddha pilgrimage to Dambadiwa in India, where sacred sites welcome devotees from across the world. Among them is the serene #Niranjana #River in #Bodhgaya, where #Lord #Buddha attained enlightenment—an inspiring reminder of resilience and spiritual awakening.

#Manique Gunaratne, together with a team from the #Damrivi Foundation, embarked on this meaningful journey to Dambadiwa in November 2024. Their pilgrimage highlights how inclusive travel empowers persons with disabilities to engage in heritage, spirituality, and community on an equal footing.

Travel, when made accessible, becomes not just a personal journey—but a collective step towards a more inclusive world.


නේරංජනා ගඟ (Neranjana River) බෝධ් ගයා, ඉන්දියාවේ, බුදුන්ගේ ජීවිතයේ අතිශය වැදගත් ස්ථානයකි.

බෝධිසත්ව සිද්ධාර්ථ ගෞතමයන්, සයවසක් දුශ්කරක්‍රියා ගත කළේය. මේ අවස්ථාවේදී ශාරීරික ශක්තිය අඩු වී, බුදුපදාවට ළඟා වීම සංකීර්ණ විය. ඉන්පසු, මධ්‍යම මාර්ගය පිළිපදින්නැයි තීරණය කළ ඔහු, නේරංජනා ගං තීරය ආසන්නයේ දී , සුජාතා සිටු දියණිය විසින් පිරිනැමූ කිරිපිඩු පිළිගත් බවත් බෞද්ධ වංශ කථාවන් සඳහන් කරයි.

ඔහුට මහා බෝධි වෘක්ෂය යට බුදුපදාව ලබාගැනීමට නේරංජනා ගග ද උපකාරී විය.

අද බෝධ් ගයා බලා යන බහුතර බෞද්ධ වන්දනාකරුවන් නේරංජනා ගඟට ගෞරව පූජා කරති. බුදුන්ගේ ජීවිතයේ මහා සංක්‍රාන්තියක් නිර්මාණය කළ පුණ්‍යමය ස්ථානයක් ලෙස හැදින්විය හැක.

සුජාතා සිටු දියණිය විසින් පිරිනමන ලද කිරිපිඩු දානය වළදා එම පාත්තරය නේරංජනා ගගේ පා කොට "මා හට බුදුබව අත් වේ නම් මෙම පාත්තරය උඩුගම් බලා පාවේවායි" ප්‍රාර්ථනා කළේය. එලෙස ප්‍රාර්ථනා කළ ආකාරයට එම පාත්තරය උඩුගම් බලා ගමන් පාවී ගියේය. 

Riverbank at dusk or dawn. The sky is softly lit with a hazy gradient from light blue to warm tones. The river water is low, revealing muddy or grassy patches along the bank. Tall trees form a dark silhouette along the horizon, and there are power lines stretched across the upper part of the image. The overall scene feels calm and tranquil with a misty atmosphere.

Landscape with a shallow river or lake in the foreground, where patches of exposed earth break up the water surface. The water reflects some of the surrounding scenery. In the middle distance, there is a band of dry, golden land lined with green trees, including several tall ones standing separately. The background features a hazy, mountainous horizon with rocky peaks, under a clear sky. The whole scene is bathed in warm, late-afternoon or early-morning sunlight, giving it a mellow and peaceful feeling.

River view with greenery—The image shows a calm river or lake bordered by a light-colored concrete or stone railing in the foreground. Small patches of grass or reeds grow out in the water, creating green islands. Along the right side, there is a line of trees and a few scattered structures partially visible behind the foliage. The sky above is hazy with soft sunlight, suggesting either early morning or late afternoon. The overall scene is peaceful and reflective, with the water mirroring the trees and sky.

Scenic view from a bridge overlooking a calm body of water with reflections of buildings and greenery. To the right side, there is a lush green hill with several buildings, including some with traditional architectural domes and spires. On the left, a long bridge or causeway stretches across the water in the distance. The water reflects the hill, trees, and structures clearly. The photo is taken from behind a black and white striped barrier, likely from a passing vehicle, as part of a blue vehicle roof is visible in the foreground. The sky is slightly cloudy, giving the whole scene a peaceful and serene atmosphere.



#Kishara #Manique Gunaratne

#Cisco Computer Network Associate (CCNA) Instructor qualified from Cisco


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