“Of course… the next destination for the Buddha and Phaya Asoka was Kapilavastu,” he
began.

“Don’t tell me that Kapilavastu, the Buddha’s hometown, is also in Thailand,” I
interjected.

“Yes… this city is located in the central plains, about 90 kilometers east of Bangkok,” he
replied.

“Oh my God… Kapilavastu is only this close to Bangkok? If the people who
painstakingly travel to India for pilgrimage knew this, they would be disappointed,” I
interjected.

“I don’t know… I will say that the name Kapilavastu is actually still used by the locals.
When your government officials surveyed the area to officially register administrative
districts and name local areas, they asked the elders what they called the place where
they lived. They said to call it ‘Kabin’ because they had been Kabin people for as long as
they could remember. So, they named that district Kabin Buri,” he explained.

“Does that mean the location of Kapilavastu is Kabin Buri district today?” I asked.

“The actual location of Kapilavastu is about 37 kilometers southwest of Kabin Buri
district, in Sri Maha Phot district, Prachin Buri province, at the site of an ancient city
called Sri Mahosot. Today, the ruins of the city are still visible. There are city moats, city
walls, ruins of the foundations of the Buddha’s three-season palaces, and ruins of
temples used for various rituals around the city. Only now, no one knows what this city
was called 2,500 years ago,” he replied.

“Oh… do you know that if this is true, there will be a lot of criticism? I don’t want to
imagine what will happen,” I observed.

“What I’m telling you is what I know, and for me, it’s the truth. As for those who don’t
know, it’s not wrong for them to criticize because they believe that way. They pass that
belief on, which is normal. Especially with clinging to knowledge learned from others,
the knowledge of academics, historians, and religious scholars is the hardest to erase.
This matter will have a mixture of ignorance and ego or fear of losing face, which will
make it even stronger and difficult to correct. But I think that’s a human matter, it
doesn’t concern me. I have existed on this earth since the beginning. What they know
and see in their lifetime is only a fraction of a second compared to my total time,” he
replied.

“If Kapilavastu is only in Prachin Buri province, then the Buddha’s birthplace must not
be far either, because according to the history I learned, the Buddha’s mother was
traveling back to her hometown to give birth, but went into labor and gave birth to the
Buddha along the way,” I asked.

“That’s right. The Buddha’s mother’s hometown was called Devadaha. The two cities
were like sister cities. The rulers of both cities would never allow their heirs to marry
heirs from other cities. The location of Devadaha is about 55 kilometers southwest of
Kapilavastu. Today, it is in Na Phra That subdistrict, Phanat Nikhom district, Chon Buri
province,” he replied.

“Chon Buri province, Phanat Nikhom district? The image in my head when I think of
Chon Buri province is Pattaya, which is a seaside tourist destination. Why has no one
ever taught these historical stories, especially those related to the Buddha, before?” I
asked.

“I cannot answer that question. My duty is only to tell the truth. Because the two cities
are quite far apart, and people traveled between them regularly, the kings of both cities
jointly built a road packed with soil and rocks for convenient travel and transportation
of goods. Along the way, rectangular laterite ponds were built for consumption and use
during overnight stays. So, the Buddha’s birthplace is in the middle between these two
cities,” he replied.

“Where is it?” I quickly asked, eager to know the location of the Buddha’s birthplace.

“If you travel south from Kapilavastu along that ancient road for about 20 kilometers,
you will encounter a *sal* forest, or what is now simply called *pa rang* (rang forest),
like the forest where the Buddha passed away, called ‘Salavanodyana,’ which means a
park full of *sal* trees. This point is where the ancient road intersects a small river.
There, a road was built sloping down into the river with rocks, like an overflow dam,
making that part of the river shallow, so that carts and people could easily wade across.
This place is commonly called ‘Tha Lat’ (sloping pier) because of the sloping road into
the river. Today, it is near Tha Lat Nuea temple. After the procession crossed the river
for a few hundred meters, the Buddha’s mother suddenly went into labor. The
attendants prepared for the birth in that *sal* forest,” he explained.

“Has anyone made a symbol at that location to mark it as the Buddha’s birthplace?” I
asked.

“In the early life of the Buddha, no points were marked or symbolized because no one
saw its importance. But later, when the Buddha and Phaya Asoka traveled to mark
places and bury hair relics in various kingdoms, the Buddha decided to bury his hair
relics at the place where he was born. Phaya Asoka and his troops, along with the king
of Kapilavastu, jointly performed the hair relic burial ceremony at that point and
helped build a small *chedi* over it as a symbol that this was the Buddha’s birthplace.
People passing by called this *chedi* ‘Phanom Sala Kharama,’ meaning the *chedi* of
the *sal* forest. Over time, more and more people settled here, and they used the name
of this *chedi* to call their community. The name was shortened over time until it
became ‘Phanom Sarakham,’ as it appears today,” he explained.