Vaishali was the capital city of the Lichavis, one of world’s first democracies. The Buddha visited Vaishali on many occasions. It is also the area where Mahavira was born—the founder of Jainism and a contemporary of the Buddha.
It was during a stay in Vaishali the Buddha’ foster mother, Mahapajapati Gotami, who had followed the Buddha with five hundred other Sakya women, after he visited Kapilavistu, obtained permission for women to receive full ordination. He was also there that the famed courtesan Amrapali, became a disciple and patron of the Buddha. One of the eights parts of the Buddha’s relics were enshrined in Vaishali.
