“The Buddha’s journey through this kingdom revealed that some cities were almost
uninhabited, and some had only elderly people left. But he didn’t pay much attention
because his final destination was Isipatana Mrigadayavana forest, or the forest that was
home to hermits, located further north of this kingdom,” he explained.

“Where is Isipatana forest? Is there any noticeable symbol?” I asked eagerly.

“Because the largest kingdom at that time was the Dvaravati Kingdom, this kingdom
was like the center and considered the capital of this entire region. So, when referring
to other areas, they used the Dvaravati Kingdom as the center and called other cities or
kingdoms according to the direction from this kingdom. So, the location of Isipatana
Mrigadayavana forest was north or *udon* of the Dvaravati Kingdom. Today, this place
is located in Khao Suan Kwang district, about 70 kilometers before Udon Thani
province.”

“Does that mean the name of Udon Thani province comes from the direction of this
large kingdom?” I asked.

“Yes… it’s like how your Bangkok is the center now, so you call Chiang Mai the northern
city. *Udon* means north,” he replied.

“Oh… I understand. Can you specify the location of Isipatana Mrigadayavana forest
clearly?” I said.

“Yes… at that time, this city had a special characteristic. It was like a community but
didn’t have the status of a city or a ruler. It was similar to Master Bavari’s island city,
which was like a semi-community, semi-forest, like a sanctuary. Anyone who traveled
into this city would feel strange because it was full of trees, plants, herbs, and large and
small wild animals, especially deer. So, it had another name, ‘Saranganatha’ or
‘Sarnath,’ which means the land where people live with deer.”

“Importantly, this was a gathering place for famous hermits in various sciences,
especially in accessing truth or liberation. And this is the reason why the Buddha
headed here. To specify the location of this place, today it is called Dong Mueang Am
Ancient Site, Dong Mueang Am subdistrict, Khao Suan Kwang district, Khon Kaen
province,” he replied.

“And what is noticeable there?” I asked.

“If you go there, you will see the ruins of an ancient city composed of a moat that used
natural waterways as its boundary, with a diameter of about 1.5 kilometers on each
side. In the center, there is a small island surrounded by another moat. Inside the city,
there is a community living with nature, that is, houses with wild animals, especially
deer. Inside the inner island, there are the ruins of an old *chedi* that Phaya Asoka and the Buddha traveled to mark as the place where he gave his first sermon to the five
Brahmins, until they attained enlightenment and the first Sangha group in Buddhism
was born,” he explained.

“Oh… wow! Does anyone know that this place is one of the Buddhist holy sites?” I
asked.

“No one knows. Even the monks stationed at that monastery don’t know. Today, there
is only a small local museum that preserves ancient artifacts excavated from the area,
but there is not a single line about this history,” he replied.

“When Prince Siddhartha set out to learn the truth from the hermits, he stayed here for
6 years, learning all the subjects, learning until the teachers had nothing more to teach.
But he was still not satisfied. There were still many questions that the teachers could
not answer, but only told him to practice and he would know. He thought that this was
not the answer because if those teachers knew what the end result was, they would
know when they would reach that destination, and what was still lacking, or how much
more ability was needed,” Lord Phoche explained.

“What do you mean? Learning has to be continuous, doesn’t it?” I interjected.

“At that time, Prince Siddhartha was just wondering how the learning or practice
methods could lead to the destination, how much more he had to do to succeed. What
that state of success was like. And most importantly, he wanted to know where he was
in his learning process. It’s like when you enroll in a subject at university. You want to
know when and how what you are learning will lead to a bachelor’s, master’s, or
doctoral degree. Whether what you are learning matches your needs. What qualities
you must have when you graduate with a doctorate. And most importantly, what level
you are currently studying and how much more you have to learn.”

“Oh… and the teachers didn’t tell him?” I asked.

“There was a curriculum that you had to go through certain practices, but when the
Buddha completed them, he still didn’t see any change in himself. So, he asked
questions, but the answer he got was to keep practicing and he would know,” he
replied.

“And what did he do next?” I asked.

“He set out to study on his own, rigorously testing all the principles he had learned,
especially the self-mortification process, which he was determined to pursue to the
end. At that time, the Brahmins who had predicted that Prince Siddhartha would
achieve enlightenment followed him, hoping that if he succeeded, they could learn
from him. He traveled east until he reached a subdistrict on the border of the Kasi and
Anga kingdoms. There, a large river called the Neranjara River blocked his way.”

“Prince Siddhartha stayed on the banks of that river for almost six months. He
practiced self-mortification by fasting and drinking only water to sustain himself, until his body became thin, only skin and bones. But in the end, he still couldn’t discover
anything. He only had a deteriorating body with no strength. He considered that this
was probably the end. This was the point where he had to choose because if he
continued like this, not only would he not be able to discover the truth he desired, but
he might also die meaninglessly and in vain. So, he decided to stop self-mortification by
fasting from then on.”

“When the Brahmins who followed saw that Prince Siddhartha abandoned his
intention and started eating food, they lost faith and returned to Isipatana
Mrigadayavana forest, leaving him alone. He decided to change his meditation location,
moving closer to a community so that he could go for alms to take care of his body. He
walked along that large river for about 20 kilometers, closer to a community near the
Neranjara River. The point where this community was located was where another river
flowed into it, which at that time was called the Champa River. So, this place had a
special characteristic: a large, pale yellow sand beach. During the dry season, a sandbar
would appear in the middle of the river. This community called itself Uruvela
Senanigama, which means the village with beautiful sand.”