Shravasti District is situated at around 176 km from Lucknow. Shravasti District is one of the administrative districts of Uttar Pradesh and Bhinga town is district headquarter. Shravasti district is a part of Devipatan Division. Shravasti shares its border with Balrampur District, Gonda District and Bahraich District. Shravasti District, the northeastern district of Uttar Pradesh, is located near River Rapti. It is closely associated with the life of Lord Buddha.
History of Shravasti District
It is being said that the mythological king Shravasta founded this town. Shravasti was the capital of Kosala Kingdom during 6th century BC to 6th century AD. This prosperous trading center was well known for its religious associations. The `Sobhanath` temple is believed to be the birthplace of Jain Tirthankar `Sambhavanath` making Shravasti an important center for the Jains. As mentioned in the `Bruhatkalpa` and various kalpas of the fourteenth century the name of the city was Mahid. There are subsequent mentions showing that the name of this city was `Sahet-Mahet`. It is also mentioned that a vast fort covered this city in which there were many temples. After the age of Lord Buddha and Lord Mahavira, the history of Shravasti is obscure till the period of Ashoka in the third century BC. The material prosperity of Shravasti was at its height during Ashoka`s period. Ashoka is credited with the erection of two pillars, each 21 metres high, in addition to the construction of several monasteries and stupas. Successive excavations have yielded the remains of several stupas, temples and monasteries, etc.
Tourism in Shravasti District
Shravasti District is one of the main site for Buddhist pilgrimage as well and Jain Pilgrimage. Shravasti is an important historical and religious attraction in Uttar Pradesh. The place has for long been attached to Lord Buddha and his times. It is said that Lord Buddha spent 25 years living in the monastery of Jetavana that is situated in Shravasti. The city also has the pride of being the place where many of Vinaya rules, Jatakas and Sutras were first discussed. Maha Mangole Temple, Maha Veera Temple, Maheth, Saheth and Shakti Peeth are some of the main attractions of Shravasti District. Saheth is one of the most visited clusters of shrines in the Buddhist tourism circuit of Eastern Uttar Pradesh. The place forms an important angle in the Buddhist Triangle of Sarnath-Sravasti-Kushinagar in the state. It is full of numerous monasteries and shrines related to Buddhism apart from quite a few Stupas. Emperor Ashoka started the construction works that was continued by his successors. Maheth is important cluster of shrines in Shravasti. Though not as famous as Saheth, Maheth also has a cluster of shrines that are very popular among the tourists visiting Shravasti. In fact, Maheth was the actual site of the erstwhile Shravasti city.
The total forest area in Shravasti District is around 34,238 hectare. This area is divided into six forest ranges for the purpose of management. One of these four ranges falls in Shravasti forest division and 2 ranges falls in Sohelwa forest division. The East Sohelwa and West Sohelwa are part of the Sohelwa Wildlife Sanctuary.