Explanation – Hieun Tsang (Xuanzang), the 7th-century Chinese traveller and Buddhist monk, visited Vadnagar during his travels in India between 627 AD and 643 AD. He documented his experiences in his travelogue Si-Yu-Ki (“The Buddhist Records of the Western World”), where he referred to Vadnagar as “Anandapura.” He noted the presence of Buddhist monasteries and described the region as a significant center of learning and trade. Vadnagar has been identified as one of India’s oldest continuously inhabited cities, with evidence of settlement dating back to 800 BCE and possibly earlier. Archaeological findings have revealed seven distinct cultural periods, including Pre-Mauryan, Mauryan, Indo-Greek, Indo-Scythian, Solanki, Sultanate-Mughal, and British colonial rule. The town has been mentioned in ancient texts like the Mahabharata, the Skanda Purana, and inscriptions from various dynasties. Vadnagar was a center for Hinduism, Buddhism, and Jainism over centuries. It has been included in the UNESCO’s tentative list of World Heritage Sites in 2022.

Source: AIR