In 1896 (B.E. 2439), William Clexton Peppe, a British engineer who had been granted private land by the government near the Nepalese border in an area called Piprahwa by locals, noticed a mysterious glow emanating from an ancient mound. His curiosity was piqued—he wanted to know what it was.
He ordered workers to excavate the mound, and upon discovering a stupa structure, he had them drill into the center. There, they found a large stone casket containing numerous valuable items, including four distinct relic caskets that enshrined the sacred relics (sarīrika dhātu) of the Buddha. There were also many gemstones, believed to have been offered by the Śākyas in homage to the Buddha (as seen in the images). These relics were later distributed and stored in various locations, including the Delhi Museum. The British Indian government then informed Siam (Thailand) that it was willing to offer some of the Buddha's relics.
In 1897 (B.E. 2440), Phra Sukhumnaiwinith (later Chao Phraya Yommaraj) and Luang Pinit Aksorn, Siamese envoys, traveled to receive the relics during the reign of King Rama V and eventually enshrined them at the Golden Mount, Wat Saket in Bangkok. Mr. Peppe, however, was not an archaeologist; he did not conduct a professional excavation. He kept many gemstones (as seen in the images) and returned to his homeland in England in 1898 (B.E. 2441), leaving the stupa abandoned for a long time.
Shri Narendra Modi (श्री नरेन्द्र मोदी)—commonly pronounced "Modi" in Thailand following the English transliteration—has served as India's Prime Minister for three terms. He is the second longest-serving Indian Prime Minister after Jawaharlal Nehru. Upon learning that the jewels excavated from Piprahwa, the original Kapilvastu, had ended up in England and were being passed down through heirs until eventually being put up for auction in Hong Kong, he immediately instructed the Indian Embassy to take every possible action.
Eventually, the Indian Prime Minister’s personal Facebook page proudly announced the good news: “The Jewels of Piprahwa have returned home after being away from India for 127 years.”
This Indian Prime Minister is an unusual figure—he is from the Dalit caste, unmarried, and has never declared himself a Buddhist. He has long been affiliated with the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), rising through the ranks to become Chief Minister of Gujarat. After a landslide national election victory by his party, he was invited to serve as Prime Minister. Although a Hindu by faith, he has shown a keen interest in supporting Buddhism. At the Buddha Jayanti celebration in Delhi, he once said:
“Hindus, Jains, Buddhists, Sikhs—these are the shared heritage of our ancestors.”
This successful diplomatic effort by India is not just a national victory—it is a triumph for Buddhists everywhere. If not for these efforts, the sacred heritage of Kapilvastu might have ended up in the private collection of some wealthy individual, admired only as a collector’s treasure.
