Though born across the present-day border of India in Nepal, the life of Buddha, Siddhartha Gautama, is synonymous with India. It was in India that the Buddha first spread his teachings, teachings that would flourish from East Asia to the Gandhara civilization in modern Pakistan and Afghanistan.

Outside of Lumbini, birthplace of Buddha in Nepal, India today is home to three of the four holiest of pilgrimage destinations related to the historical life of Buddha. Bodh Gaya, in Bihar, is the most important religious site, with the Mahabodhi Temple housing what is believed to be the Bodhi Tree, or relative of, under which Gautama gained enlightenment. Sarnath, not far from Benares, is the site associated with the first teaching of Buddha. And Kusinagara, also in Uttar Pradesh, is the location of the Buddha’s death and his attainment of Parinirvana. Other pilgrimage destinations are dotted across the north-central Indian landscape.

Meanwhile, one line of tradition has it that Buddhism arrived in Myanmar via the direct interaction between an Indian envoy and local populations. According to the Mahavamsa, a Pali chronicle of the fifth century, the legendary Indian emperor Ashoka sent two bhikkhus, ordained monks, to Suvarnabhumi around 228 BC with sacred texts. And it was from this exposure that Buddhism spread and eventually gained the favor of the Myanmar royal court.

Today, Myanmar is 90% Buddhist and Buddhism can be seen influencing nearly every aspect of Buddhist Myanmar culture and tradition, not to mention politics. Moreover, Myanmar attained special eminence as the host of the Sixth Buddhist Council, held in Rangoon (Yangon) between 1954 and 1956, and as the source from which two of the major systems of Vipassana meditation have emanated out into the greater world.

The shinbyu, novitiation, ceremony in Myanmar is a highly esteemed celebration marking the monastic ordination of a boy under the age of 20. Allowing a son to spend some time, however short it may be, in a Buddhist monastery is regarded by most Myanmar Buddhists as the best religious gift that his parents can give him and is believed to have a lasting effect on his life.

Whether or not the various peoples of India and Myanmar today practice Buddhism, the foundations of each country are heavily indebted to the life and influence of Gautama Buddha. And it is at least partly because of this shared historical and cultural heritage that India-Myanmar relations are infused with an unbreakable special bond.