" God Buddha belong to Tharu Tribe people " Born as Prince Siddhartha in the kingdom of Kapilavastu in southern Nepal, the Buddha is one of Nepal's most cherished national icons. While Buddhists all over the world make pilgrimages to Nepal to visit its Buddhist shrines, the Tharu community, now predominantly found in the midwestern districts, live a life of abject misery, dogged by poverty, illiteracy and lack of land. Singh, himself a Tharu, says the Buddha as well as one of his greatest followers and rulers of ancient India, Emperor Asoka, came from the Tharu community. "The word Tharu comes from Sthabir in Sanskrit, meaning monk or the Buddha," Singh says. "The Tharus are therefore the Buddha's people." The book quotes Indian scholar Gauri Shankar Dwivedi, who says after the Buddha attained enlightenment, he returned to his homeland when people flocked to him to become monks. But to ensure that society would not collapse, some were told to stay back and became known as Tharus. A succession of invasions by the Rajput kings, who were Hindus, eroded the influence of the Tharus, Singh says. http://www.gulfnews.com/world/Nepal/10061369.html