Kapilavastu

Kapilvastu Municipality कपिलवस्तु नगरपालिका Taulihawa तौलीहवा
Municipality
Entrance gate to Kapilavastu city (Taulihawa), Kapilvastu District, Nepal
Kapilvastu Municipality Location in Nepal
Coordinates: 27°32′N 83°3′E / 27.533°N 83.050°E / 27.533; 83.050Coordinates: 27°32′N 83°3′E / 27.533°N 83.050°E / 27.533; 83.050
Country	Nepal
Zone	Lumbini Zone
District	Kapilvastu District
Elevation	107 m (351 ft)
Population (2011 A.D)
• Total	30,428
Time zone	NST (UTC+5:45)
Postal code	32800
Area code(s)	076
Website	kapilvastumun.gov.np

Kapilavastu (Nepali; Pali: Kapilavatthu), more commonly known and referred to as Taulihawa, is a municipality and administrative center of Kapilvastu District in Province No. 5 of southern Nepal. Taulihawa is located roughly 25 kilometres (16 mi) to the south-west of Lumbini, a UNESCO World Heritage Site and the birthplace of Gautama Buddha.

The municipality lies at an altitude of 107 metres (351 ft) above sea level on Nepal's southern border across from Uttar Pradesh state, India. There is a customs checkpoint for goods while movement of Indian and Nepalese nationals across the border is unrestricted.

In ancient times Kapilavastu was the capital city of the Shakya kingdom. King Śuddhodana and Queen Māyā are believed to have lived at Kapilavastu, as did their son Prince Siddartha Gautama until he left the palace at the age of 29.

Taulihawa had a population of 27,170 at the time of the 2001 Nepal census.

Buddhist sources present Kapila as a well-known Vedic sage whose students built the city of Kapilavastu. Buddhist texts such as the Pāli Canon claim that Kapilavastu was the childhood home of Gautama Buddha, on account of it being the capital of the Shakyas, over whom his father ruled.