Mahabodhi Temple

The Mahabodhi Temple (literally: "Great Awakening Temple") or the Mahābodhi Mahāvihāra, is a restored Buddhist temple in Bodh Gaya, Bihar, India, marking the location where the Buddha is said to have attained enlightenment, according to the Buddhist faith. A UNESCO World Heritage Site, The site contains a tree believed to be a descendant of the Bodhi Tree under which the Buddha gained enlightenment and has been a major pilgrimage destination of Buddhists for over two thousand years. The Mahabodhi Temple at Bodh Gaya is the holiest and most revered pilgrimage site for Buddhists worldwide.

Some of the site's elements date to the period of Ashoka (died ). What is now visible on the ground dates from the 6th century CE, or possibly earlier, as well as several major restorations since the 19th century. The structure, however, also potentially incorporates large parts of earlier work, possibly from the 2nd or 3rd-century CE. Archaeological finds from the site indicate that the place was a site of veneration for Buddhists since at least the Mauryan period. In particular, the Vajrasana, which is located within the temple itself has been dated to the third-century BCE.

Many of the oldest sculptural elements have been moved to the museum beside the temple, and some, such as the carved stone railing wall around the main structure, have been replaced by replicas. The main temple's survival is especially impressive, as it was mostly made of brick covered with stucco, materials that are much less durable than stone. However, it is understood that very little of the original sculptural decoration has survived. The elephant-crowned pillar of Ashoka (now lost) is visible. Bharhut frieze ().]]

Traditional accounts say that, around 589 BCE, Siddhartha Gautama, a young prince who saw the suffering of the world and wanted to end it, reached the forested banks of the Phalgu river, near the city of Gaya, India. There he sat in meditation under a peepul tree (Ficus religiosa or Sacred Fig) which later came to be known as the Bodhi Tree. According to Buddhist scriptures, after three days and three nights, Siddharta attained enlightenment and freedom from suffering. In that location, Mahabodhi Temple was built by Emperor Ashoka in around 260 BCE.

According to Buddhist mythology, if no Bodhi tree grows at the site, the ground around the Bodhi tree is devoid of all plants for a distance of one royal karīsa. Through the ground around the Bodhi tree no being, not even an elephant, can travel.

According to the Jatakas, the navel of the earth lies at this spot, and no other place can support the weight of the Buddha's attainment. Another Buddhist tradition claims that when the world is destroyed at the end of a kalpa, the Bodhimanda is the last spot to disappear, and will be the first to appear when the world emerges into existence again. Tradition also claims that a lotus will bloom there, and if a Buddha is born during the new kalpa, the lotus flowers bloom in accordance with the number of Buddhas expected to arise. According to legend, in the case of Gautama Buddha, a Bodhi tree sprang up on the day he was born.

Mauryan establishment

In approximately 250 BCE, about 200 years after the Buddha was said to have attained enlightenment, Emperor Ashoka of the Mauryan Empire visited Bodh Gaya in order to establish a monastery and shrine on the holy site, which has today disappeared. The Diamond throne, or Vajrasana, is thought to have been built by Emperor Ashoka of the Maurya Empire between 250 and 233 BCE, at the location where the Buddha reached enlightenment. It is worshipped today, and is the centre of many festivities at the temple.

Representations of the early temple structure meant to protect the Bodhi Tree are found at Sanchi, on the toraṇas of Stūpa I, dating from around 25 BCE, and on a relief carving from the stupa railing at Bhārhut, from the early Shunga period (c. 185 – c. 73 BCE).

Sunga structures

thumb|300px|Reconstitution of the Sunga period pillars at Bodh Gaya, from archaeology (left) and from artistic relief (right). They are dated to the 1st century BCE. Reconstitution is done by [[Alexander Cunningham.]]

Columns with pot-shaped bases

Additional structures were brought in by the Sungas. In particular, columns with pot-shaped bases were found around the Diamond throne. These columns are thought to date to the 1st century BCE, towards the end of the Sungas. These columns, which were found through archaeological research at the Buddha's Walk in the Mahabodhi Temple, quite precisely match the columns described on the reliefs found on the gateway pillars. The railing was extended during the following century, down to the end of Gupta period (7th century), with coarse granite decorated with elaborate foliate ornaments and small figures as well as stupas. Many parts of the initial railing have been dismantled and are now in museums, such as the Indian Museum in Kolkata, and have been replaced by plaster copies.

{| class="wikitable" colspan=2 cellpadding="3" style="width: 100%;"

|align="center" colspan=2 style="background:#A0522D;"| Sunga railings at Bodh Gaya

|align="center" colspan=2 style="background:#D3D3D3;"| Original railings

|align="center" colspan=1 style="width: 0%;"|Early photographs of the railings (Henry Baily Wade Garrick, 1880)

|<gallery mode="packed">

File:Bodh Gaya Sunga pillar.jpg|Bodh Gaya Sunga pillar

File:Bodh Gaya Sunga railing.jpg|Bodh Gaya Sunga railing

File:Bodh Gaya Sunga railings 4.jpg|Bodh Gaya Sunga railing

File:Bodh Gaya Sunga railing 5.jpg|Bodh Gaya Sunga railing

File:Bodh Gaya Sunga railings 3.jpg|Bodh Gaya Sunga railing

File:Winter India (1903) (14783119433).jpg|1903 photograph

</gallery>

|align="center" colspan=1 style="width: 1%;"|Remains of the railings in the Indian Museum, Calcutta

|<gallery mode="packed">

File:Bodh Gaya railings Indian Museum Calcutta.jpg|Bodh Gaya original railings, Indian Museum, Calcutta

File:Bodh Gaya railings corner.jpg |Bodh Gaya original railings, Indian Museum, Calcutta

File:Bodh Gaya pillar original Indian Museum Calcutta.jpg|Railing post

File:Bodh Gaya post relief 2.jpg|Another railing post

</gallery>

|align="center" colspan=2 style="background:#D3D3D3;"| Devotion scenes

|align="center" colspan=2|<gallery mode="packed">

Indian Museum Sculpture - Bodhi Tree (9220258094).jpg|Bodhi Tree sculpture

Indian Museum Sculpture - Bodhi Tree (9220261312).jpg|Bodhi Tree sculpture

Indian Museum Sculpture - Dhammacakka (9220255132).jpg|Dharmacakra

Bodh Gaya medallion 3 Indian Museum Calcutta.jpg|Medallion

Bodh Gaya medallion 4 Indian Museum Calcutta.jpg |Adoration of the Bodhi Tree

</gallery>

|align="center" colspan=2 style="background:#D3D3D3;"| Animals

|align="center" colspan=2|<gallery mode="packed" heights="150px">

026 Elephant.jpg |Elephant

024 Horse Man.jpg |Centaur

027 Horse.jpg|Horse

Bodh Gaya winged lion.jpg|Winged lion

Bodh Gaya Cow nourishing her calf.jpg|Cow nourishing her calf

Bodh Gaya Bull.jpg |Bull

</gallery>

|align="center" colspan=2 style="background:#D3D3D3;"| Stories

|align="center" colspan=2|<gallery mode="packed" heights="100px">

Jetavana Garden at Sravasti Bodh Gaya relief.jpg|The Jetavana Garden at Sravasti.

Bodh Gaya Jataka.jpg|Padakusalamanava Jataka.

Bodh Gaya Jataka 3.jpg|Padakusalamanava Jataka

Bodh Gaya medallion with goat.jpg |Woman with child and goat

Bodh Gaya Jataka medallion.jpg|Devotee and grottoe

Bodh Gaya amorous scene.jpg|Amorous scene (drawing)

Bodh Gaya medallion Indian Museum Calcutta.jpg|Amorous scene

Mahabodhi River crossing.jpg|Miraculous River crossing

Bodh Gaya river scene.jpg|Miraculous river-crossing (drawing)

Mahabodhi Devotion and Apsara.jpg|Devotee and apsara

Mahabodhi Indrasala Cave.jpg|Visit of Indra to the Indrasala Cave

Mahabodhi Kalpa Drum.jpg|Kalpa drum

Mahabodhi Lakshmi.jpg|Lakshmi lustrated by elephants

Mahabodhi Music scene.jpg|Music scene

Mahabodhi Palace scene.jpg|Palace scene, Sibi Jataka

Mahabodhi Ploughing scene.jpg|Ploughing scene

</gallery>

|align="center" colspan=2 style="background:#D3D3D3;"| Individual elements

|align="center" colspan=2|<gallery mode="packed">

Bodh Gaya devotee 3.jpg|Devotee

Bodh Gaya devotee in turban.jpg|Devotee

Bodh Gaya medallion devotee.jpg|Devotee

Bodh Gaya Apsara.jpg|Apsara

Bodh Gaya aspara.jpg|Apsara (drawing)

Bodh Gaya medallion 5 Indian Museum Calcutta.jpg|Vegetal medallion

</gallery>

|align="center" colspan=2 style="background:#D3D3D3;"| The railings today at Bodh Gaya<br />(mainly plaster duplicates)

|align="center" colspan=2|<gallery mode="packed">

File:Bodhgaya ei06-16.jpg|Plaster copy and reconstruction of original Sunga railing

Bodhgaya21.JPG|Railing

File:Bodhgaya ei06-29.jpg|Post relief (plaster copy)

File:Bodh Gaya railing adoration of the wheel of the Law.jpg|Adoration of the wheel of the Law (plaster copy)

063 Flower Design (9221997322).jpg|Flower Design decorated with gold leaves

065 Railing Design (9219212079).jpg|Decorated railing

</gallery>

Gupta period

While Asoka is considered the Mahabodhi Temple's founder, the current pyramidal structure dates from the Gupta Empire, in the 5th–6th century CE, and influenced later Hindu temple architecture in brick. This is confirmed by archaeological excavations in Bodh Gaya. The structure is crowned by the shape of a hemispherical stupa topped by finials, forming a logical elongation of the stepped Gandharan stupas. The "shikhara" tower with an amalaka near the top is today considered more characteristic of Hindu temples.

thumb|180px|Bodhgaya Chinese inscription of Huaiwen dated 1033 CE who arrived on behald of [[Emperor Zhenzong of Song dynasty]]

From the eleventh-century onwards, patronage increased from countries like Tibet, China, Sri Lanka and Burma. King Kyansittha sent the first Burmese expedition to the Mahabodhi Temple during this period. Three additional missions also took place up to the fourteenth century. The purpose of these missions seems to have been to carry out repairs on the temple structure while also sending gifts among which were musical instruments. Donations also came from non-royal sources. So far, five Chinese inscriptions have been found at the temple complex which records gifts by Chinese monks in the eleventh century. One of these monks stated in their inscription that they were sent on behalf of the Song Emperor. Local polities like the Pithipatis of Magadha who were based in Bodh Gaya also played a role in patronising the temple. During the 12th century CE, Bodh Gaya and the nearby regions were invaded and destroyed by Muslim Turk armies, led by Delhi Sultanate's Qutb al-Din Aibak and Bakhtiyar Khilji. During this period, the Mahabodhi Temple fell into disrepair and was largely abandoned.

The last abbot of the Mahabodhi Temple was Śāriputra who took up the position in the late 14th century and carried out numerous repairs to the structure which had been destroyed by the Turks. This included the temples gandola which had been destroyed. Śāriputra eventually left India and travelled to Nepal in the 15th century.

Restoration

File:Bodh gaya before restoration.jpg|Temple before restoration

File:KITLV 88082 - Unknown - Mahabodhi stupa in the temple complex at the Buddhagaya Lilajan River in British India - 1897.tif|The stupa before modern restoration, 1897

File:Bodh Gaya 1899.jpg|The temple as it appeared in 1899, shortly after its restoration in the 1880s

File:Mahabodhi Temple Haffkine.jpg|Interior of the temple after restoration

</gallery>

During the 13th century and again in the 19th century, Burmese rulers undertook restoration of the temple complex and surrounding wall. In the 1880s, the then-British colonial government of India began to restore Mahabodhi Temple under the direction of Sir Alexander Cunningham and Joseph David Beglar. In 1884, a large Buddha image of the Pāla period, likely removed at an earlier stage to the Mahant's residence from the temple sanctum, was reinstated. The plith of the image was reconstructed at the time and parts of the dedicatory inscription inserted in their current position. The inscription records the rededication of the image by Pīṭhīpati Jayasena in the 13th century. In 1886, Sir Edwin Arnold visited the site and under guidance from Ven. Weligama Sri Sumangala published several articles drawing the attention of the Buddhists to the deplorable conditions of Buddhagaya. The sculpture has since been repaired, painted and gilded and is under active worship in the sanctum.

Architectural style

thumb|Bodh Gaya quadriga relief of the sun god [[Surya riding between pillars (detail of a railing post), 2nd–1st century BCE]]

Mahabodhi Temple is constructed of brick and is one of the oldest brick structures to have survived in eastern India. It is considered to be a fine example of Indian brickwork, and was highly influential in the development of later architectural traditions. According to UNESCO, "the present temple is one of the earliest and most imposing structures built entirely in brick from Gupta period" (300–600 CE).

File:Mahabodhi temple complex.jpg

File:Mahabodhi temple complex, Bodhgaya 01.jpg

File:Mahabodhi temple complex, Bodhgaya 05.jpg

File:Mahabodhi temple complex, Bodhgaya 19.jpg

File:Mahabodhi temple complex, Bodhgaya 26.jpg

File:Mahabodhi temple complex, Bodhgaya 27.jpg

File:Mahabodhi Temple - IMG 6515.jpg

File:The Mahabodhi Temple.jpg

</gallery>

Control of the site

For centuries before its re-"discovery" by Europeans, the temple was an active place of worship by Shaivas and Vaishnavas. In 1891, a campaign was initiated, seeking the return of control of the temple to Buddhists, over the objections of the Hindu mahant. Sir Edwin Arnold, author of The Light of Asia, started advocating for the renovation of the site and its return to Buddhist care. Arnold was directed towards this endeavour by Weligama Sri Sumangala Thera. In 1891, Anagarika Dharmapala was on a pilgrimage to the recently restored Mahabodhi Temple. Here he experienced a shock to find the temple in the hands of a Shaiva priest, the Buddha image transformed into a Hindu icon and Buddhists barred from worship. As a result, he began an agitation movement.

The Maha Bodhi Society at Colombo was founded in 1891 but its offices were soon moved to Calcutta the following year in 1892. One of its primary aims was the restoration to Buddhist control of the Mahabodhi Temple at Bodh Gaya, the chief of the four ancient Buddhist holy sites. To accomplish this, Dharmapala initiated a lawsuit against the Brahmin priests who had held control of the site for centuries. The committee has nine members, a majority of whom, including the chairman, must by law be Hindus. Mahabodhi's first head monk under the management committee was Anagarika Munindra, a Bengali man who had been an active member of the Maha Bodhi Society.

In 2013, the Bihar government amended the Bodh Gaya Temple Act of 1949, allowing for a non-Hindu to head the temple committee. These Buddhists included such leaders as Bhante Anand (president of the Akhil Bharatiya Bhikkhu Mahasangh, an influential body of monks), as well as the president of the Bodh Gaya Mukti Andolan Samiti. Additionally, Japanese-born Surai Sasai emerged as an important Buddhist leader in India as both he and Bhante Anand became two of the most well-known leaders of this campaign to free the temple from Hindu control.

Current status and management

thumb|150px|The temple undergoing repairs (from January, 2006)

The Bihar state government assumed responsibility for the protection, management, and monitoring of the temple and its properties when India gained its independence. Pursuant to the Bodh Gaya Temple Act of 1949, such responsibilities are shared with the Bodhgaya Temple Management Committee, and an advisory board. The committee, which serves for a three-year term, must by law consist of four Buddhist and four Hindu representatives, including the head of Sankaracharya Math monastery as an ex-officio Hindu member. A 2013 Amendment to the Bodhgaya Temple Management Act allows the Gaya District Magistrate to be the chairman of the committee, even if he is not Hindu. The advisory board consists of the governor of Bihar and twenty to twenty-five other members, half of them from foreign Buddhist countries.

In June 2002, the Mahabodhi Temple became a UNESCO World Heritage Site. While the temple's spokesman stated that botanists had pruned the tree, the Bihar home secretary ordered the tree examined. A criminal charge was filed against Bodhipala. If convicted, Bodhipala would be subject to at least 10 years' imprisonment.

Following the expiration of the committee's term in September 2007, Bihar's government delayed appointing a new Committee and the district magistrate administered the temple pending such appointment.

, the Temple's head monk was Bhikkhu Chalinda.

Recent events

Gilding project

thumb|right|upright|The gilded [[finial atop the stupa's pyramidal structure.]]

In early 2013, Thai organisers launched a fundraising and planning initiative to gild the temple's upper finial/spire with gold, noting that the work would require permissions from Indian authorities before it could proceed and estimating the project would require around 200 kg of gold.

In August 2013, Bihar chief minister Nitish Kumar said the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) had accepted a proposal to decorate the Mahabodhi Temple's dome with gold, subject to terms and conditions. News reports later described the project as being carried out under ASI supervision using gold donations from Thailand, widely reported as 289 kg (often rounded in headlines to "nearly 300 kg"), including donations attributed to the Thai king and Thai devotees; one report put the amount at 280 kg. The Hindustan Times report said only the top 18 feet of the 180-foot-high structure would be covered with gold after preparatory chemical treatment.

2013 attack

On 7 July 2013, ten low-intensity bombs exploded in the temple complex, injuring 5 people. One bomb was near the statue of Buddha and another was near the Mahabodhi tree. Three unexploded bombs were also found and defused. The blasts took place between 5.30 a.m. and 6.00 a.m. The main temple was undamaged. On 4 November 2013, the National Investigation Agency announced that the Islamic terrorist group Indian Mujahideen was responsible for the bombings.

Replicas

thumb|Bodh Gaya Chedi Replica at [[Wat Yansangwararam, Chonburi Province, Thailand]]

Mahabodhi Temple is one of the most replicated Buddhist structures, both as large buildings and miniatures.

Zhenjue Temple, Beijing, China
Mahabodhi Temple, Bagan, Myanmar
Wat Chet Yot, Chiang Mai, Thailand
Thatta Thattaha Maha Bawdi Pagoda, Myanmar
Bodh Gaya Chedi Replica (Chedi Phutthakhaya Chamlong) in Wat Yansangwararam, Chonburi Province, Thailand

Notes

Sources

Harle J.C., The Art and Architecture of the Indian Subcontinent, 1994, Yale University Press Pelican History of Art,
Michell, George, The Penguin Guide to the Monuments of India, Volume 1: Buddhist, Jain, Hindu, 1989, Penguin Books,

External links

Land Enlightenment of the Buddha
Mahabodhi Temple and attraction around it
UNESCO World Heritage

Mahabodhi Temple

Mauryan establishment

Sunga structures

Columns with pot-shaped bases

Gupta period

Restoration

Architectural style

Control of the site

Current status and management

Recent events

Gilding project

2013 attack

Replicas

See also

Notes

Sources

Further reading

External links