The Mahabodhi Temple, also known as the Mahābodhi Mahāvihāra, is a UNESCO World Heritage Site located in Bodh Gaya, Bihar, India. It is an ancient Buddhist temple that has been restored. The temple marks the location where the Buddha is said to have gained enlightenment. Bodh Gaya is 15 kilometers (9.3 miles) from Gaya and about 96 kilometers (60 miles) from Patna. The site includes a tree believed to be a descendant of the Bodhi Tree under which the Buddha attained enlightenment. For over 2,000 years, this place has been a major pilgrimage site for Buddhists worldwide. The Mahabodhi Temple in Bodh Gaya is considered the most important and respected pilgrimage site for Buddhists around the world.
Some parts of the site date back to the time of Emperor Ashoka, who died around 232 BCE. The structures visible today were built in the 6th century CE or earlier, and the site has undergone several major restorations since the 19th century. The temple may also include parts of earlier work, possibly from the 2nd or 3rd century CE. Archaeological discoveries show that the area was a place of worship for Buddhists as early as the Mauryan period. A specific feature called the Vajrasana, located inside the temple, has been dated to the 3rd century BCE.
Many of the oldest carved elements from the site have been moved to a museum near the temple. Some parts, like the carved stone railing around the main structure, have been replaced with replicas. The main temple has survived for a long time despite being made mostly of brick covered with stucco, materials that are less durable than stone. It is believed that very little of the original carved decorations remain.
The temple complex includes two large, straight-sided shikhara towers. The tallest tower is over 55 meters (180 feet) high. This design has influenced the architecture of Jain and Hindu temples and has also affected Buddhist temple designs in other countries, such as the pagoda style.
History
According to old stories, 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 became known as the Bodhi Tree. Buddhist scriptures say that after three days and three nights, Siddhartha gained enlightenment and freedom from suffering. In that location, Emperor Ashoka built the Mahabodhi Temple around 260 BCE.
The Buddha then spent the next seven weeks meditating and thinking about his experience at seven different places near the Bodhi Tree. Some important spots at the current Mahabodhi Temple are connected to these weeks:
– The first week was spent under the Bodhi Tree.
– During the second week, the Buddha stood and looked at the Bodhi Tree without stopping. This place is marked by the Animeshlocha Stupa, which is northeast of the Mahabodhi Temple complex. A statue of the Buddha with eyes fixed on the Bodhi Tree stands there.
– The Buddha is said to have walked back and forth between the Animeshlocha Stupa and the Bodhi Tree. According to legend, lotus flowers grew along this path, now called Ratnachakrama or the Jewel Walk.
– The fourth week was spent near Ratnagar Chaitya, to the northeast.
– The sixth week was spent next to the Lotus Pond.
– The seventh week was spent under the Rajyatna Tree.
The Bodhi Tree at Bodh Gaya is believed to be a direct descendant of the original tree where Siddhartha Gautama meditated and gained enlightenment. The temple was built directly to the east of the tree.
According to Buddhist mythology, if no Bodhi Tree grows at the site, the ground around it is empty of plants for a distance of one royal karīsa. No being, not even an elephant, can move through this area.
The Jatakas say the navel of the earth lies at this spot, and no other place can support the weight of the Buddha’s enlightenment. Another tradition claims that when the world ends at the end of a kalpa, the Bodhimanda is the last place to disappear and the first to appear when the world begins again. It is said that a lotus will bloom there, and if a Buddha is born during the new kalpa, the lotus flowers bloom according to the number of Buddhas expected to arise. According to legend, when Gautama Buddha was born, a Bodhi Tree sprang up.
In about 250 BCE, around 200 years after the Buddha gained enlightenment, Emperor Ashoka of the Mauryan Empire visited Bodh Gaya to build a monastery and shrine on the holy site. This structure no longer exists today.
However, the Diamond Throne, which Ashoka established at the foot of the Bodhi Tree, remains. The Diamond Throne, or Vajrasana, is thought to have been built by Emperor Ashoka between 250 and 233 BCE at the spot where the Buddha reached enlightenment. It is worshipped today and is the center of many festivals at the temple.
Early temple structures 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).
Additional structures were added by the Sungas. Columns with pot-shaped bases were found around the Diamond Throne. These columns are thought to date to the 1st century BCE, near the end of the Sunga period. These columns, found through archaeological research at the Buddha’s Walk in the Mahabodhi Temple, match the columns described on reliefs from the gateway pillars.
The railings around the Mahabodhi Temple at Bodh Gaya are ancient. They are old sandstone posts dating to about 150 BCE, during the Sunga period. They have carved panels and medallions with scenes similar to those on the contemporary Sunga railings at Bharhut (150 BCE) and Sanchi (115 BCE). The reliefs at Sanchi Stupa No. 2 are often considered the oldest of all. The railing was extended during the following century, up to the end of the Gupta period (7th century), with coarse granite decorated with elaborate foliate ornaments, small figures, and stupas. Many parts of the original railing have been moved to museums, such as the Indian Museum in Kolkata, and replaced by plaster copies.
While Emperor Ashoka is considered the founder of the Mahabodhi Temple, the current pyramidal structure dates from the Gupta Empire, in the 5th–6th century CE, and influenced later Hindu temple architecture in brick.
This may represent a restoration of earlier work from the 2nd or 3rd century. A plaque from Kumrahar dated 150–200 CE, based on its Kharoshthi inscriptions and Huvishka coins, already shows the Mahabodhi Temple in its current shape with a stepped truncated pyramid and a small hemispherical stupa with finials on top. This is confirmed by archaeological excavations in Bodh Gaya.
It is thought that the temple’s truncated pyramid design was inspired by the stepped stupas of Gandhara. The Mahabodhi Temple adapted the Gandharan design of steps with niches containing Buddha images, alternating with Greco-Roman pillars, topped by a stupa, as seen in the stupas of Jaulian. The structure is crowned by a hemispherical stupa with finials, forming a logical extension of the stepped Gandharan stupas.
This design marked the shift from aniconic stupas (without images) to iconic temples with multiple Buddha and Bodhisattva images. This design greatly influenced later Hindu temples. Today, the "shikhara" tower with an amalaka near the top is more characteristic of Hindu temples.
Throughout its history, the Mahabodhi Temple has received
Architectural style
The Mahabodhi Temple is made of brick and is one of the oldest brick buildings still standing in eastern India. It is seen as an excellent example of Indian brick construction and had a major influence on later architectural styles. According to UNESCO, "the present temple is one of the earliest and most impressive structures built entirely in brick from the Gupta period" (300–600 CE). The temple's central tower is 55 meters (180 feet) tall and was heavily restored in the 19th century. This main tower is surrounded by four smaller towers, all built in the same style.
The Mahabodhi Temple is enclosed by stone railings on all four sides, standing about two meters high. These railings show two different types, both in design and materials. The older railings, made of sandstone, date back to about 150 BCE. The newer ones, made of unpolished coarse granite, are believed to be from the Gupta period. The older railings include scenes such as Lakshmi, the Hindu/Buddhist goddess of wealth, being bathed by elephants, and Surya, the Hindu sun god, riding a chariot pulled by four horses. The newer railings feature images of stupas (shrines that hold holy relics) and garudas (eagles). Lotus flowers also appear frequently on the railings.
Images found at the site include Avalokiteśvara (Padmapani, Khasarpana), Vajrapani, Tara, Marichi, Yamantaka, Jambhala, and Vajravārāhī.
Control of the site
For many years before Europeans rediscovered it, the temple was used by Shaivas and Vaishnavas for worship. In 1891, a campaign began to return control of the temple to Buddhists, but the Hindu mahant opposed this. Sir Edwin Arnold, who wrote The Light of Asia, supported efforts to restore the site and return it to Buddhist care. Arnold was encouraged by Weligama Sri Sumangala Thera to take part in this work. In 1891, Anagarika Dharmapala visited the newly restored Mahabodhi Temple. He was shocked to find a Shaiva priest in charge, the Buddha image changed into a Hindu symbol, and Buddhists prevented from worshiping there. This led him to start a movement to change these conditions.
The Maha Bodhi Society was created in Colombo in 1891. Its offices moved to Calcutta in 1892. One of its main goals was to return the Mahabodhi Temple at Bodh Gaya to Buddhist control. This site is one of the four most important ancient Buddhist holy places. To achieve this, Dharmapala filed a lawsuit against the Brahmin priests who had controlled the site for many years. After a long and difficult process, success came only after Indian independence in 1947, sixteen years after Dharmapala’s death in 1933. In 1949, the site was partially restored to the Maha Bodhi Society. At that time, the management of the temple in Bodh Gaya was given to a committee with equal numbers of Hindus and Buddhists. In 1949, control of the temple was transferred from the Hindu mahant to the Bihar state government, which formed the Bodh Gaya Temple Management Committee (BTMC) under the Bodh Gaya Temple Act of 1949. This committee has nine members, most of whom, including the chairman, must be Hindus by law. The first head monk of the Mahabodhi Temple under the management committee was Anagarika Munindra, a Bengali man who had been active in the Maha Bodhi Society.
In 2013, the Bihar government changed the Bodh Gaya Temple Act of 1949 to allow a non-Hindu to lead the temple committee. Also in 2013, one thousand Indian Buddhists gathered at the Mahabodhi Temple to demand Buddhist control of the site. These Buddhists included leaders such as Bhante Anand, president of the Akhil Bharatiya Bhikkhu Mahasangh, and the president of the Bodh Gaya Mukti Andolan Samiti. Japanese-born Surai Sasai also became a key Buddhist leader in India. He and Bhante Anand became two of the most well-known leaders of the campaign to return the temple to Buddhist control.
Current status and management
After India became independent, the Bihar state government took over the responsibility of protecting, managing, and monitoring the temple and its properties. According to the Bodh Gaya Temple Act of 1949, this duty is shared with the Bodhgaya Temple Management Committee and an advisory board. The committee, which serves for three years, must include four Buddhist and four Hindu members. The head of the Sankaracharya Math monastery is an official Hindu member. A 2013 change to the Bodhgaya Temple Management Act allows the Gaya District Magistrate to lead the committee, even if he is not Hindu. The advisory board includes the governor of Bihar and 20 to 25 other members, half of whom are from foreign Buddhist countries.
In June 2002, the Mahabodhi Temple was added to the list of UNESCO World Heritage Sites. Religious artifacts found in the area are protected by law under the Treasure Trove Act of 1878.
In 2007, the temple’s head monk, Bhikkhu Bodhipala, resigned after being accused of regularly cutting branches from the Mahabodhi tree and selling them to foreigners for large amounts of money. A newspaper claimed that wealthy buyers from Thailand purchased a branch with the help of senior members of the management committee. The temple’s representative said botanists had pruned the tree, but the Bihar home secretary ordered an examination of the tree. A criminal case was opened against Bodhipala. If found guilty, he could face at least 10 years in prison.
After the management committee’s term ended in September 2007, the Bihar government delayed appointing a new committee. The district magistrate managed the temple until a new committee was formed. On May 16, 2008, the government announced the appointment of a new Temple Management Committee.
As of June 2017, the temple’s head monk was Bhikkhu Chalinda.
Recent events
In early 2013, Thai organizers began a plan to cover the temple's upper spire with gold. They noted that approval from Indian authorities was needed before the work could start and estimated the project would require about 200 kilograms of gold.
In August 2013, Bihar’s chief minister, Nitish Kumar, stated that the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) had agreed to allow the Mahabodhi Temple’s dome to be decorated with gold, but only if certain requirements were met. Later reports said the project would use gold donated by Thailand, with amounts reported as 289 kilograms (often rounded to "nearly 300 kilograms") or 280 kilograms. These donations were attributed to the Thai king and Thai devotees. A report mentioned that only the top 18 feet of the 180-foot-tall structure would be covered with gold after chemical treatment to prepare the surface.
On July 7, 2013, ten small bombs exploded in the temple complex, injuring five people. One bomb was near the Buddha statue, and another was near the Mahabodhi tree. Three unexploded bombs were also found and safely removed. The explosions occurred between 5:30 a.m. and 6:00 a.m., and the main temple remained undamaged. Indian intelligence officials may have warned state officials about possible threats about 15 days before the attack. On November 4, 2013, the National Investigation Agency announced that the Islamic terrorist group Indian Mujahideen was responsible for the bombings.
Replicas
The Mahabodhi Temple is one of the most copied Buddhist buildings, both as large structures and small models.
- 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