|
 Bodhgaya
is the place where the historical Buddha became enlightened
some 2500 years ago. It is currently a place of pilgrimage
for people interested in Buddhism.Bodhgaya is one of the
sacred places for the Buddhists as well as for the Hindus.
Here under the Bodhi Tree, Gautama attained supreme
knowledge to become Budhha, the `Enlighted One'.
"The Buddha once lived here"
Lord Buddha the gentle colossus who founded the first
universal religion of the world, worked and lived much of
his life in Bihar though he was born in Kapilavastu, now in
Nepal. Most of the major events of his life, like
enlightenment and last sermon happened in Bihar.
Significantly. the state’s name originated from ’Vihara’
meaning Buddhist and Jain monasteries, which abounded in
Bihar.
Though the Buddha was born as a Sakya prince in the Terai
foothills of the Himalayas, Buddhism as a religion was
really born in Bihar and evolved here through his preaching
and the example of his lifestyle of great simplicity,
renunciation and empathy for everything living. Perhaps the
present day life of trauma and tension reminds us of the
other alternative that was always available to us, the
Buddha’s way of life, gentle and simple.
Several centuries after Buddha’s passing away, the Maurya
emperor Ashoka (234-198 BC) contributed tremendously towards
the revival, consolidation and spread of the original
religion. It is the monasteries Ashoka built for the
Buddhist monks and the pillars erected to commemorate
innumerable historical sites associated with the Buddha’s
life, mostly intact to this day, that helped scholars and
pilgrims alike to trace the life events and preachings of a
truly extraordinary man.
The Buddha attained enlightenment in Bodhgaya, under the
Bodhi tree, 10 km from Gaya. the ancient Hindu pilgrimage
centre. The tree from the original sapling still stands in
the temple premises. It is the most important Buddhist
pilgrimage centre as Buddhisrn was born here.
The magnificent Mahabodhi temple in Bodhgaya is an
architectural amalgamation of many centuries cultures and
many heritages that came to pay their homage here. The
temple definitely has architecture of the Gupta and later
ages, inscriptions describing visits of pilgrims from Sri
Lanka, Myanmar and China between 7th and 10th century AD. It
is perhaps still the same temple Hiuen Tsang visited in 7th
century.
|
