'Nalanda', meaning 'Insatiable in Giving', is an ancient Buddhist center of learning. The history of Nalanda dates back to the time of Buddha and Mahavira in 6th century B.C. It was established during the reign of the Gupta King Kumaragupta. It is one of the world's first residential universities. In its heyday it accommodated over 10,000 students and 2,000 teachers. Some buildings were constructed by the Mauryan King Ashoka. King Harshavardhana and the Pala Kings continued to extend patronage to this center. Turkic Muslim invader Bakhtiyar Khalji sacked Nalanda in 1193 and this resulted in the decline of this great monastic learning center.
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| The Sariputta Stupa |
Nalanda is the place of birth and Nirvana of Sariputta, one of the two chief male disciples of Buddha. King Ashoka is said to have built this stupa in the memory of Sariputta. The Buddha is mentioned as having several times stayed at Nalanda.
The university was considered an architectural masterpiece, and was marked by a lofty wall and one gate. Nalanda had eight separate compounds and ten temples, along with many other meditation halls and classrooms. On the grounds were lakes and parks. The library was located in a nine storied building. The excavations conducted by Archaeological survey of India during 1915-37 and 1974-82 have revealed the remains of six brick temples and eleven monasteries arranged on a systematic layout. A 30mtr wide passage runs North-South with the row of temples on the west and that of the monasteries on the east of it.
In 2006, Singapore, China, India, Japan, and other nations, announced a proposed plan to restore and revive the ancient site as Nalanda International University. It is a dream project of the former Indian president APJ Abdul Kalam.
Bodhgaya is a religious site and place of pilgrimage associated with the Mahabodhi Temple Complex in Gaya district of Bihar. It is the place where Gautama Buddha attained unsurpassed, supreme Enlightenment. For Buddhists, Bodhgaya is the most important of the main four pilgrimage sites related to the life of Gautama Buddha, the other three being Kushinagar, Lumbini, and Sarnath. In 2002, Mahabodhi Temple, located in Bodhgaya, became a UNESCO World Heritage Site. According to Buddhist traditions, circa 500 BC Prince Gautama Siddhartha, wandering as an ascetic, reached the sylvan banks of Falgu River, near the city of Gaya. There he sat in meditation under a bodhi tree facing east. Here he resolved not to rise again until enlightenment was attained.
"Here on this seat my body may shrivel up,
my skin, my bones, my flesh may dissolve,
but my body will not move from this seat
until I have attained Enlightenment,
so difficult to obtain in the course of many kalpas".
After three days and three nights of meditation, Siddhartha attained enlightenment and insight, and the answers that he had sought.
About 250 years after the Enlightenment, the Buddhist Emperor, Ashoka visited the site and is considered the founder of the Mahabodhi Temple. According to the tradition, Ashoka, as well as establishing a monastery, erected a diamond throne shrine at this spot with a canopy supported by four pillars over a stone representation of the Vajrasana, the Seat of Enlightenment
Inside the temple there is a colossal image of the Buddha in the "touching the ground pose", bhumisparsha mudra. This image is said to be 1700 years old and is facing east exactly at the place where the Buddha in meditation with his back to the Bodhi tree was enlightened.
This marks the sacred spot of the Buddha's meditative perambulations during the third week after pious enlightenment. It is believed that wherever the Buddha put his feet lotus sprang up. A jewel walk, Chankramanar, was built as a low platform adorned with nineteen lotuses which are parallel to the Maha Bodhi temple on its north side.
The site of the enlightenment now attracts Buddhists and tourists from all over the world. For those who aspire to awaken their full potential, Bodhgaya today is truly a field vibrant with the potentiality of enlightenment. Enriched by devotion of Buddhists of all traditions, this holy site is emerging as a powerful inspiration to the modern world, awakening people of all nations to the real possibility of enlightenment.
The university was considered an architectural masterpiece, and was marked by a lofty wall and one gate. Nalanda had eight separate compounds and ten temples, along with many other meditation halls and classrooms. On the grounds were lakes and parks. The library was located in a nine storied building. The excavations conducted by Archaeological survey of India during 1915-37 and 1974-82 have revealed the remains of six brick temples and eleven monasteries arranged on a systematic layout. A 30mtr wide passage runs North-South with the row of temples on the west and that of the monasteries on the east of it.
In 2006, Singapore, China, India, Japan, and other nations, announced a proposed plan to restore and revive the ancient site as Nalanda International University. It is a dream project of the former Indian president APJ Abdul Kalam.
"Here on this seat my body may shrivel up,
my skin, my bones, my flesh may dissolve,
but my body will not move from this seat
until I have attained Enlightenment,
so difficult to obtain in the course of many kalpas".
After three days and three nights of meditation, Siddhartha attained enlightenment and insight, and the answers that he had sought.
About 250 years after the Enlightenment, the Buddhist Emperor, Ashoka visited the site and is considered the founder of the Mahabodhi Temple. According to the tradition, Ashoka, as well as establishing a monastery, erected a diamond throne shrine at this spot with a canopy supported by four pillars over a stone representation of the Vajrasana, the Seat of Enlightenment
Inside the temple there is a colossal image of the Buddha in the "touching the ground pose", bhumisparsha mudra. This image is said to be 1700 years old and is facing east exactly at the place where the Buddha in meditation with his back to the Bodhi tree was enlightened.
The site of the enlightenment now attracts Buddhists and tourists from all over the world. For those who aspire to awaken their full potential, Bodhgaya today is truly a field vibrant with the potentiality of enlightenment. Enriched by devotion of Buddhists of all traditions, this holy site is emerging as a powerful inspiration to the modern world, awakening people of all nations to the real possibility of enlightenment.
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