Mahabodhi Temple

Bodh Gaya is the first of the four principal Buddhist pilgrimage sites, the place of enlightenment, and the Mahabodhi temple marks it: a brick tower of about fifty-five metres, largely of the fifth or sixth century with later restoration, standing beside the Bodhi tree, itself grown from a cutting of a tree at Anuradhapura in Sri Lanka which was in turn taken from the original. The Vajrasana, a polished sandstone slab set by Ashoka, marks the seat of enlightenment beneath it. UNESCO inscribed the complex in 2002. Monasteries built by Thailand, Japan, Bhutan, Tibet and other Buddhist countries surround the town, each in its national style.

History

Tradition places the Buddha's enlightenment here, under a pipal tree near the Phalgu river, around 589 BCE in the traditional accounts, and in about 250 BCE the Emperor Ashoka came to found a monastery and shrine, which have since disappeared; the Vajrasana, the Diamond Throne, is thought to be his work of between 250 and 233 BCE. What stands today dates from the 6th century or possibly earlier, and a 6th-century record of a Sri Lankan monk, Mahanaman, tells of a temple built at the spot; from the 11th century patrons came from Tibet, China, Sri Lanka and Burma. In the 1880s the British began restoring the temple under Alexander Cunningham and Joseph David Beglar, and in 1884 a large Pala-period Buddha image was put back in the sanctum. Its central tower rises 55 metres, and in June 2002 it became a World Heritage Site (Wikipedia, Mahabodhi Temple).

Highlights

• The brick tower - a fifty-five-metre temple largely of the fifth or sixth century.
• The Bodhi tree - descended by cuttings from the original tree.
• The Vajrasana - the Ashokan sandstone slab marking the seat.
• The international monasteries - temples built by Buddhist countries around town.

When to go

October to March; the Dalai Lama teaches here in some winters, which fills the town entirely. Bihar summers are severe. Early morning under the tree is the quietest.

What to expect

Phones and cameras require fees or deposit and rules change. The town outside the complex is poor and touts are persistent. Winter teaching periods make accommodation impossible without booking far ahead.

Nearby

Gaya lies north; Rajgir and Nalanda are northeast.

Key facts