The Great Stupa of Sanchi

 Why in the News?

During his recent visit to Germany, India’s External Affairs Minister visited the replica of the East Gate of Sanchi’s Great Stupa, which is located in front of the Humboldt Forum Museum in Berlin.

What’s in Today’s Article?

• What is a Stupa?
• The Great Stupa of Sanchi
• Features of Sanchi Stupa
• The East Gate of the Sanchi Stupa and Its Replica

What is a Stupa?

• Definition: In Buddhism, a stupa is a dome-shaped or mound-like structure that houses relics (usually the remains of the Buddha and other Buddhist monks or nuns) and serves as a place for meditation.
• Origin: Stupas originated as pre-Buddhist burial mounds in ancient India. Initially, they held no religious significance and served merely as memorials that were simpler and less prominent than the stupas we see today.
• Structure:

Development:

• Expansion under Ashoka (250 BCE): According to Buddhist tradition, Emperor Ashoka retrieved the relics of the Buddha from earlier stupas and constructed 84,000 stupas across India to distribute the relics.
• Decorated Stupas (from 125 BCE): Over time, stupas became richly adorned with sculptural reliefs. Examples include Bharhut (115 BCE), Bodh Gaya (60 BCE), Mathura (125–60 BCE), and Sanchi (notable for the elevation of the toranas).
• Development in Gandhara (3rd century BCE – 5th century CE): As Buddhism spread to Central Asia, China, Korea, and Japan through Gandhara, the stylistic development of the Gandharan stupa had a major influence on the design of these structures.
• Significance: It is believed that the design of the temple with a truncated pyramid shape may have evolved from the stepped stupas developed in Gandhara, with the Mahabodhi Temple in Bodh Gaya being a prominent example.

Sanchi Stupa :

About:

• Sanchi Stupa is a UNESCO World Heritage site since 1989.
• Sanchi is located in Madhya Pradesh.
• The site features several smaller stupas, including three main ones: Stupa 1, Stupa 2, and Stupa 3. Stupa 1, also known as the Great Stupa at Sanchi, is the most prominent and oldest, and is believed to contain relics of the Buddha.
• Built by Emperor Ashoka in the 3rd century BCE, the stupa was originally smaller than it is today and was expanded in subsequent periods.
• This is the most ancient stone structure found in India.
• It is regarded as one of the best-preserved collections of Buddhist monuments in the country.
• It was built over the relics of the Buddha and his two disciples, Sariputra and Maudgalyayana.
• British General Henry Taylor rediscovered the Sanchi Stupa in 1818, and the first formal survey and excavations at the site were conducted by Alexander Cunningham in 1851.
• The site was restored to its current condition in the 1910s under the direction of John Marshall, the Director-General of the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI), with financial support from the begums of nearby Bhopal.

Features of Sanchi Stupa:

• The original structure of the stupa was made of bricks, but it was later covered with stone, along with the addition of the vedica (railing) and the torana (gateway).
• The stupa has four gateways, with the southern one being constructed first, followed by the others. These gateways are beautifully decorated with intricate sculptures and carvings.
• Each torana features two vertical pillars topped by three horizontal bars, adorned with detailed carvings on both sides. They include images of shalbhanjikas—women holding tree branches—and scenes from the Jataka tales.
• These gateways were constructed within a few decades of each other during the reign of the Satavahanas.
• Each gateway is made up of two square pillars decorated with intricate sculptures depicting scenes from the Buddha’s life (without showing him in human form) and stories from the Jataka tales.
• The art is remarkable for its rhythm, symmetry, visual splendor, and the exquisite detailing of floral and plant elements.
• The structure includes both a lower and an upper pradakshinapatha, or circumambulatory path, with the upper path being unique to this stupa.
• On the southern side of the stupa stands the Ashokan Lion Capital pillar, which bears inscriptions.
• The hemispherical dome of the stupa, known as the anda, houses the relics of the Buddha.
• The harmika is a square railing situated on top of the dome.
• The chhatra, or umbrella, sits atop the harmika. There is also a sandstone pillar at the site inscribed with Ashoka’s Schism Edict.
• During the Shunga dynasty, the original brick dome was expanded to double its size and was covered with stone slabs.

 Top of Form

Bottom of Form

The East Gate of the Sanchi Stupa and its Replica:

Features:

• The upper architrave of the gateway depicts the seven Manushi Buddhas (the previous Buddhas, with the historical Buddha being the most recent incarnation).
• The middle architrave illustrates the Great Departure, showing Prince Siddhartha leaving Kapilavastu to live as an ascetic in his quest for enlightenment.
• The lower architrave portrays Emperor Ashoka visiting the Bodhi tree, where the Buddha attained enlightenment.
• Other decorative elements include the shalabhanjika (a fertility symbol represented by a yakshi holding the branch of a tree), as well as elephants, winged lions, and peacocks.

Why is the East Gate the most renowned of the Sanchi toranas in Europe?

• The East Gate gained prominence due to its historical significance. In the late 1860s, Lieutenant Henry Hardy Cole created a plaster cast of the East Gate for the Victoria and Albert Museum in London.
• This cast was subsequently replicated and exhibited throughout Europe. The recent replica in Berlin also originates from this original cast.

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