Misplaced Pages

#943056

84-451: The pass is named after three small, crumbling stupas or chedis which were probably built at the end of Ayutthaya period as a symbol of peace. The pagodas are now on the Thai side of the border in the village of Phra Chedi Sam Ong. Parts of the border are still disputed. These three chedis appear in the provincial seal of Kanchanaburi Province in stylized form. The pass gives its name to

168-521: A coping —became a feature of safety surrounding a stupa. The Buddha had left instructions about how to pay homage to the stupas: "And whoever lays wreaths or puts sweet perfumes and colours there with a devout heart, will reap benefits for a long time". This practice would lead to the decoration of the stupas with stone sculptures of flower garlands in the Classical period. According to Buddhist tradition, Emperor Ashoka (rule: 273–232 BCE) recovered

252-545: A central doorway flanked on both sides by three niches, was exceptionally elaborate, and has been reconstructed by the ASI, replacing missing elements with matching shaped but undecorated stone blocks. This was a later addition, called by Reichle the "third facade to rear shrine". The carving includes numerous small figures, often now hard to identify. This now stands alone in the courtyard, not quite in its original position. Monastery 2, next to Monastery 1 but much smaller, features

336-489: A central paved courtyard flanked by a pillared veranda around which are eighteen cells, a central shrine featuring an image of Shakyamuni in Varada Mudra flanked by Brahma and Sakra, and elaborately ornamented entrance porticos. It only had a single story. It may have been the first to be built, as Mitra dates the first construction to about the 5th century (as opposed to the 8th for Monastery 1), with more building in

420-463: A centre of Tantric Buddhism , as did Nalanda in Bihar . In particular, over two dozen colossal Buddha heads have been found. Monastery 1 is much the largest of the three monasteries, with an overall size of 55 square metres, including 21 square metres for the paved central courtyard. It had at least two storeys, but everything above the ground floor has now collapsed. There are 24 surviving cells on

504-535: A certain area is decided together with the teacher assisting in the construction. Sometimes the type chosen is directly connected with events that have taken place in the area. All stupas contain a treasury filled with various objects. Small clay votive offerings called tsatsa s in Tibetan fill most of the treasury. The creation of the tsatsa s is itself a ceremony. Mantras written on paper are made into thin rolls and put into small clay stupas. One layer of tsatsa s

588-697: A deep and wide rock-cut chamber, surrounded on the ground by a massive circular mud-brick structure made in two tiers, and filled in and topped with earth to form a domical shape. There is also evidence of plastering on the exterior of Tumulus-1, bearing a 10- mm-thick plaster of pinkish-white clay over brick masonry. These forms of hemispherical monuments or tumulus of brick-masonry with similar layouts may have been inspirations for later stupas. Some stupas not believed to have been looted have been found empty when excavated, as have some pre-historic cairn sites, and animal bones are suspected to have occasionally been deposited at both types of sites. Religious buildings in

672-469: A garniferous gneiss with plum-coloured overtones". The large numbers of sculptures in stone, with a few (27) bronze and brass figures, excavated at the site are mostly in the "Post-Gupta" style, the earlier ones continuing the classic style of Gupta art . They are mostly images of Buddha and the Buddhist pantheon, and analysis of the trends in subjects over time suggests that Ratnagiri turned to become

756-453: A metre. Most of the smaller ones show a seated deity figure in a niche on one side, and many are decorated with lotus petals and beaded tassels around their shaft. These are mostly carved from a single piece of stone. Many Indian Buddhist sites have some of these, but at Ratnagiri there are more than 700 of them in total, which is an exceptionally large number, and they represent an exceptional range of deities, with 22 identified. Some 535 of

840-515: A number of early Buddhist stupas or burials are found in the vicinity of much older, pre-historic burials, including megalithic burial sites. This includes sites associated with the Indus Valley Civilization , where broken Indus-era pottery was incorporated into later Buddhist burials. Scholars have noted structural and functional features of the stupa (including its general mound shape and the practice of surrounding stupas with

924-475: A restoration of the main stupa. Unlike, for example, the Ajanta Caves , which were completely forgotten for centuries (except by local villagers), the ruins of Ratnagiri were known about, and are briefly discussed in government reports from the late 19th century onwards, with "brief articles by scholars" from the 1920s onwards. However, Debala Mitra records that when the main ASI excavation began in 1958,

SECTION 10

#1732772357944

1008-467: A rich family, having a beautiful body, a nice voice, bringing joy to others, and having a long and happy life in which one's wishes are quickly fulfilled. On the absolute level, one will also be able to quickly reach enlightenment , the goal of Buddhism. Destroying a stupa, on the other hand, is considered an extremely negative deed, similar to murder. Such an action is said to create massive negative karmic imprints, leading to serious future problems. It

1092-578: A set, placed in a row. The Tibetan set differs slightly (by two events) from the Indian set of Eight Great Events in the Life of Buddha . Also known as "Stupa of Heaped Lotuses", or "Birth of the Sugata Stupa", this stupa refers to the birth of Gautama Buddha. "At birth Buddha took seven steps in each of the four directions" (east, south, west, and north). In each direction, lotuses sprang up, symbolizing

1176-601: A square base. There is no access to the inside of the structure. In large stupas, there may be walkways for circumambulation on top of the base as well as on the ground below it. Large stupas have, or had, vedikā railings outside the path around the base, often highly decorated with sculpture, especially at the torana gateways, of which there are usually four. At the top of the dome is a thin vertical element, with one or more horizontal discs spreading from it. These were chatra s , symbolic umbrellas, and have not survived, if not restored. The Great Stupa at Sanchi , Madhya Pradesh,

1260-613: A stone, relic chamber, or wooden railing) with both pre- Mauryan-era cairn and pre-historic megalithic "round mound" burials with chambers found in India, which likely represent a "proto-stupa". In Dholavira , an archeological site associated with the Indus Valley Civilization, there are several large and high "hemispherical monuments" of tumulus with brick-masonry found with burial chambers inside. Among them, Tumulus-1 and Tumulus-2 mounds were excavated. They consist of

1344-657: A stupa was, had demonstrated the basic design: he folded his robe on the ground, placed his begging bowl upside down on it, with his staff above that. The relics of the Buddha were spread between eight stupas, in Rajagriha , Vaishali , Kapilavastu , Allakappa , Ramagrama , Pava , Kushinagar , and Vethapida . Lars Fogelin has stated that the Relic Stupa of Vaishali is likely the earliest archaeologically known stupa. Guard rails —consisting of posts, crossbars, and

1428-482: A thesis and article were published. There was a further ASI campaign in 1997–2004, which concentrated on moving the temple which had been built over a stupa. The large amount of sculpture surviving has been analysed in a number of publications. The identification and iconography of the figures in sculpture at Ratnagiri have been the subject of considerable analysis, although much remains uncertain. The exceptionally large number and range of figures shown, above all on

1512-417: A turn towards esoteric Buddhism. Examples include Heruka . Two small scenes, now difficult to interpret, seem to show erotic activity combined with the cutting of hair. These are very rare, and may relate to the practice, described in some Hindu Tantric texts but no known Buddhist ones, of offering both semen and cut hair to a deity ( Kali especially). They are on the later second and third facades to

1596-590: A well-preserved stupa at Shingardar near Ghalegay ; another stupa is located near Barikot and Dharmarajika-Taxila in Pakistan. In Sri Lanka, the ancient city of Anuradhapura includes some of the tallest, most ancient, and best-preserved stupas in the world, such as Ruwanwelisaya . The most elaborate stupa is the 8th-century Borobudur monument in Java, Indonesia. The upper rounded terrace, with rows of bell-shaped stupas, contain Buddha images symbolizing Arūpajhāna ,

1680-428: Is a chaitya , which is a prayer hall or temple containing a stupa. Stupas may have originated as pre-Buddhist tumuli in which śramaṇas were buried in a seated position, called caitya . In early Buddhist inscriptions in India, stupa and caitya appear to be almost interchangeable, though caitya has a broader meaning, and unlike stupa does not define an architectural form . In pre-Buddhist India, caitya

1764-679: Is crowned by the shape of a hemispherical stupa topped by finials , forming a logical elongation of the stepped Gandharan stupas such as those seen in Jaulian . Although the current structure of the Mahabdhodi Temple dates to the Gupta period (5th century CE), the "Plaque of Mahabhodi Temple", discovered in Kumrahar and dated to 150–200 CE, based on its dated Kharoshthi inscriptions and combined finds of Huvishka coins, suggests that

SECTION 20

#1732772357944

1848-416: Is much the largest, with a beautiful carved doorway, spacious open courtyard, cells and verandah facing the courtyard, with a spacious shrine centred on a colossal Buddha . The buildings are mainly in brick (much of which has now been removed), but the doorways, pillars and sculpture are mostly in two types of stone, which contrast attractively. These are a "blue-green chlorite and the local khondalite ,

1932-544: Is placed in the treasury, and the empty space between them is filled with dry sand. On the thus-created new surface, another layer of tsatsa s is made, and so on, until the entire space of the treasury is full. The number of tsatsa s required to completely fill the treasury depends on its size and the size of the tsats a. For example, the Kalachakra stupa in southern Spain contains approximately 14,000 tsatsa s. Jewellery and other "precious" objects are also placed in

2016-483: Is popular with tourists, who are allowed to obtain a one-day visa from the Thai side to visit Payathonsu. Attractions on the Burmese side include wooden furniture, jade carvings, and textiles. Thai tourists are allowed in as of 2011, while other tourists are not, due to its status as a temporary border checkpoint which only allows day trips between the two neighbouring countries. With the rambling strutting roosters of

2100-590: Is positioned during a ceremony or initiation, where the participants hold colorful ribbons connected to the Tree of Life. Together, the participants make their most positive and powerful wishes, which are stored in the Tree of Life. In this way, the stupa is charged and starts to function. Building a stupa is considered extremely beneficial, leaving very positive karmic imprints in the mind. Future benefits from this action are said to result in fortunate rebirths. Fortunate worldly benefits also result, such as being born into

2184-727: Is said this action leaves the mind in a state of paranoia after death has occurred, leading to unfortunate rebirths. Stupas in Tibet and Tibetan-influenced regions of the Himalayas , such as Bhutan , are usually called "chorten" in English, reflecting the term in the Tibetan language . There are eight different shapes of chortens in Tibetan Buddhism , each referring to a major event in the Buddha's life. Chortens are often made as

2268-437: Is the most famous and best-preserved early stupa in India. Apart from very large stupas, designed to attract pilgrims, there were large numbers of smaller stupas in a whole range of sizes, which typically had much taller drums, relative to the height of the dome. Small votive stupas paid for by pilgrims might be less than a metre high, and laid out in rows by the hundred, as at Ratnagiri, Odisha , India. The principal design of

2352-442: The sangha . A stupa in this design was built in the kingdom of Magadha , where the reconciliation occurred. It has four octagonal steps with equal sides. This stupa commemorates Buddha's successful prolonging of his life by three months. It has only three steps, which are circular and unadorned. This stupa refers to the parinirvana , or death of the Buddha, when he was 80 years old. It symbolizes his complete absorption into

2436-631: The Archaeological Survey of India ("ASI") revealed the site, producing large quantities of very fine sculpture. Monastery 1 has been described as "the finest in terms of carved stone decoration to have survived in India". Some of this was removed to museums elsewhere, with much left on site. A museum at the site has recently been opened to house many pieces. The main elements were an impressive stupa (Stupa 1) surrounded by several hundred smaller stupas of varying dimensions, three quadrangular monasteries (Monasteries 1 to 3). Monastery 1

2520-648: The Pag Sam Jon Zang , identifies Ratnagiri as an important centre in the development of the Kalachakratantra in the 10th century, an assertion supported by the discovery of a number of votive stupas , plaques, and other artifacts featuring Kalachakra imagery. It was thought, with Lalitgiri and Udaigiri nearby, to be the Pushpagiri Vihara mentioned by the 7th-century Chinese pilgrim Hiuen Tsang , but this has been thrown into doubt by

2604-619: The Pali word for stupa, thupa , with the Sanskrit pronunciation being stupa . In particular the type of the tower-like stupa, the last stage of Gandharan stupa development, visible in the second Kanishka Stupa (4th century), is thought to be the precursor of the tower stupas in Turkestan and the Chinese pagodas such as Songyue Pagoda (523 CE). The earliest archaeological evidence for

Three Pagodas Pass - Misplaced Pages Continue

2688-637: The Patna Museum , Indian Museum, Kolkata , National Museum, New Delhi , and Odisha State Museum in Bhubaneswar. The only holding outside India mentioned by Donaldson is a figure in the Brooklyn Museum , New York. Together with the comparable nearby monastic sites of Lalitgiri and Udayagiri , it is part of the so-called "Diamond Triangle" of the "Ratnagiri-Udayagiri-Lalitgiri" sites. It used to be thought that one or all of these were

2772-602: The Three Pagodas Fault . The pass has been the main land route into western Thailand since ancient times. It is one of the few passes in the Tenasserim Hills , and is believed be the point at which Buddhist teachings reached the country from India in the 3rd century. During the Ayutthaya period in Thai history (14th–18th centuries), the pass was the main invasion route for the Burmese, but at times

2856-587: The Twelve Nidānas . At 42 years of age, Buddha spent a summer retreat in the Tuṣita Heaven , where his mother had taken rebirth. In order to repay her kindness, he taught the dharma to her rebirth. Local inhabitants built a stupa in Sankassa in order to commemorate this event. This type of stupa is characterized by having a central projection at each side, containing a triple ladder, or steps. Also known as

2940-461: The brahmaviharas : love, compassion, joy, and equanimity. The base of this stupa is circular and has four steps, and it is decorated with lotus-petal designs. Occasionally, seven heaped lotus steps are constructed. These refer to the seven first steps of the Buddha. Also known as the "Stupa of the Conquest of Mara ", this stupa symbolizes the 35-year-old Buddha's attainment of enlightenment under

3024-515: The "Stupa of Conquest of the Tirthikas ", this stupa refers to various miracles performed by the Buddha when he was 50 years old. Legend claims that he overpowered maras and heretics by engaging them in intellectual arguments and also by performing miracles. This stupa was raised by the Lichavi kingdom to commemorate the event. This stupa commemorates the Buddha's resolution of a dispute among

3108-416: The 7th and 11th centuries. Monastery 3 is on a small hillock to the north-west, and much smaller again, with only three cells in a row, and a portico. The main stupa dates to the 9th century and was likely built on the site of an earlier, Gupta -era stupa. It is on the highest point in the site and has a square base, 47 feet (14 m) metres on each side. The stupa is now 17 feet (5.2 m) high, but

3192-494: The Buddhist temple of Wat Suwankhiri on a Payathonsu cliff near by, during April, Three Pagodas Pass becomes a site of the Songkran Festival with cockfights , Burmese kickboxing and various folk dancing. Stupa In Buddhism, a stupa ( Sanskrit : स्तूप , lit.   'heap', IAST : stūpa ) is a mound -like or hemispherical structure containing relics (such as śarīra – typically

3276-468: The Muslim invasions of the 12th century, which completely destroyed the greatest centre in the region at Nalanda . By the end of the 13th century, Ratnagiri was in decline, and new work ceases. Through no longer in an affluent condition the Buddhist establishment at Ratnagiri is thought to have continued until about the 16th century, during which there was a "modest revival of structural activity", including

3360-497: The area of Gandhara. Since Buddhism spread to Central Asia , China, and ultimately Korea and Japan through Gandhara, the stylistic evolution of the Gandharan stupa was very influential in the later development of the stupa (and related artistic or architectural forms ) in these areas. The Gandhara stupa followed several steps, generally moving towards more and more elevation and addition of decorative elements, leading eventually to

3444-485: The base, flanked by smaller standing figures of Padmapani and Vajrapani holding chamaras . These are in chlorite, with the Buddha carved in a number of horizontal sections. Monastery 1 was built in at least two major phases, the first dating to the late 8th century, and the second to the 11th or early 12th century; Donaldson prefers the early 10th century for the second phase. The style of sculpture differs considerably between these, and scholars have generally seen

Three Pagodas Pass - Misplaced Pages Continue

3528-447: The bell-shaped stupas at Borobudur is located at Amaravati Buddhist Monastery , near Hemel Hempstead , in the UK. Built for a variety of reasons, Buddhist stupas are classified, based on form and function, into five types: "The shape of the stupa represents the Buddha, crowned and sitting in meditation posture on a lion throne. His crown is the top of the spire; his head is the square at

3612-677: The bodhi tree in Bodh Gaya , where he conquered worldly temptations and attacks, manifesting in the form of Mara. This stupa is also known as the "Stupa of Many Gates". After reaching enlightenment, the Buddha taught his first students in a deer park near Sarnath . The series of doors on each side of the steps represents the first teachings: the Four Noble Truths , the Six Pāramitās , the Noble Eightfold Path , and

3696-518: The clay seals mentioned above, only three inscriptions of any significance have been found at the site, all extracts from Buddhist texts, in two cases dealing with the rewards accruing to those who erect stupas. One is carved on stone slabs, another written on terracotta plaques before firing, and one engraved on the back of a sculpture. A growing number of images of " wrathful deities ", that is, fierce "aspects" of enlightened Buddhas , Bodhisattvas or Devas (divine beings), may be taken as evidence of

3780-451: The construction of the railway. The region is home to several hill tribes, including Karens and Mons , who are unable or unwilling to obtain citizenship from either country. Separatist armies have repeatedly tried to seize the pass from Myanmar, with the Mons in effective control until 1990, when Burmese troops regained it. There is still occasional fighting in the area. Three Pagodas Pass

3864-533: The development of the pagoda tower. The main stupa types are, in chronological order: It is thought that the temple in the shape of a truncated pyramid may have derived from the design of the stepped stupas that developed in Gandhara. The Mahabodhi Temple in Bodh Gaya is one such example, formed of a succession of steps with niches containing Buddha images, alternating with Greco-Roman pillars. The structure

3948-875: The difference between a mahastupa and a stupa , or mahacetiya and cetiya , hard to pin down. Some authors have suggested that stupas were derived from a wider cultural tradition from the Mediterranean to the Ganges Valley and can be related to the conical mounds on circular bases from the 8th century BCE that are found in Phrygia (tomb of Midas , 8th c. BCE), Lydia (tomb of Alyattes , 6th c. BCE), or in Phoenicia (tombs of Amrit , 5th c. BCE). Some authors suggest stupas emerged from megalithic mound burials with chambers, which likely represent proto-stupas. Archaeologists in India have observed that

4032-448: The discovery in the 1990s of a previously unknown site in the area on Langudi Hill, which may be Pushpagiri. The hundreds of small votive stupas at Ratnagiri suggest it was an important site for pilgrimage, and it was very likely connected to the important trade networks of ancient Kalinga , which stretched to South-East Asia . North-East India, Bengal and Odisha, was the last stronghold of Buddhism in India, though greatly weakened by

4116-552: The earlier phase as well. The issue revolves around the choice of deities, and the form, aspect or just the pose and iconography in which they are depicted. The site features statues of Tara , Avalokiteshvara , Manjusri , Aparajita , Hariti and a range of other bodhisattvas . Ratnagiri is notable for a larger proportion of female figures than other groups of Buddhist sculpture, which has been connected with an increasing interest in esoteric forms of Buddhism, though writers disagree over which traditions were involved. Apart from

4200-561: The elevation of the toranas (1st century BCE/CE), and then Amaravati (1st–2nd century CE). The decorative embellishment of stupas also underwent considerable development in the northwest, in the area of Gandhara , with instances such as the Butkara Stupa ("monumentalized" with Hellenistic decorative elements from the 2nd century BCE) or the Loriyan Tangai stupas (2nd century CE). The stupa underwent major evolutions in

4284-445: The form of the Buddhist stupa, a dome-shaped structure, started to be used in India as commemorative monuments associated with storing sacred relics of the Buddha. After his parinirvana , Buddha's remains were cremated and the ashes divided and buried under eight mounds, with two further mounds encasing the urn and the embers. According to some early Buddhist sources, the Buddha himself had suggested this treatment, and when asked what

SECTION 50

#1732772357944

4368-445: The ground floor, relatively large and probably occupied by more than one monk. One was used as the monastery treasury. They are windowless, and were fitted with wooden doors, and probably locks. Across the courtyard from the entrance, which has two layers of porch, is the main shrine, whose elaborately sculpted facade is now isolated in the courtyard. The main shrine image is a colossal seated Buddha, 12 feet (3.7 m) high including

4452-578: The highest state of mind. It is bell-shaped and usually unornamented. Ratnagiri, Odisha Ratnagiri ( Odia : ରତ୍ନଗିରି, meaning "hill of jewels") is the site of a ruined mahavihara , once the major Buddhist monastery in modern Odisha , India. It is located on a hill in between the Brahmani and Birupa rivers in Jajpur district . It is close to other Buddhist sites in the area, including Lalitagiri and Udayagiri , and 100 km (62 mi) from

4536-514: The largest Buddhist monument in the world. It is also the world's largest Buddhist temple as well as one of the greatest Buddhist monuments in the world. A Jain stupa was excavated at Mathura in the 19th century. The Shwedagon Pagoda in Yangon, Myanmar, is one of the largest stupas in the world. The Benalmádena Stupa is the tallest stupa in Europe. It is 33 m (108 ft) high and

4620-412: The later work as representing a decline in "both moral and artistic standards", as the later work includes some erotic scenes. The main entrance to the monastery is through an elaborately carved chlorite doorway set back from the main outside wall, which was faced with stone at a later stage than the original construction. The frame was called by Mitra "the loveliest entrance to a structural monastery in

4704-483: The legend Sri Ratnagiri Mahavihariya Aryabikshu Sanghasya , which helped to identify the name of Ratnagiri monastery. One temple has been converted to Hindu use as the Dharma Mahakala temple; this was built over an earlier stupa, and was moved to the side of the site and re-erected by the ASI. It contains a Buddhist standing relief figure of Manjushri . The later parts date to the 11th century. Ratnagiri

4788-482: The local people had lost all memory of the site as a religious foundation, and believed the mounds had been the palace of a "mythical king", calling them "the queen's mound" (" Ranipukhuri "). A large-scale excavation was conducted at the site by the ASI between 1958 and 1961, uncovering most of what is known today. The report of these excavations was published by the ASI (Mitra, 1981 and 1983). In this twenty year interval

4872-447: The main shrine room. The Ratnagiri museum occupies a purpose-built modern building at the site. It has three storeys and four galleries, with a range of objects found on the site on display. Three galleries mainly feature stone sculpture, and the fourth bronze and ivory sculptures, terracottas, clay seals, inscribed copper plates, and other finds. Other sculptures are "scattered in local villages", and several are in museums, including

4956-506: The other. Across the top lintel there was a relief of vidyadhara figures, of which only the feet remain. In the centre an inset guardian figure of Gaja-Laksmi , borrowed from the Hindu pantheon, runs through two zones. At the bottom of the sides there are two panels each with four richly but lightly dressed lay figures, one holding an umbrella. These are "door guardians" and the innermost figures are large males leaning on clubs; however,

5040-410: The overall impression of the groups is hardly intimidating. Around the entrance were a number of large relief panels of standing figures, several now removed elsewhere. On the outside wall the only one left in place is the female figure (illustrated) holding a flowering branch and making the varadamudra with her proper right hand. She is perhaps a river goddess, or Marici . In a niche inside

5124-528: The pagoda in East Asia. The pagoda has varied forms that also include bell-shaped and pyramidal styles. In the Western context, there is no clear distinction between a stupa and a pagoda. In general, however, "stupa" is the term used for a Buddhist structure in India or Southeast Asia, while "pagoda" refers to a building in East Asia that can be entered and that may be used for secular purposes. However, use of

SECTION 60

#1732772357944

5208-604: The porch is an image of the river goddess Yamuna in "sisterly camaraderie" with two smaller companions (illustrated below). There was probably a matching Ganga panel on the other side, but this is now missing; the pair are very common figures at the threshold of Buddhist and Hindu establishments. Other common figures in monasteries are pairs of Pancika (the Hindu Kubera ) and his consort Hariti , representing material and spiritual wealth at more than one level. The style of these figures demonstrates that they were made at

5292-519: The presence of Buddhist stupas dates to the late 4th century BCE. Some of the oldest known examples of stupas are found in Vaishali, Kushinagar, Piprahwa, Ramgram, Sanchi, Sarnath , Amaravati, and Bharhut. With the top of its spire reaching 120.45 m (395.2 ft) in height, Phra Pathommachedi in Nakhon Pathom, Thailand is the tallest extant stupa in the world. The Swat Valley hosts

5376-415: The pyramidal structure already existed in the 2nd century CE. This is confirmed by archaeological excavations in Bodh Gaya. This truncated pyramid design also marked the evolution from the aniconic stupa dedicated to the cult of relics, to the iconic temple with multiple images of the Buddha and Bodhisattvas. This design was influential in the development of later Hindu temples . Stupa architecture

5460-618: The relics of the Buddha from the earlier stupas (except from the Ramagrama stupa ), and erected 84,000 stupas to distribute the relics across India. In effect, many stupas are thought to date originally from the time of Ashoka, such as Sanchi or Kesariya , where he also erected pillars with his inscriptions, and possibly Bharhut , Amaravati , or Dharmarajika . Ashoka also established the Pillars of Ashoka throughout his realm, generally next to Buddhist stupas. The first known appearance of

5544-459: The remains of Buddhist monks or nuns ) that is used as a place of meditation . Circumambulation , or pradakhshina , has been an important ritual and devotional practice in Buddhism since the earliest times, and stupas always have a pradakhshina path around them. The original South Asian form is a large solid dome above a tholobate , or drum, with vertical sides, which usually sits on

5628-571: The same period as the sculpture on the Baitala Deula Hindu temple in Bhubaneswar , and it has been suggested that some individual sculptors worked at both sites, "a lack of sectarian specialization" in builders and carvers in India being very common. The monastery courtyard had a large verandah , now mostly vanished, probably giving an effect and utility similar to the cloisters of European Christian monasteries. One part, with

5712-459: The small stupas, makes Ratnagiri an outstanding Indian site for the study of Buddhist images. An evolution of the prevailing religious thought has been detected, reflected in the choice of images, and relating them to a wider range of Buddhist texts, despite very little evidence as to what texts or practices were used or even known at Ratnagiri itself. The religious affiliations of the monastery probably changed over its long history, and it seems it

5796-415: The sphere of formlessness. The main stupa itself is empty, symbolizing complete perfection of enlightenment. The main stupa is the crown part of the monument, while the base is a pyramidal structure elaborated with galleries adorned with bas-relief scenes derived from Buddhist texts and depicting the life of Gautama Buddha . Borobudur's unique and significant architecture has been acknowledged by UNESCO as

5880-408: The spire's base; his body is the vase shape; his legs are the four steps of the lower terrace; and the base is his throne." Although not described in any Tibetan text on stupa symbolism, the stupa may represent the five purified elements, according to Buddhism: To build a stupa, Dharma transmission and ceremonies known to a Buddhist teacher are necessary. The type of stupa to be constructed in

5964-430: The state capital Bhubaneswar and 70km from the former state capital Cuttack . The Buddhist monuments were constructed from the 5th century CE onwards, with the last work in the 13th century, and the peak period of work done between about the 7th to 10th centuries. After perhaps the 16th century the site ceased to be used and fell into ruins. These were little known until the 1960s when major campaigns of excavations by

6048-425: The stupa may have been influenced by the shikharas seen on Hindu temples . As Buddhism spread across Asia , stupas were stylistically altered into other structural forms used for the same purposes, like the pagodas of East Asian Buddhism or the chortens of Tibetan Buddhism . In Southeast Asia , various different elongated shapes of dome evolved, leading to high, thin spires . A related architectural term

6132-918: The term varies by region. For example, stupas in Burma tend to be referred to as "pagodas". Stupas were built in Sri Lanka soon after Devanampiya Tissa of Anuradhapura converted to Buddhism. The first was the Thuparamaya . Later, many more were built over the years, including the Jetavanaramaya in Anuradhapura. The Asian words for pagoda ( tā in Chinese, t'ap in Korean, tháp in Vietnamese, tō in Japanese) are all thought to derive from

6216-479: The total are found to the south-west to the main stupa. Most can be dated to between the 9th and 13th centuries, and were evidently made on or very close to the site; some unfinished examples have been found, including those with the space for the figure left blank, to be finished when the customer chose a deity. It is thought they served as memorials and reliquaries for dead monks, and votive offerings by pilgrims. A total of 1386 clay seals were found, most bearing

6300-401: The treasury. It is not necessary that they be expensive, since it is the symbolic value that is important, not the market price. It is believed that the more objects are placed in the stupa, the stronger its energy. An important element in every stupa is the " Tree of Life ". This is a wooden pole covered with gems and thousands of mantras; it is placed in the central channel of the stupa. It

6384-471: The whole of India". It has three main zones, the innermost "an intricate foliated arabesque pattern" with a thin vine stem undulating up it. Next comes a zone with stylized lotus petals, usually seen on curved surfaces, and "quite unique" as a flattened pattern. The outer side elements switch from green chlorite to red stone in mid-composition in the large plant scroll inhabited by playing putti ( gelabai ), with some bodies half in one stone and half in

6468-576: The word "stupa" is from an inscribed dedication by Ashoka on the Nigali Sagar pillar (spelled in Pali in the Brahmi script as 𑀣𑀼𑀩𑁂 thube ). Stupas were soon to be richly decorated with sculptural reliefs, following the first attempts at Sanchi Stupa No.2 (125 BCE). Full-fledged sculptural decorations and scenes of the life of the Buddha would soon follow at Bharhut (115 BCE), Bodh Gaya (60 BCE), Mathura (125–60 BCE), again at Sanchi for

6552-559: Was a term for a shrine, sanctuary, or holy place in the landscape, generally outdoors, inhabited by, or sacred to, a particular deity. In the Mahāyāna Mahāparinirvāṇa Sūtra , near the end of his life, the Buddha remarks to Ananda how beautiful are the various caitya around Vaishali . In later times and in other countries, cetiya /caitya implies the presence of important relics. Both words have forms prefixed by maha for "great", "large", or "important", but scholars find

6636-456: Was adopted in Southeast and East Asia , where it became prominent as a Buddhist monument used for enshrining sacred relics. The Indian gateway arches, torana , reached East Asia with the spread of Buddhism. Some scholars hold that torii derives from the torana gates at the Buddhist historic site of Sanchi (3rd century BCE–11th century CE). In Tibet , the stupa became the chorten, and

6720-487: Was also used against them by Siamese armies. The first Burmese invasion through the pass occurred in 1548 during the Burmese–Siamese War (1547–1549) . During World War II, Japan built the infamous Death Railway (officially Taimen – Rensetsu Tetsudo) through the pass. There is a memorial to commemorate the thousands of British, Australian, Dutch and American prisoners of war, and Asian forced labourers who died during

6804-503: Was inaugurated on 5 October 2003, the final project of Buddhist master Lopon Tsechu Rinpoche . Lopon Tsechu built his first stupa at Karma Guen near Málaga, in 1994, a symbol of peace and prosperity for Spain. He went on to build 16 more stupas in Europe before his death in 2003. A stupa was built on the ground of the Kalachakra Kalapa Centre in southwest Styria , Austria, between 2000 and 2002. A stupa based on

6888-426: Was likely established no later than the reign of the Gupta king Narasimha Baladitya in the first half of the sixth century, and flourished until the twelfth century. The main construction of the surviving part of Monastery 1 was under the rule of the (mainly) Buddhist Bhauma-Kara dynasty , whose capital was nearby at Jajpur , although no inscription records patronage at Ratnagiri by the dynasty. A Tibetan history,

6972-478: Was often the case that different Buddhist traditions co-existed within a single monastery. The "overwhelming majority" of the sculpture can be grouped into two phases, the first dating to the 8–9th centuries, dominated by imagery described as Mahayana by Donaldson, followed by a second phase of the 10th and 11th centuries, with mainly Vajrayana choice of subjects and imagery. However, some other scholars question these descriptions, seeing evidence of Tantricism in

7056-447: Was originally a good deal higher, to an unknown extent. There was a pathway between the plinth and outer wall for ritual pradakshina or circumambulation; this was a later addition. Prominent, well-preserved standing statues of the bodhisattvas Vajrapani and Padmapani can be found in niches in a portico . The stupa is surrounded by large numbers of much smaller stupas, some four or more metres high, but large numbers less than

#943056