Sanchi
Overview
From a distance, the stupa - a hemispherical, smooth-sided object jutting out from a knoll in front of the main railway line at Sanchi, 46 km northeast of Bhopal - looks like a surreal space station or an upside-down satellite dish. Indeed, a giant stone mound rises as silent evidence of the existence of much more ancient ways of connecting with the cosmos. In addition to being India's finest surviving Buddhist monument, the Great Stupa is also one of the earliest religious structures of the subcontinent. It rises above a complex of ruined temples and monasteries, which together recreate a vivid and consistent picture of the development of Buddhist art and architecture since the emergence of this religion in central India in the 3rd century BC. e., and until, during the Middle Ages, it was eventually superseded by revived Brahmanism.
A visit to Sanchi, however, is not just a dry illustration of the art history of south Asia. The main stupa is surrounded by several examples of ancient sculpture, the most interesting and best preserved of any that can be seen in their natural surroundings, and the site itself, rising serenely above the vast open plains, still radiates the stately calm that apparently attracted once ancient architects. For most visitors, two hours is more than enough time to explore the ruins, although entire days can be spent admiring and contemplating the four stunning gates, or torans, that surround the Great Stupa. Paved paths and steps lead throughout the hilltop grounds (daily from 8.00am to 18.00pm; $10 for foreigners), lined with explanatory panels and rows of spreading trees to relax under if the heat gets to you.
At the foot of the hill, the sanctuary area is connected to a small village by a crushed stone path. Once you've bought your entry ticket from the roadside booth in front of the museum, walk up the stone steps on the right, past postcard vendors greeting you, to the main entrance. From here, the central passage stretches first along the new Sri Lankan Buddhist temple and stalls with refreshments, and then leads directly to the Great Stupa.
Historical facts
Unlike other famous Buddhist centers in eastern India and Nepal, Sanchi is not associated with the life of the Buddha himself. It first became a place of pilgrimage when, around the middle of the 3rd century BC. BC, Emperor Ashoka Maurya, who married a woman from nearby Besnagar, erected a polished stone pillar and a stupa made of brick and mortar here. The complex was enlarged by subsequent dynasties, but after the decline of Buddhism, Sanchi remained abandoned and unkempt until it was rediscovered in 1818 by General Taylor of the Bengal Cavalry. In subsequent years, the complex was overrun by destructive crowds of treasure seekers, who, without any embarrassment, broke the giant stone eggs and left with their contents, which seemed valuable to them. In fact, only Stupas 3 and 4 contained more than just cobblestones; Every year in December, ritual soapstone boxes with bone particles inside are displayed in a new temple for one day. These amateur “archaeologists” brought the ruins into a truly deplorable state. Deep holes gaped in the walls of Stupas 1 and 2, a pair of ceremonial gates had completely collapsed, and much of the brickwork had been plundered by villagers for building materials (one local landowner is said to have carted away an Ashoka pillar to be used as a skating rink in in its sugarcane press).
Restoration work brought little benefit until archaeologist John Marshall and Buddhist researcher Albert Foucher began working on it in 1912. The jungle was cut down, the main stupas and temples were reconstructed, trees were planted and lawns were laid out, and a museum was built to house the sculpture that had not yet been transported to Delhi or London.
Great Stupa
Stupa 1, or the Great Stupa, rises on a level piece of land on the western edge of the plateau. Fragments of the original, much smaller structure, built in the 3rd century BC. e. Ashoka, are still buried under the thick outer shell of limestone applied a century later. The shungi are responsible for the appearance of the elevated prayer gallery - two graceful steps rising from the paved path and gracefully encircling the drum - as well as the spire-like chhattra, forming a square enclosed space crowning the top of the mound. Four elaborate gates were completed by the Satavahanas in the 1st century BC. BC, and then added four figures of a serene meditating Buddha, who greet you as you pass through the main entrances. Carved from a local variety of sandstone, these statues were erected during the Gupta period, around 450 AD. e. By this time, artistic depictions of the Buddha had become acceptable (elsewhere at Sanchi, the Teacher is euphemistically represented by an empty throne, a wheel, the imprints of a pair of feet, or even an umbrella).
As you gradually approach the stupa, the incredible wealth of sculpture decorating the torans becomes increasingly noticeable. Looking at these masterpieces from below, you can understand why archaeologists believed that they were made by ivory carvers. Every conceivable nook and cranny of the eight-meter vertical pillars and three curved crossbars is teeming with exquisite figurines of people, demigods and goddesses, birds, animals and good symbols. Some of the larger bas-reliefs depict scenes from the life of Gautama Buddha and his six predecessors, while others tell how Ashoka spread the faith. Decorative panels are inserted between them, as well as pictures from life in heaven, which were supposed to encourage worshipers to live with dignity on earth. Start at the torana, located at the southern end, which is the oldest of all, and move clockwise around the stupa, as is customary when visiting Buddhist monuments.
Stupas
Hemispherical mounds, known as stupas, became centers of Buddha worship from the 6th century BC. e. When one of the Buddha's disciples asked him to create some symbol that would help spread his teachings after his death, the Master took his begging bowl, the materials he used in teaching, and a piece of cloth - his only worldly property - and laid them out in the form of a stupa, using a cloth as a foundation, an inverted bowl as a dome, and a stick as the final projecting decoration, or spire.
Stupas were originally simple burial mounds made of compressed earth and stone that contained relics of the Buddha and his followers. As religion spread, however, the number of basic components multiplied and they were endowed with symbolic meaning. The main dome, or anda - depicting the sacred mountain, or "divine axes" connecting heaven and earth - became larger in size, and the wooden railings, or verdikas, surrounding the dome were replaced by massive stone ones. To the vertical sides of the dome was added a terrace raised above the ground in the form of a gallery, or medhi, as well as two flights of stairs and four ceremonial entrances located exactly at the cardinal points. And finally, the single spire crowning the top of the stupa turned into a three-tiered umbrella, or chhattra, symbolizing the Three Jewels of Buddhism: Buddha, Law (Dharma) and the monastic community (Sangha).
The chhattra, usually fixed in the middle of a square formed by low stone railings or harmikas, commemorating the days when sacred trees were fenced off, was the highest point of the axes, located exactly above the relic ark at the very heart of the stupa. The arks, which contained various shrines - from pieces of bones wrapped in cloth to beautiful caskets of precious metals, crystal and carved stone - were the "seeds", and the mounds protecting them were the "eggs". Excavations of 84 stupas scattered throughout the subcontinent have revealed that the interiors were sometimes elaborately designed into mandalas - symbolic shapes that exert a beneficial effect on the stupa and those who pass around it. The ritual of circumambulating the stupa, or pradakshina, which allowed the worshiper to connect to cosmic energy, renounce the earthly and be transported to the divine realms, was always performed clockwise, starting from the eastern side, which followed the path of the sun across the heavens.
Of the half dozen or so stupa complexes that existed in ancient India, only Sanchi has survived to this day. However, to see a working stupa, one must follow the path of Ashoka's missionaries, south to Sri Lanka, north to the Himalayas and the Tibetan plateau, or across the Bay of Bengal to Southeast Asia, where the stupas of dagobas, chortens and chedis are still revered as receptacles of sacred energy.
South Torana
Opening directly onto the ceremonial staircase, the southern torana was the main entrance of the Great Stupa, as evidenced by the proximity of a fragment of the original stone pillar erected by Ashoka. Over the years, some of the best sculptured panels have fallen off the gate (they are now in the museum), but those that remain on the three crossbars are still in fair condition. The carved frieze on the middle architrave depicts Ashoka with his royal retinue visiting the stupa for traditional rites of worship. On the opposite side is a painting of one of the Buddha's previous incarnations. The Bodhisattva takes the form of an elephant, which, in complete renunciation, helps the ivory hunter to saw off his own (one of six) tusk.
Western Torana
The western torana collapsed during devastating raids in the 18th century, but was skillfully restored. Panels with the most striking examples of Sanchi sculpture adorn its two square supports. The top right panel shows a multitude of monkeys rushing across the Ganges on a bridge that the bodhisattva leading them had built from his own body to help them escape from a group of soldiers (who can be seen below). According to Mahakapi Jataka, troops were sent by the local king to capture the mango tree he coveted, on which the monkeys fed. One can also discern the final scene, when the repentant monarch receives a stern injunction from the bodhisattva under the sacred peepal tree. High on the top rail, in the form of a row of bodhi trees and stupas, are eight Buddhas, including Maitreya, the Buddha who is yet to come.
One of the most frequently shown episodes from the life of the Buddha is represented in the first two panels on the left support if you are facing the stupa. The Temptation of Mara - the scene when the Buddha, who has vowed to remain under the tree until he achieves enlightenment, heroically defies attempts the demon Mara can be distracted by threats of violence or with the help of seductive women - the beautiful daughters of Mara. Note the striking contrast at the end of the scene between Mara's excited troops and the solemn-faced procession of angels who accompany the Buddha after he has achieved his goal.
North Torana
Topped with a fragmented Wheel of Law and two tridents symbolizing the Buddhist trinity, the northern torana is the most elaborate and best preserved of the four gates. Among the scenes, images of which are densely dotted with its two vertical supports, one can highlight the episode when the Buddha walks on air, and the monkey presents the Teacher with a bowl of honey. The bas-reliefs on both sides of the lower cross beam connecting the two supports depict scenes from the Vessantara Jataka, telling how the Bodhisattva prince was expelled by his father for giving away a magic elephant that could make rain. During his exile, the overly generous Vessantara was persuaded to part with everything else he held dear, including his wife and children, until the king finally forgave him. You can better see the inner, south-facing side of the panel by going up to the balcony of the stupa’s terrace raised above the ground. Note the small panel at the very right, which shows the royal family making their way through the jungle; The prince's son holds his father's hand, and the daughter presses against her mother's thigh. The four elephants carved on the capital supporting the architraves are also very realistic, as are the other smaller figures of elephants, horses and tree nymphs that separate the three crossbars.
Eastern Torana
Rising languidly into space from the right capital of the eastern torana, Sanchi's most famous sculpture stands out - the sensual figure of a kashalabhanjika, or tree nymph. The full-breasted fertility goddess is one of several such figurines that once blessed worshipers when visiting the Great Stupa. Only a few of them, however, are still standing in their places, while others have been transported to Los Angeles and London. The pose in which she stands, tribhanga, "three bends," is a classical dance position that has become a hallmark of Indian religious sculpture since the figure's creation.
The inward-facing panels of the support below the salabhanjika statue depict scenes from the life of the Buddha, including the moment of his conception, when the bodhisattva entered the body of his mother Maya in the form of a white elephant riding a crescent moon. The front of the middle architrave shows a scene several years later when the young Buddha, represented as a riderless horse, makes his Great Departure from the palace where he grew up to begin the life of a wandering ascetic. The other side depicts the fully enlightened Master, symbolized by an empty throne, which is surrounded by a crowd of celestial beings and forest animals who have come to pay homage to him.
Other structures on the sanctuary grounds
Among the dozens of other numbered ruins within the 400-metre sanctuary, only a tiny handful are of more than passing interest. Small, unpretentious, with only one ceremonial gate, but immaculately restored, Stupa 3, located immediately northeast of Stupa 1, is inferior to its slightly older neighbor in all but one way. In 1851, deep in the middle of the mound, a pair of priceless arks was discovered. Lathe-cut from a marble-like soapstone called soapstone, the boxes turned out to contain relics that once belonged to two of the Buddha's closest disciples. In one were found pieces of bones surrounded by balls of pearl, crystal, amethyst, lapis lazuli and selenite, and on the lid inscribed in ink the initial of Sariputra, to whom they are believed to have belonged. Once transported to the British Museum along with other Sanchi treasures, they are now kept safe in the new Buddhist temple adjacent to the sanctuary grounds, and are on display to the public for one day each December (for details, please contact to any MPTDC tourism office). Today, Sanchi has transformed from a lonely open-air museum into a bustling place of pilgrimage, attracting adherents of the faith from as far away as Sri Lanka and Japan.
From Stupa 3, walk through a nearby group of chaotically scattered columns, small stupas and temple foundations to a large complex of interconnected raised terraces at the easternmost part of the site. The best preserved of the group of monasteries, Vihara 45, dates from the 9th-10th centuries and is a regular group of cells arranged around a central courtyard. Originally, a colossal, ornate sanctuary tower towered proudly over the complex, but it collapsed, exposing the shrine inside. Among the elaborate sculptures flanking the entrance to the sanctum are statues of the river goddesses Ganga and Yamuna, evidence of the growing popularity of Brahmanism in the early Middle Ages. Inside, however, the Buddha still reigns supreme. He sits regally on a lotus flower, his right hand touching the floor to call upon the earth goddess to be a witness at the moment of his enlightenment.
The eastern part of the enclosure wall surrounding the entire sanctuary, dating back to the 10th century, is the best place from which to admire the tranquil landscapes of Sanchi, especially beautiful at sunset. To the northeast, a huge cliff rises, located in the very center of Vidisha, part of the ancient city from which the local monasteries were sponsored. On the hillside below, between Besnagar and Sanchi, traces of the road left behind by numerous pilgrims can still be discerned. To the south of the hill, up to the escarpments of the sharp sandstone ridges silhouetted against the distant horizon, stretch endless, abundantly irrigated wheat fields with clumps of mango trees and palms scattered among them.
South part
The southern part of the sanctuary area contains some of the most interesting temples of Sanchi. Pieces of charred wood recovered from the foundations of Temple 40 prove that the present chaitya was built on top of an earlier structure, contemporary with Stupa 1. Temple 17 is an excellent example of the early architecture of the Gupta period, which predates the classical Hindu style that emerged later in Orissa and Khajuraho. Its small, flat-roofed sanctuary is entered through an open portico at the sides, supported by four elaborately carved columns topped with lion capitals. Nearby, directly opposite the southern entrance of the Great Stupa, the tall slender columns of Temple 18 give it a Greek appearance, but in fact its appearance is entirely consistent with the usual style of rock-cut Buddhist chaitya halls and resembles the plan of the caves at Karle and Bhaja. . Rebuilt several times since it was first created, the present temple dates back to the 17th century.
Before leaving the area, take a look at the fragment of the Ashoka Pillar (No. 10), which is located to the right of the southern torana of Stupa 1. Columns like this were erected by Ashoka throughout the empire, marking holy places and pilgrimage routes. The smoothly polished pillar (made, like all Ashoka's pillars, from a type of sandstone known as chunar, which comes from the name of a quarry on the Ganges near Varanasi) was once crowned by a magnificent lion-shaped capital, now housed in the museum. The inscription engraved around its base is in Brahmi script, which records the edicts of Ashoka in different languages.
Western slope
A flight of stairs near Stupa 1 leads down the western slope of Sanchi Hill to the village, passing two interesting monuments along the way. The lower parts of the thick stone walls of Vihara 51 were carefully restored so that their remains reveal a pattern of division of the room into 22 cells located around a paved central courtyard. Further down, on an artificial platform, stands a church dating from the 2nd century BC. e. Stupa 2 is located much lower than the main area - perhaps because the relics it contains were less important than those in Stupas 1 and 3. The ornate hedges and gates around it certainly do not compare with those , which sit on top of a hill, although the carved lotus medallions and mythical animals (including some whimsical horse-headed female figures) are worth a look. The stripes hanging from the saddles of some riders are believed to represent the first stirrups in India. The lotus designs that decorate the inner wall of the sanctuary are remarkable because no one flower is alike.
Archaeological Museum
The small Sanchi Archaeological Museum (daily except Friday 10.00am to 17.00pm; 5 rupees), located just behind the ticket kiosk to the left of the hilltop road, houses a small collection of curiosities, mostly fragments of sculpture recovered from a series of excavations. The main hall of the museum contains the most impressive pieces, including the famous lion capital that once crowned the pillar erected by Ashoka (see above), as well as two damaged shalabhanjikas from the gate of Stupa 1. Also notable are the distinctly Mathurana red sandstone Buddha statues, sent to Sanchi, it is believed, from Gandhara, in the far north-west of India, the place where figurative images of the Master first appeared. The best preserved ones date from the Gupta period, around the 4th century AD. e. Gallery 1 contains other large pieces of sculpture, and the remaining sections display smaller exhibits - votive terracotta figurines, stone panels, jewelry, pottery, weapons and tools.
