Bodh Gaya

The most famous history lesson about Buddhism is the Bodh Gaya. One could not so easily forget the enlightening that was offered to Lord Buddha and how he turned himself to become a disciple of peace. It is still not clear whether a miracle or a superstitious power that offered this enlightenment to Buddha. However, we Indians do not just want to spend our time researching the famous Bodh Gaya, we built the famous Mahabodhi temple in the state of Bihar. The spot got its name from the Bodhi tree in which Buddha sat thinking for a long time. His mind was refreshed with good thoughts while he was in the state of thinking under this tree. He offered the world the greatest principles and hence to celebrate him we celebrate the source of his wisdom under this tree. With these renowned principles, the UNESCO declared Bodh Gaya has one of the world heritage centers.

Gautama Siddhartha who wandered as an ascetic to seek answers to the life's puzzle reached this bodhi tree for his meditation. As it is usually believed, meditation will not have its effect so soon, but Buddha had its result in just 3 days. Therefore, it is believed that this bodhi tree has a secret power. When Buddha started preaching Buddhism across the country, many of his disciples visited the Bodh Gaya and worshiped it.

King Asoka who was a great warrior soon turned his soul towards Buddhism and followed Buddha built the temple. He built this temple under the bodhi tree where Buddha attained knowledge. The Mahabodhi temple was built 250 years after Buddha attained the enlightenment. The temple's platform has chhatravali and the spire is crowned with a miniature stupa. The platform and the upper sanctum have double fleet stairs connecting to the floor. The spire has Buddha statues carved in it and there are a lot of depictions of his enlightenment. The entire temple stands unique in its architecture. It is not clear if the temple was changed in its course after the original construction by Asoka. Inscriptions say that the temple was renovated during the Kushan period. However, other inscriptions portray the exact details of the temple as King Asoka built it.

When Buddhism was almost degrading in India, the temple lost its own craze. Yet it did not lose the luster and uniqueness. However, the tricks of nature almost covered the temple in sand. Sir Alexander Cunningham restored the temple to its past glory. Once it was restored, it became the famous tourist spot for Buddha followers to visit it every now and then.