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Mahabodhi Temple by Night

The Mahabodhi Temple (literally: "Great Awakening Temple") is an ancient, but much rebuilt and restored, Buddhist temple in Bodh Gaya, marking the location where the Buddha is said to have attained enlightenment.

Entrance to Mahabodhi Temple.

Decorated railing.
The railing around the Mahabodhi Temple at Bodh Gaya are quite ancient. These are old sandstone posts dating about 150 BCE, during the Sunga period.

  • There are carved panels as well as medallions, with many scenes similar to those of the contemporary Sunga railings at Bharhut (150 BCE) and Sanchi (115 BCE), although the reliefs at Sanchi Stupa No.2 are often considered as the oldest of all.
  • The railing was extended during the following century, down to the end of Gupta period (7th century), with coarse granite decorated with elaborate foliate ornaments and small figures as well as stupas.
  • Many parts of the initial railing have been dismantled and are now in museums, such as the Indian Museum in Kolkata, and have been replaced by plaster copies.

Mahabodhi Temple from east.
The Mahabodhi Temple is a stepped pyramid with a round stupa on top.


Torana Gateway.
Entrance to the shrine is through the East Gate, a typical Buddhist carved torana (archway).

  • Torana is a free-standing ornamental or arched gateway for ceremonial purposes in Hindu, Buddhist and Jain architecture of the Indian subcontinent.
  • Torana is a sacred or honorific gateway in Buddhist and Hindu architecture. Its typical form is a projecting cross-piece resting on two uprights or posts. It is made of wood or stone, and the cross-piece is generally of three bars placed one on the top of the other; both cross-piece and posts are usually sculpted.
  • See more at Torana - Wikipedia.

Queue to enter the shrine.

Buddhists in meditation.
Some Buddhists take advantage of the quiet of the night to meditate around the shrine.


Truncated pyramid seen from below.
It is thought that the temple in the shape of a truncated pyramid was derived from the design of the stepped stupas which had developed in Gandhara.

  • The Mahabodhi Temple adapted the Gandharan design of a succession of steps with niches containing Buddha images, alternating with Greco-Roman pillars, and top by a stupa, as seen in the stupas of Jaulian.

Mahabodhi Tree.
The Bodhi tree at Bodhgaya is directly connected to the life of the historical Buddha, Siddhartha Gautama, who attained enlightenment or omniscient wisdom when he was meditating under it.

  • The temple was built directly to the east of the Bodhi tree, supposedly a direct descendant of the original Bodhi Tree.
  • According to the Jatakas, the navel of the earth lies at this spot, and no other place can support the weight of the Buddha's attainment.
  • See more at Bodhi Tree - Wikipedia.

Buddhists chanting.
A Buddhist chant is a form of musical verse or incantation, in some ways analogous to religious recitations of other faiths.

  • In Buddhism, chanting is the traditional means of preparing the mind for meditation, especially as part of formal practice (in either a lay or monastic context). Some forms of Buddhism also use chanting for ritualistic purposes.
  • While the basis for most Theravada chants is the Pali Canon, Mahayana and Vajrayana chants draw from a wider range of sources.
  • See more at Buddhist chant - Wikipedia.

Mahabodhi Temple from southeast.

Mahabodhi Temple from south.

See also

Source

Location

Location: Bodh Gaya, Bihar 824231, India