BUDDHIST VIHARA (BUDDHIST MONASTERY)

The Buddhist site of Sanchi, a Unesco World Heritage Site, is simply breathtaking. It is one of the most beautiful legacies of Buddhism in India. Stunning bulging domes, slender Ashok columns, elaborate temples and monasteries, magnificent sculptures mark the importance of Buddhism in India between the ^3rd century BC and the ^12th century.

Going up the hill on the left, the Buddhist Vihara (or monastery) with its "recent" architecture does not blend in the landscape. On the same side a little further, you will recognize the stupa n° 3 with its dome topped by a polished stone disc. Before the arrival of the British, the deepest chamber contained the relics of two disciples of Buddha: Sariputta and Mahamogallena. Stupa No. 1 sits atop the hill. Its harmonious proportions make it the most accomplished stupa on the site. It was commissioned by Emperor Ashoka. Rebuilt in the ^3rd century BC, it is also the oldest stupa in Sanchi. Around it, four superb toranas (porticoes) erected in the ^1st century BC mark the four cardinal points.

To understand the symbolism of the artists, refer to the main correspondences given on the explanatory panel located at the entrance of stupa n°1. The sculptures in the south torana celebrate the birth of Prince Gautama Siddartha. The north torana is crowned by the Wheel of the Law representing the professed miracles of Buddha. On the torana is depicted Prince Gautama leaving his father's palace forever to seek enlightenment. The inner carving on the right pillar depicts Maya's dream the day before she gave birth to the future Buddha. The seven incarnations of the Buddha are carved on the west torana: four in the form of trees and three in the form of stupas.

Exiting through the western torana, one discovers one of the most beautiful columns of Ashoka surmounted by four lions in volute. Ashoka and his wife Devi had a son, Mahindra (the name given today to Mehari made in India!), and a daughter, Sanghamitra. Both were sent to Sri Lanka where they converted the king, the queen and all the people to Buddhism. Nearby, the ruins of a^{fifth-century} Gupta temple. The large bowl carved from a block of stone contained the food distributed to the monks of Sanchi. Below, on the western edge of the hill, stands stupa No. 2 surrounded by a balustrade added in the ^2nd century B.C.