Context
The Archaeological Survey of India has unearthed a Buddhist monastery buried under a mound in a village situated in a hilly area of the Hazaribagh district of Jharkhand.
About the newly found monestry
- The findings are made in Burhani village near JuljulPahar of Sitagarhi Hills located around 12 km from district headquarters
- The monastery is believed to be at least 900 years old.
- It seems to be built during the Pala period.
Key Findings
- Four statues of deity Tara in Varad Mudra
- Varad Mudra is the gesture of hand showing dispensing of boons
- Six statues of the Buddha in Bhumisparsa Mudra
- Bhumisparsa Mudra is the gesture of hand showing five fingers of right hand towards the earth symbolizing the Buddha’s enlightenment.
- The sculptures each stand two to three feet tall.
- Tara is known as a deity in Hinduism and a female bodhisattva—central figures who delay personal enlightenment to offer earthbound worshippers salvation—or Buddha in different Buddhist traditions.
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Contribution of Pala dynasty to Support Buddism
- The Pala dynasty ruled the regions of Bengal and Bihar for about 400 years, from the 8th century until the end of the 11th century.
- Gopala, the first Pala king, was a Buddhist.
- They used the revenue from the new tax collection methods to fund initiatives all across the region that would spread Buddhism.
- The Pala rulers followed an approach of religious tolerance, granting land for Hindu temples and allowing Hindu Brahmins to hold high official posts in the Pala court.
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Monasteries
- Monastic complexes were created for the monks for meditation and residing purposes.
Three types of architecture:
Stupa
- The first was the stupa, a significant object in Buddhist art and architecture.
- On a very basic level, it is a burial mound for the Buddha.
- The original stupas contained the Buddha's ashes.
- Relics are objects associated with an esteemed person, including that person’s bones (or ashes in the case of the Buddha), or things the person used or had worn.
- 6 Buddist Stupas in India
- Mahabodhi Stupa, Bodh Gaya.
- Sanchi Stupa, Madhya Pradesh.
- Shanti Stupa, Leh.
- Dhamekh Stupa, Sarnath.
- Kesaria Stupa, Bihar.
- Maha Stupa, Thotlakunda.
Vihara
- This is theBuddhist monastery that also contained a residence hall for the monks.
Chaitya
- This was an assembly hall that contained a stupa.
- The central hall of the chaitya was arranged to allow for the circumambulation of the stupa.
- Famous Chaityas and Viharas
- Karle Chaitya. It is a complex of ancient Buddhist Indian rock-cut caves at Karli near Lonavala, Maharashtra.
- Nasik Chaitya. There are 16 Viharas and one Chaitya situated in Nasik of Maharashtra.
- Junnar Vihara.
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