A Traveler's Gui to Bodh Gaya - Tricycle: The Buddhist Review

Contents:

• BODH GAYA: THE SE OF THE BUDDHA’S ENLIGHTENMENT
• BODHI TREE (BODH GAYA) - ALL YOU NEED TO KNOW BEFORE YOU GO
• BODHI TREE (BODH GAYA) - ALL YOU NEED TO KNOW BEFORE YOU GO
• BODH GAYA
• MAHABODHI TEMPLE COMPLEX AT BODH GAYA
• BODH GAYA: THE SE OF THE BUDDHA’S ENLIGHTENMENT

BODH GAYA: THE SE OF THE BUDDHA’S ENLIGHTENMENT

Sacred tree, Bodh Gaya, India. Bodhi tree, also lled Bo tree, acrdg to Buddhist tradn, the specific sacred fig (Fic religsa) unr which the Buddha sat when he attaed Enlightenment (Bodhi) at Bodh Gaya Bihar, India. Bodhgaya Temple.

The Bodhi Tree or Bodhi Fig Tree (“tree of awakeng”) also lled the Bo Tree was a large and ancient sacred fig tree (Fic religsa) loted Bodh Gaya, Bihar, India. The foremost example of an existg tree is the Mahabodhi Tree growg at the Mahabodhi Temple Bodh Gaya, which is often ced as a direct scendant of the origal tree.

BODHI TREE (BODH GAYA) - ALL YOU NEED TO KNOW BEFORE YOU GO

Map showg the lotn of Bodh Gaya.

This extraordary place—Bodh Gaya—is unrstood to be the se of the enlightenment, or “great awakeng” (Sanskr, mahabodhi), of Siddhartha Gtama, the Buddha. More than 2, 500 years later, Bodh Gaya is a sprawlg pilgrimage town nse wh ancient, medieval, and morn shr, monasteri, templ, and hotels.

At the heart of ancient Bodh Gaya is the Mahabodhi Temple Complex, which is by wh shr, monuments, and sculpted imag tablished over more than 2, 000 years. Buddhist nventn ont of the Bodhi tree at Bodh Gaya, 2013 (photo: Triratna_Photos, CC BY-NC 2.

BODHI TREE (BODH GAYA) - ALL YOU NEED TO KNOW BEFORE YOU GO

Siddhartha Gtama arrived at Bodh Gaya middle age, havg renounced his life as a prce on seeg the “four sights” of agg, sickns, ath, and asceticism.

BODH GAYA

Buddhist tradns diverge on some of this acunt but this moment and the place at which occurred, unr the Bodhi tree at Bodh Gaya, is signifint to all Buddhist tradns.

The Bodhi Tree today at Bodh Gaya.

As the place where the Buddha attaed enlightenment, Bodh Gaya appears to have bee a signifint place for Buddhists soon after the ath of the Buddha and the formatn of the Buddhist muny of monks and nuns (Sanskr, sangha) and lay people.

MAHABODHI TEMPLE COMPLEX AT BODH GAYA

Very ltle is known, however, about the earlit stctur at Bodh Gaya, and centuri of addn and alteratn make difficult to image how this se appeared at any particular moment the past. Timele of key events at Bodh Gaya (drawn by the thor). From pictns of Bodh Gaya art datg om the 2nd century B.

[2] The stone railgs enclosg a scennt of this tree at Bodh Gaya today likely date to the 1st century B. In some Buddhist tradns Bodh Gaya self is referred to simply as the “Diamond Throne” (Sanskr, vajrasana), ditg the signifince of this throne to the inty of this sacred se.

Bharhut relief wh Diamond throne and Mahabodhi Temple around the Boddhi Tree (om Sir Alexanr Cunngham, Mahâbodhi, or the great Buddhist temple unr the Bodhi tree at Buddha-Gaya, 1892). The empty throne unr the tree often acted as a sign for both the absent prence of the Buddha and for Bodh Gaya as a sacred se.

BODH GAYA: THE SE OF THE BUDDHA’S ENLIGHTENMENT

Mahabodhi Temple today, Bodh Gaya, Bihar, India (photo: manbartlett, CC BY 2. The acunts of Che pilgrims who vised Bodh Gaya om at least the 5th century C. Onwards give historians an ia of the next phase of nstctn at Bodh Gaya.

This broadly agre wh the scriptn of Mahabodhi Temple given by the Che pilgrim Xuanzang who vised Bodh Gaya centuri later, at the end of the 7th century C.

Depictns of the Mahabodhi Temple also suggt the creasg importance of the temple hog the Buddha image s own right as a sign for Bodh Gaya and the events there, although the Diamond Throne and the Bodhi tree ntue to be picted alongsi them.