THE HOUSE OF PEACE

Please find below an attempt to capture our feelings about our stay in this incredible
house, which we subtly felt to be our own,

Home it was for us “ home away from home”, an abode of Peace,

Owned by a few remarkable individuals whose spirit we adore;

Ushured in and quietly charmed by their simplicity we should say,

Sister’s they were, but turned into Angels for us during, a memorable stay;

Environment so enchanting which we have dreamt of, all our lives,

Offered to us on a platter, without much of strife;

Forever our thoughts are frozen to, the compassion which we felt,

Plentiful they shared from their bounty with grace and smile,

Each and every meal was made with us in their thought to file;

Adorable was our kids for the inmates, which made them feel so special,

Care free was our spirit over here, having stayed here without an ordeal,

Ever will we be ready to come to this abode of peace again.

The Prabu Family – (12/03/11 to 3/4/11)

History of Bodh Gaya

Buddhagaya or Bodhgaya as is generally known is an ancient and

hallowed spot on earth. Being the seat of Enlightenment of the
Buddha it is the holiest of the holies for the Buddhists of the world.
Situated on the banks of the river Niranjana, Buddhagaya was
originally a part of the Uruvela village (presently Urail). Its
geographical location is at 24o 41' 45'' N. Latitude and 85o 2' 22'' E.
Longitude and is located in Bihar which again is an ancient and
historical place not only due to Buddhagaya but because Bihar is
equally important to the Jains, Hindus and Sikhs.

Although Buddhagaya has not attracted as much attention as the

world famous Agra or Ajanta, but of late it has become a significant
and interesting place due to its having longer and more complete
history than almost any other place in the sub-continent. Its history
supplemented by geographical, archaeological and literary sources
from China, Tibet, Burma and Sri Lanka. The history of Buddhagaya
is also made more interesting by the participation of some of Asia's
greatest personalities from King Asoka to Hiuen Tsang and Edwin
Arnold to Anagarika Dharmapala.

The history of Buddhagaya is not merely an outline of events, or a list

of doubtful dates, but it ranks high in importance from an artistic and
architectural point of view. The Mahabodhi Temple - where Lord
Buddha got divine light has given a place of pride to Buddhagaya in
the world map, for religion and tourism is the sole surviving example
of what was one a whole architectural genre. It even had an
International influence, through models and plans and replicas of it
which were carried throughout Asia by pilgrims and from which
copies of it were reproduced. The large number of statues and stupas
gives one an example of Buddhist art, but also makes it one of the
richest repositories of sculpture from the Pala period.

The fame of Buddhagaya as the sacred site where the Buddha

attained Sambodhi goes back to very early times giving it a religious
significance. For the millions of Buddhists, it is the Navel of the Earth
- the geographical centre of their faith. For it is here that Prince
Siddhartha became the Buddha after attaining Enlightenment sitting
under the Bodhi Tree, and it is from here the phenomenon now called
Buddhism began its gentle progress to the farthest reaches of the
globe. In keeping with Buddhism's emphasis on calm detachment,
Buddhagaya has never evoked in the Buddhists the intense fervour
that Mecca, Benaras, Jerusalem or Amritsar have in the millions who
hold these places sacred. It has, nonetheless, inspired countless
pilgrims throughout the centuries to undergo hardship and danger for
the blessing of just being able to walk on its sacred ground. The
Buddha's experience at Uruvela not only resulted in the location
changing its name to Bodhgaya or Buddhagaya; it has also meant
that this, otherwise an obscure village, has been the focus of
attention for millions of pilgrims. It became very early and remains
even today, the most important place of Buddhist pilgrimage. The
exact place where the Buddha sat, when he was enlightened, was
called Vajrasana meaning 'Diamond Throne'. It is believed that when
the universe is finally destroyed, this could be the last place to
disappear and that it would be the first place to form when the
universe began to re-evolve again. The Vajrasana was also,
sometimes, called the Victory Throne of all the Buddha's
(Sabbabuddhanam Jayapallankam) or the Navel of the Earth
(Pathavinabhi). The Vajrasana which was also called Sambodhi by
King Asoka but the most widely used and also the most enduring of
Buddhagaya's names was Mahabodhi meaning 'great enlightenment'.

Buddhagaya today is a place of attraction for the entire Buddhist

world and groups of pilgrims and visitors come to visit it all the year
round, some to pay their obeisance to this great edifice of veneration,
whereas for some to come and see this great edifice of history.

Buddhagaya remained the cynosure of the Buddhist world upto the

13th century, thereafter due to the sudden political upheavals that
took place in and out of India, activities at Buddhagaya were also
interrupted and disrupted. The place was deserted and became
desolate and it remained neglected and forgotten for several
centuries.

But, as if by miracle, Buddhagaya, erstwhile an insignificant village,

was transformed overnight for it now hums with life and bids fair to be
the centre of the Buddhist world once more. History has taken a turn
and once again Buddhagaya is humming with life. In the beginning,
the pilgrims were only a few and far between, but there is tremendous
increase in the number of pilgrims with the development of
communication systems and other facilities. When this place is full of
pilgrims, it is then a sight to see how they pour forth their devotion in
various ways. These they do by offering pujas, circumambulating
 along the sacred precincts, prostrating round the main
shrine, sitting in contemplation under the sacred Bodhi tree
and holding meditation retreats, burning of candles and
butter lamps. All these inspiring and instilling into us a little
hope and a little faith, the aroma of goodwill, peace and
devotion pervades the whole atmosphere. Each and every
follower frequents the holy place to receive inspiration and
blessings at the seat of Enlightenment of the Buddha whose
Sambodhi has universal significance.

The Bodhi Tree

For seven days after the Enlightenment, the Buddha continued to

meditate under the Bodhi tree without moving from his seat. During
the second week he practiced walking meditation. A jewel walk,
Chankramanar, was built as a low platform adorned with nineteen
lotuses which are parallel to the Maha Bodhi temple on its north side.
For another week the Buddha contemplated the Bodhi tree. In this
place a stupa was built called Animeschalochana situated to the north
of the Chankramanar.

On the back of the main temple situated to the west (see picture)
there is an ancient pipal tree Ficus religiosa or Bodhi tree. It was
under this tree that Gautama sat for enlightenment. The present tree
is considered only as the descendant of the original tree. There is a
tradition that Ashoka's wife had it secretly cut down because she
became jealous of the time Ashoka spent there. But it grew again and
a protective wall was also built at the time. Many sacred trees in India
and other countries are originally raised from seeds brought from the
ancient Bodh Gaya tree. A shoot of the original Bodhi tree was taken
to Sri Lanka in the 3rd century B.C. by Bhikkhuni Sangamitta,
daughter of Ashoka, where the Lankan king Devanampiyatissa
planted it at the Mahavihara monastery in Anuradhapura where it still
flourishes today. While the Vajrasana was the specific site of the
enlightenment, the Bodhi tree, closely linked to the Buddha's
accomplishment, became a central focus of devotion early in the
history of the Sangha. Pilgrims sought the Bodhi Tree's seeds and
leaves as blessings for their monasteries and homes.
Around the Bodhi tree and the Mahbodhi temple there are
quadrangular stone railings around 0.2m high with four bars including
the top piece. These are of two types and can be distinguished from
each other in style and material used. The older set is dated to about
150 BC and made of sandstone while the latter set is probably of the
Gupta period (300-600 AD) and constructed from course granite. The
older set has a number of designs representing scenes from the
purchase of Jetavana by Ananthapindika at Sravasti, Lakshmi being
bathed by elephants, Surya riding a chariot drawn by four horses, etc.
On the latter set there are figures of stupas, Garudas, etc. In most of
these railings lotus motifs are commonly used.