In
Sanchi
The number of hours you spend exploring the ancient
ruins on the hill would depend upon your historical,
archaeological, aesthetic and religious inclinations.
It is possible to ‘do’ Sanchi in an hour and then
move on to some other historical sites in the region
such as Vidisha. But really, a fleeting glimpse
would not do justice to Sanchi. Some would count
it as sacrilege. Sanchi is
the kind of place that needs to be ‘seen’. Architectural
details in print always sound tedious (and it gets
worse, when what you wish to describe has no name,
just numbers: Stupa no.1, temple no. 5…). They come
alive only when you follow the curve of the stone
and the depth of a sanctorum. The stupas of Sanchi
lie scattered on a hilltop. The oldest structures
go as far back as 3rd century BC; additions and
alterations were made over the next several centuries.
Stupa 1
This is the main
structure on the hill with its four beautifully
carved gateways or toranas. The Jataka tales – inspirational
tales of Buddha’s many lives and incarnations -
as well as aspects of Buddha’s last incarnation
as Gautama are carved out in stone on the gateways.
The Buddha, according to the tenets of early Buddhist
art, is portrayed in symbols; the lotus representing
his birth, the tree his enlightenment, the wheel
derived from the title of his first sermon, the
footprints and throne symbolising his presence.
The inscriptions on the gateways mention donors
from all over northern India and special mention
is made of the ivory workers of Vidisha who sculpted
the stone.
The
main structure was originally built by Ashoka in
the 3rd century BC. Later it was enlarged and a
stone stupa was built to enclose the original brick
structure. It is 16m high and around 37m in diameter.
The toranas are amongst the finest examples of Buddhist
art in India. It is surrounded by a path which has
a worn out look, due to countless devotees going
around it over the centuries.
There are several other stupas – some small, others
big – as well as pillars that lie scattered on the
hill and you can spend hours deciphering them. The
hill actually goes up in shelves with Stupa 2 situated
on a lower shelf. Stupa 1, Stupa 3, the 5th century
Gupta Temple No.17 and the 7th century Temple No.
18 are on the intermediate shelf, and a later monastery
is on the crowning shelf. As the structures here
were created over a few centuries, they are a very
good study of the evolution of architectural styles
in ancient India. There is also an ASI museum at
Sanchi.
Stupa 2
The
most intersting feature of this stupa is the stone
wall that surrounds it and the meadallions that
decorate it.
Stupa 3
It
once contained relics of two important desciples
of Buddha, which are now housed in the modern vihara.
Pillars
There
are a lot of pillars and the remains of pillars
scattered around the site. The most important is
Pillar 10, which was erected by Ashoka. Also known
as the Ashokan Pillar, it is one of the finest examples
of the pillars built by Ashoka and is known for
its aesthetic proportions and structural balance.
It is close to the Southern entrance of the Great
Stupa. The four back to back lions that once topped
the column are now the national emblem of India.
TemplesThere are quite a few temples here,
some of them dating back to the Ashokan period.
The Great Bowl
Carved
out of one block of stone, this mammoth bowl contained
the food that was distributed among the monks of
Sanchi.
The Gupta Temple
In ruins now,
this 5th century AD temple is one of the earliest
known examples of temple architecture in India.
