Chapter Notes

A Glimpse of Sanchi

The period between c. 600 BCE and 600 CE was a time of major cultural and religious development in India. Thinkers like the Buddha and Mahavira tried to understand the world, and their ideas were recorded in texts and expressed through magnificent architecture and sculpture. One of the best-preserved monuments from this era is the stupa at Sanchi, which provides a window into this fascinating past.

Sanchi in the Nineteenth Century

When European scholars and officials encountered the ancient ruins at Sanchi in the 19th century, they were deeply fascinated. As noted by Shahjehan Begum, the Nawab of Bhopal, figures like Major Alexander Cunningham spent weeks carefully examining, drawing, and deciphering inscriptions at the site.

This interest, however, also posed a threat.

• The French requested permission from Shahjehan Begum to take the best-preserved eastern gateway to a museum in France.
• Some English officials also wanted to do the same.

Fortunately, both the French and the English were satisfied with carefully made plaster-cast copies, and the original gateway remained at Sanchi. This was a crucial decision that helped preserve the monument.

The rulers of Bhopal, Shahjehan Begum and her successor Sultan Jehan Begum, played a vital role in protecting the site. They provided money for its preservation, funded the museum and guesthouse at the site, and even paid for the publication of important books on Sanchi by scholars like John Marshall.

The Background: Sacrifices and Debates

The mid-first millennium BCE is considered a turning point in world history. Across the globe, thinkers like Zarathustra in Iran, Kong Zi in China, and Socrates in Greece were questioning existence and the cosmic order. In India, this era saw the rise of Mahavira and Gautama Buddha. This was also a time of significant social and economic change in the Ganga valley, with the growth of new kingdoms and cities, which these thinkers also tried to understand.

The Sacrificial Tradition

Before the rise of Buddhism and Jainism, the dominant religious tradition was the early Vedic tradition, known from the Rigveda (compiled between c. 1500 and 1000 BCE).

• The Rigveda contains hymns praising deities like Agni (the god of fire), Indra, and Soma.
• These hymns were chanted during sacrifices, where people prayed for practical things like cattle, sons, good health, and long life.
• Initially, sacrifices were performed collectively. Later (from c. 1000 BCE–500 BCE), they were also performed by heads of households.
• Kings and chiefs performed elaborate sacrifices like the rajasuya and ashvamedha, which required Brahmana priests.

New Questions

From around the sixth century BCE, texts known as the Upanishads show that people began asking deeper philosophical questions:

• What is the meaning of life?
• Is there life after death?
• Is rebirth determined by past actions (karma)?
• What is the nature of the ultimate reality?

These questions led to intense debates, with some thinkers even questioning the significance of the sacrificial tradition itself.

Debates and Discussions

Buddhist texts reveal a world of lively philosophical debate.

• They mention as many as 64 different sects or schools of thought.
• Teachers traveled from place to place, debating in groves or in huts with pointed roofs called kutagarashalas.
• If a teacher convinced a rival, the rival's followers would also become his disciples.

Many of these new thinkers, including Mahavira and the Buddha, challenged the authority of the Vedas. They emphasized individual agency, suggesting that men and women could achieve liberation from worldly suffering through their own efforts. This was a major departure from the Brahmanical view that a person's existence was determined by their caste and gender at birth.

Beyond Worldly Pleasures: The Message of Mahavira

The core philosophy of Jainism existed in north India even before Vardhamana, who became known as Mahavira, was born in the sixth century BCE. According to Jaina tradition, Mahavira was the 24th in a line of great teachers, or tirthankaras, who guide people across the "river of existence."

The central teachings of Jainism include:

• The world is animated: The most important idea is that everything—even stones, rocks, and water—has life.
• Ahimsa (Non-injury): Because all things have life, the principle of non-injury to living beings (humans, animals, plants, and insects) is central to Jaina philosophy.
• Karma and Rebirth: The cycle of birth and rebirth is shaped by one's karma.
• Asceticism and Penance: To free oneself from the cycle of karma, one must practice asceticism (severe self-discipline) and penance. This requires renouncing the world.
• The Five Vows: Jaina monks and nuns take five vows: to abstain from killing, stealing, lying, to observe celibacy, and to abstain from possessing property.

The Spread of Jainism

Jainism gradually spread to many parts of India. Jaina scholars produced a rich body of literature in languages like Prakrit, Sanskrit, and Tamil. These manuscripts were carefully preserved for centuries in libraries attached to temples. Devotees of the Jaina tirthankaras also produced some of the earliest stone sculptures associated with religious traditions in India.

The Buddha and the Quest for Enlightenment

The Buddha was one of the most influential teachers of his time. His message spread from India across Central Asia to China, Korea, and Japan, and by sea to Sri Lanka, Myanmar, Thailand, and Indonesia.

Our knowledge of the Buddha's life and teachings comes from Buddhist texts, which were compiled by his followers after his death. Historians also use hagiographies (biographies of saints) to reconstruct his life, though these were written a century or more after his time and may not be literally accurate.

According to these traditions:

• The Buddha was born Siddhartha, the son of a chief of the Sakya clan.
• He lived a sheltered life in a palace, but a journey into the city exposed him to the harsh realities of old age, sickness, and death.
• Deeply troubled, he saw a homeless mendicant who seemed to have found peace. Siddhartha decided to leave the palace to search for his own truth.
• After exploring extreme paths like bodily mortification, he finally attained enlightenment through meditation. After this, he was known as the Buddha, or the Enlightened One.
• For the rest of his life, he taught the dhamma, or the path of righteous living.

The Teachings of the Buddha

The Buddha's teachings are primarily found in the Sutta Pitaka. He taught using reason and persuasion, not displays of supernatural power. His teachings were in the language of ordinary people, making them easy to understand.

Key principles of Buddhist philosophy:

• The world is transient (anicca): Everything is constantly changing.
• The world is soulless (anatta): There is nothing permanent or eternal in it.
• Sorrow (dukkha) is an intrinsic part of human existence in this transient world.
• The Middle Path: Humans can rise above worldly troubles by following a path of moderation between severe penance and self-indulgence.
• Individual Effort: The Buddha regarded the social world as a human creation, not a divine one. He emphasized that individual effort and righteous action were the means to escape the cycle of rebirth and attain nibbana (the extinguishing of ego and desire).
• His last words to his followers were: "Be lamps unto yourselves as all of you must work out your own liberation."

Followers of the Buddha

The Buddha founded the sangha, an organization of monks who became teachers of the dhamma.

• These monks, known as bhikkhus, lived simply on alms.
• Initially, only men were allowed, but later women were admitted, becoming bhikkhunis. The Buddha's foster mother, Mahapajapati Gotami, was the first woman to be ordained.
• Many women who joined the sangha became respected teachers known as theris.
• Followers came from all social groups, including kings, wealthy people, workers, slaves, and craftspeople.
• Inside the sangha, all were considered equal, shedding their former social identities. Decisions were made through consensus and discussion.

Buddhism grew rapidly because it appealed to people who were dissatisfied with existing religious practices and confused by rapid social changes. Its emphasis on conduct, compassion (karuna), and fellow-feeling (metta), rather than on birthright, attracted many followers.

Stupas

Buddhist ideas developed through dialogue with other traditions, and this interaction can be seen in how sacred places were identified. From early times, people regarded certain places as sacred, sometimes calling them chaityas.

Buddhist literature identifies four places as particularly sacred because of their association with the Buddha's life:

1. Lumbini (where he was born)
2. Bodh Gaya (where he attained enlightenment)
3. Sarnath (where he gave his first sermon)
4. Kusinagara (where he attained nibbana)

Why were stupas built?

Other places became sacred because relics of the Buddha—such as his bodily remains or objects he used—were buried there in mounds known as stupas.

• The tradition of building stupas may have existed before Buddhism, but it became closely associated with it.
• Because they contained sacred relics, the entire stupa was venerated as a symbol of both the Buddha and Buddhism.
• According to a Buddhist text, the emperor Asoka distributed the Buddha's relics to every important town and ordered the construction of stupas over them.

How were stupas built?

Stupas were funded through donations. Inscriptions on railings and pillars record contributions from:

• Kings, like the Satavahanas.
• Guilds, such as the ivory workers who financed a gateway at Sanchi.
• Hundreds of ordinary men and women, including bhikkhus and bhikkhunis.

The Structure of the Stupa

A stupa originated as a simple semi-circular mound of earth, called the anda. Over time, it evolved into a more complex structure:

• Harmika: A balcony-like structure on top of the anda, representing the abode of the gods.
• Yashti: A mast rising from the harmika.
• Chhatri: An umbrella, often surmounting the yashti.
• Railing: A railing surrounded the mound, separating the sacred space from the secular world.

Early stupas at Sanchi and Bharhut had plain mounds but richly carved gateways at the four cardinal points. Worshippers would enter through the eastern gateway and walk around the mound in a clockwise direction.

"Discovering" Stupas: The Fate of Amaravati and Sanchi

Each stupa has a history of its construction and its discovery. The fates of two major stupas, Amaravati and Sanchi, were very different.

• Amaravati: The ruins of the stupa at Amaravati were stumbled upon in 1796. In the 1850s, British officials like Walter Elliot collected many of its beautifully carved stone panels and sent them to Madras, Calcutta, and even London. Officials continued to remove sculptures from the site, and it was gradually stripped of its glory. Today, the great stupa at Amaravati is just an insignificant mound.
• Sanchi: When Sanchi was "discovered" in 1818, it was in much better condition, with three of its four gateways still standing. Although there were suggestions to take its gateways to Paris or London, wiser counsel prevailed.

Archaeologist H.H. Cole argued against the policy of looting original works of art. He believed museums should display plaster-cast facsimiles, while originals should be preserved in situ (on the spot). While his plea failed for Amaravati, it was adopted for Sanchi, which is why it survived.

Sculpture

The beautiful sculptures on stupas like Sanchi tell us a great deal about Buddhist beliefs and traditions.

Stories in Stone

Many sculptures depict stories from the Jatakas, which are tales about the Buddha's previous lives. [!example] A scene at Sanchi that looks like a rural landscape with huts and trees is identified by art historians as a scene from the Vessantara Jataka. This is a story about a generous prince who gave away everything he owned and went to live in the forest. Historians often compare sculptures with textual evidence to understand their meaning.

Symbols of Worship

Early sculptors often did not depict the Buddha in human form. Instead, they used symbols to represent his presence and key events in his life:

• The Empty Seat: Symbolized the Buddha's meditation.
• The Stupa: Represented the mahaparinibbana (his final passing).
• The Wheel: Stood for his first sermon at Sarnath.

Popular Traditions

Not all sculptures at Sanchi were directly inspired by Buddhist ideas. Many motifs were drawn from popular, pre-Buddhist, and non-Buddhist traditions.

• Shalabhanjika: A recurring image is of a beautiful woman swinging from a gateway, holding a tree. This is a shalabhanjika, a woman from popular belief whose touch caused trees to flower and bear fruit. She was likely seen as an auspicious symbol.
• Gajalakshmi: Another common motif is a woman surrounded by lotuses and elephants sprinkling water on her. Some identify her as Maya (the Buddha's mother), while others see her as Gajalakshmi, the goddess of good fortune.
• Animals and Serpents: Elephants, horses, monkeys, and serpents are also frequently depicted. Elephants were used to signify strength and wisdom.

New Religious Traditions

Over time, religious ideas continued to evolve.

The Development of Mahayana Buddhism

By the first century CE, Buddhist ideas and practices began to change.

• Early Buddhism emphasized self-effort to achieve nibbana.
• Gradually, the idea of a saviour emerged, who could ensure salvation for others.
• The concept of the Bodhisatta also developed. Bodhisattas were seen as deeply compassionate beings who, despite accumulating enough merit to attain nibbana, chose to remain in the world to help others.
• The worship of images of the Buddha and Bodhisattas became central to this new tradition.

This new way of thinking was called Mahayana ("the great vehicle"). Its followers described the older, more traditional form of Buddhism as Hinayana ("the lesser vehicle"). Followers of the older tradition called themselves theravadins (followers of the path of the elders).

The Growth of Puranic Hinduism

Similar ideas of a saviour deity were also developing within traditions that are now part of Hinduism.

• Vaishnavism: A tradition focused on the worship of Vishnu as the principal deity. Cults developed around his various avatars (incarnations), such as the Varaha (boar), who were believed to have appeared to save the world from evil.
• Shaivism: A tradition in which Shiva was regarded as the chief god. He was often symbolized by the linga but also represented in human form.
• Bhakti: In these traditions, the relationship between the devotee and the god was seen as one of love and devotion, or bhakti.

Stories about these gods and goddesses were compiled in texts called the Puranas. Written in simple Sanskrit, they were meant to be read aloud to everyone, including women and Shudras who did not have access to Vedic learning.

Building Temples

Around the same time that stupas were being built, the first Hindu temples were also constructed.

• An early temple was a small square room called the garbhagriha, which housed the image of the main deity.
• Gradually, a tall structure called the shikhara was built over the central shrine.
• Later temples became much more elaborate, with large halls, walls, and gateways.
• Some of the most unique early temples were carved out of huge rocks to create artificial caves. This tradition culminated in the eighth century with the carving of the entire Kailashnatha temple at Ellora from a single piece of rock.

Can We "See" Everything?

While we can admire the spectacular art and architecture of the past, understanding what it meant to the people who created and venerated it 2,000 years ago is a challenge.

Grappling with the Unfamiliar

When 19th-century European scholars first saw Indian sculptures, they often struggled to understand them.

• They were sometimes horrified by figures with multiple arms and heads or combinations of human and animal forms, which they found grotesque.
• They tried to make sense of these images by comparing them to the classical art of ancient Greece, with which they were familiar.
• They were most excited by sculptures of the Buddha and Bodhisattas from the northwest (in places like Taxila and Peshawar), which showed clear Greek influence, and considered them the best examples of Indian art.

If Text and Image Do Not Match ...

Even when historians use texts to interpret art, it's not always straightforward. [!example] A massive rock carving at Mahabalipuram in Tamil Nadu has puzzled art historians. Some believe it depicts the descent of the river Ganga from heaven, as told in the Puranas. Others argue it shows Arjuna from the Mahabharata doing penance to acquire arms. The true meaning remains a subject of debate.

Finally, it's important to remember that much of past religious life—daily rituals, community practices, and philosophical ideas—was never recorded in a permanent form like monuments or texts. What we can see and study today is just the "tip of the iceberg."