#stupa

Kathmandu (2) (3) (4) by Lori Newman

Via Flickr:

King Bimbisara (c. 544 – c. 492 BCE or c. 457 – c. 405 BCE (52 years)) with his royal cortege issuing from the city of Rajagriha to visit the Buddha, Sanchi Stupa, East face, South pillar, East gateway, 1st century BCE. The Sanchi Stupa is a Buddhist complex renowned for its Great Stupa, situated atop a hill at Sanchi Town in the Raisen District of Madhya Pradesh, India. It lies approximately 23 kilometres from the district headquarters at Raisen and about 46 kilometres (29 miles) north-east of Bhopal, the state capital.

The Great Stupa at Sanchi, among the earliest stone edifices in India, stands as a significant monument in the country’s architectural history. It was originally commissioned in the 3rd century BCE by the Mauryan emperor Ashoka. Its core consisted of a simple, hemispherical brick mound raised over the Buddha’s relics, surmounted by a chatra—a parasol-like emblem of high status—intended to honour and protect the sacred remains. Ashoka personally supervised the initial construction, and his wife, Devi, the daughter of a merchant from nearby Vidisha, is traditionally associated with the site, being both a native of Sanchi and the place of their marriage.

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