Tourism in India
Sanchi -
Buddhist Destination in India
Sanchi
Tourism
Sanchi
Tours
Sanchi is known for
its Stupas, monasteries, temples and pillars dating from the 3rd century
B.C. to the 12th century A.D. The most famous of these monuments, the Sanchi
Stupa 1, was originally built by the Mauryan Emperor Ashoka, the then
governor of Ujjayini, whose wife Devi was the daughter of a merchant from
adjacent Vidisha. Their son Mahindra and daughter Sanghamitra were born in
Ujjayini and sent to Sri Lanka, where they converted the King, the Queen and
their people to Buddhism.
The world-renowned stupas of stupa of Sanchi in Madhya Pradesh are being
designated by UNESCO as the world heritage site for its archaeological
andhistorical importance.
A Chunar sandstone pillar fragment, shining with the proverbial Mauryan
polish, lies near Stupa 1 and carries the famous edict of Ashoka warning
against schism in the Buddhist community. Stupa 1 was found empty , while
relics of the two disciples of Buddha enshrined in the adjacent Stupa 3 were
carried away to England. The nearby moern temple has a reliquary containing
the remains of a Buddhist teacher from another stupa outside Sanchi.
The Sanchi hill goes up in shelves with Stuupa 2 situated on a lower shelf,
while Stupa 1, Stupa3, the 5th century Gupta temple No. 17 and the 7th
century temple No. 18 are on the intermediate shelf while a later monastery
is on the crowning shelf. The balustrade surrounding Stupa 2, carved with
aniconic representations of the Buddha, was added in the late 2nd century BC
under the Shungas, while the four gateways of Stupa 1 were built in the 1st
century BC under the Satavahanas.
Carved with stories of the Buddha's past and present lives and with
incidents from the subsequent history of Buddhism, the gateways are the
finest spenciments of early classical art, which formed the seedbed for the
entire vocabulary of later Indian art.
Two fo the moving stories told on these portals are those of Prince
Vessantara, who gave away his wealth, his wife and children out of charity
and compassioin, and of Buddha who, as the monkey king, sacrificed his life
to wave his companions.
Sanchi Travel Information
The adjacent Gupta temple No. 17 was hailed by Sir John Marshall as one of
the most rationally organized structures in Indian architecture. Though
small, it was a herald of all the principles which went into the engineering
of an Indian temple in the early medieval period. The Buddhas in the
perambulatory surrounding Stupa 1 are not contemporary with the Stupa but
belong to the Gupta period in the mid-5th century A.D The monastery and the
temple with the tall pillars adjacent to Stupa 1 and the temple near the
monastery on the crowning shelf illustrate the evolution of the
architectural form after the 5th century Gupta temple.
Below the hill, the Archaeological Survey of India Museum houses, some of
the earliest known stone sculptures in Indian art from the 3rd to the 1st
century BC while the adjacent town of Vidisha has a state museum with
medieval sculptures. The nearby monuments, like the 2nd century B. C.
Heliodoros Pillar, the 5th century a.D. Udayagiri Caves and the Lohangi Hill
monuments in vidisha are situated within as radius of 10 km from sanchi, and
are well worth a visit.
How to Reach Sanchi
By Air : Nearest airport is at Bhopal (46 km via Diwanganj and 78 km via
Raisen) which is connected with Delhi, Mumbai, Gwalior and Indore.
By Rail : Sanchi lies on the Jhansi-Itarsi section of the Central Railways>
However, the most convenient railhead is Vidisha (10 km).
By Road : Good, motorable roads connect Sanchi with Bhopal, Indore, Sagar,
Gwalior, Vidisha and raisen, besides other places.
Buddhist Tour
Packages in India
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India Buddhist Tour
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Buddhist Tour With Golden Triangle
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Buddhist Tour With Nepal
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Footsteps of Lord Buddha
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Buddhist Sites In India and Nepal
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Footsteps of Buddha
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Buddhist Tour With East India
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Land of Buddha Tour
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Buddhist Pilgrimage Tour
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Buddhist Temple Tour
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Buddhist Travel Package
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Buddhist Destination Tour India
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Buddhist Travel India
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Ladakh Buddhist Tour
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