Images from a satellite survey of the Mahabodhi Temple have pointed to the presence of previously undiscovered structures beneath the sacred temple complex in Bodh Gaya, in the northeastern Indian state of Bihar. According to officials cited by local media, geospatial analysis using satellite imagery and ground surveys has revealed evidence of “huge architectural wealth”  beneath the complex and its surroundings. (Press Trust of India)

The surveys were carried out by the Bihar Heritage Development Society, a heritage conservation wing of the state government’s Art, Culture and Youth Department, working in collaboration with Cardiff University in Wales, in the United Kingdom on a project titled “Archaeology in the Footsteps of the Chinese Traveler Xuanzang.”

The Mahabodhi Temple, among the most sacred pilgrimage sites for Buddhist practitioners, is a UNESCO World Heritage Site marking the place where the historical Buddha, Shakyamuni, attained awakening. The original temple was commissioned by the Mauryan emperor Ashoka in the third century BCE. The present temple in Bodh Gaya has been dated to the fifth or sixth century CE, standing beside the descendent of the original Bodhi tree beneath which Shakyamuni Buddha sat, discovering the path to liberation from suffering.

“The study has unearthed evidence of the presence of archaeological treasure beneath the soil of the UNESCO World Heritage Site and its surrounding areas,” said the Art, Culture and Youth Department’s additional chief secretary, Harjot Kaur Bamhrah. “It’s a huge architectural wealth that needs further excavation.” (Press Trust of India)

The Mahabodhi Temple, which is dominated by a majestic straight-sided shikhara (Skt. mountain peak) spire, which towers more than 55 meters overhead, is one of the earliest brick Buddhist temples still standing in India. The complex is the only living Buddhist monument in India listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The centuries-old traditions of offerings, chanting, and meditation continue to be practiced here, with rituals, prayers, and vibrant festivals a daily occurrence.

“The Bihar Heritage Development Society in association with Cardiff University has been working on the multidisciplinary project on the archaeological trail of the travel of seventh-century Chinese translator monk, Xuanzang, in Bihar,” said Bamhrah. “The satellite images from the last several years show an alignment of structures to the north of the temple, buried underground.” (Press Trust of India)

Xuanzang (602–664 CE) is widely acknowledged as one of the most illustrious figures in Buddhist history, noted for translating a wealth of Buddhist scriptures from Sanskrit into Chinese, and for embarking on a 17-year overland pilgrimage from China to India (which also took him into what is now Bangladesh, Nepal, and Pakistan), where he lived for more than 13 years. Xuanzang’s time in India included five years at the ancient monastic university of Nalanda, a great center of Buddhist learning, where he acquired knowledge of Sanskrit, Buddhist philosophy, and Indian thought. While the majority of Xuanzang’s India sojourn was spent at Nalanda, he traveled widely, visiting every known sacred site connected with the life of the Buddha.

“Our fresh study has revealed several findings that include, to the north of the [Mahabodhi] temple premises, a square monastery complex enclosed by a wall, with a surrounding moat and an extended settlement to its north,” said the Bihar Heritage Development Society’s executive director, Bijoy Kumar Choudhary. (Press Trust of India)

Bamhrah at the Art, Culture and Youth Department emphasized that the new findings were “very significant.” (Press Trust of India)

“Let us remember that the Mahabodhi Temple is west of the [Niranjana] river, and the Sujata Stupa and several other archaeological remains are located east of the river. The monuments and other archaeological remains in the east of the river are . . . regarded to be independent of the Mahabodhi temple,” she explained. 

“But the latest finding shows that both the temple and the Sujata Stupa along with other archaeological remains stood on the same river bank in the past. Thus, there is a strong possibility that the monuments and other archaeological remains, now east of the river, were [originally] a part of the Mahabodhi complex.” (Press Trust of India)

A faculty member at the Bengaluru -based National Institute of Advanced Studies, M. B. Rajni, one of the project members, has studied satellite images of the temple complex and its surroundings in a bid to correlate the findings with the description left by Xuanzang.

“Upon analyzing satellite imagery, we identified two concentric squares . . . an outer square enclosing 4.9 acres [two hectares] and an inner one enclosing 2.5 acres [one hectare],” Rajni remarked. “Between the outer and inner squares, there is a gap of about 15 meters in the north and in the south, and 20 meters in the east and the west. The southern boundary of the outer square is approximately [91 meters] from the wall of the Mahabodhi Temple complex.

“Although traces of the monastery are no longer visible on the ground, satellite imagery revealed that the squares overlap significantly with Samanvay Ashram,” She continued. “The Ashram’s southern boundary, marked by a compound wall on a raised ridge, aligns with the southern boundary of the outer square, thus suggesting the buried remnants of an earlier wall,” (Press Trust of India)

The Bihar Heritage Development Society planned to begin “research to delimit the boundaries of the Mahabodhi complex in the light of these findings,” Bamhrah added. “[A] fresh ground-penetrating radar survey, followed by excavations, will be undertaken to unravel the buried archaeological features shown by satellite images.” (Press Trust of India)

See more

Satellite imagery reveals hidden monastery at Buddhist holy site: report (Space.com)
Satellite images suggest architectural wealth beneath Mahabodhi temple in Bodh Gaya: Officials (Press Trust of India)
Mahabodhi Temple Complex (UNESCO)
Bihar Heritage Development Society

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