We had some very interesting queries in the past two weeks, and here is an attempt to answer them. Some of these questions would be further elaborated and explained as we continue to unfold stories...
What's the need to discover Buddha/ why did you choose Buddhism?
Well, it’s a very valid question and the answer is, no we are not here to discover Buddha.
It is our desire is to explore the history of Nalanda and find our roots but as we stated earlier, our commitment lies with the development of the community. We’ll explore everything from arts and crafts, to agriculture to fisheries… whatever resources we have and however the community can benefit from it.
So, in short we did not choose Buddhism. Buddha chose Nalanda and we are trying to figure out why?
In future topics we’ll also be talking about Jain traditions of the area and the connection between Nalanda and the epic Mahabharata and a lot more.
Why do we depend on Chinese literature, where is Indian literature?
We don’t know where is the written Indian history of the area is?
It may be burned or thrown in the river but as we know it today, there are no traces of it. All that we have discovered so far is from Chinese literature, Pali scripts, Tibetan sources and local folklores.
It may surprise you but for the longest time we didn’t know if king Ashoka was a real Indian king or a creation of fiction. His achievements were so great that it seemed impossible for any king to achieve it. And even today when we know what a great king Ashoka was, out of ignorance or lack of hard work, popular media portrays him a lover boy and layman believes it… That is how history is distorted when it’s not propagated correctly and when we glorify the myths.
It is understood that Xuanzang helped Buddhism to spread in China but it is not clear how he helped in evolving the ongoing journey of Buddha Discovery.
Xuanzang was a spirit that is very complex to understand, he was born in a Confucius family and though we haven’t done much research in the religion we understand that its teachings promote the familial loyalty, to stay within the moral boundaries of the state that would benefit the society as a whole. But after mastering the rituals and teachings of Confucianism at an early age he decided to pursue the teachings of Buddhism that emphasizes the enlightenment of the soul and life after death for each individual.
The example of being able to break the ties with which one was born and follow his own instinct is an inspiration in itself. It doesn’t matter who is inspired a Chinese or an Indian, a Buddhist or a Christian, the whole humankind can benefit from it.
That said the more perceivable help that he has provided is the detailed travelogue of his journey to India. He has mentioned in extensive details the location of the Stupas, the traditions followed in each monastery, the exact locations of pillars and water tanks with precision in Li (Chinese unit of measurement), and a layout of the Nalanda University in words.
Since there is no indigenous literature giving us the details of the area, these travelogues are all we have that we can use to resurrect what was once here.
In the up coming posts you’ll see examples of how it was put to use.
You've also mentioned about vandalism of Buddhist sites.
I've read somewhere that Fanatic Hindu Kings had vandalized most of the Buddhist Sites in India long back. And in revenge of that even some Buddhist people helped Mughals when they invaded India. How true is it?
Vandalism as mentioned in the posts here so far is mostly caused by the ignorance of the people and by unorganized working styles of the explorers.
Like, opening up of stupas and structures in hope of discovering some relics, some precious finds at its core and in an effort to reach it, the bricks and pillars were randomly removed and there was no documentation of the process to be able to put it back together.
There are many instances where the sites were disturbed and were completely lost in due time. The stupa at Amravati was completely lost in a decade after its discovery in 1797. Similarly the stupa at sarnath was queried for the bricks by a local raja.
Again the intention was not bad, it was the lack of knowledge about the treasure that they were destroying; from all intent and purposes, they were putting a pile of rubble to better use.
Vandalism by Hindu rulers was not very rampant.
Though there are a few incidences of damage done to prove the supremacy of one religion over the other but for the most part the two religions coexisted well because of the similarities in their faith and belief system. The monasteries prospered with support of local population for almost 10 centuries and seen a lots of ups and downs in the economic and political scenarios. It was with the advent of Bakhtiyar Khilji, that the University of Nalanda was destroyed and Buddhism in India saw a decline that it could not revive from.
In one of later topics we’ll be discussing a scenario of how Nalanda University was destroyed in 13th century.
Tuesday, June 30, 2009
Monday, June 29, 2009
Cave Art Discovery Story...
You must have read it in the newspaper (Times of India, 25 June 2009) by now, if not these are the few online sites that covered the story too...
www.newkerala.com
www.india-server.com
www.bihartimes.com
www.inditop.com
But here's the story about how I came upon this discovery...
It was the earlier part of the morning when it jumped out at me from behind the bushes; a giant piece of rock shouting at me for attention like it was waiting for millions of years just for my arrival.
This journey started some time back when I decided that I need to take a hike into the valley, it was like my intuition was guiding me towards somewhere but the work pressure and the deadlines kept steering me away from it but finally after juggling my schedule and working around the hot sun, I took the decision to hike into the valley early one morning. It was the 19th of June…
Though I knew that this area once supported pre historic man and that there were an abundance of Neolithic tools found in this valley but when I ventured into its vicinity I didn’t exactly knew what I am going to find. There was a conviction in mind that day and I kept it open for all possibilities; there could be inscriptions, sculpture, stone tools; ancient remains, the sky was the limit or so it was proved.
The terrain of the hike was treacherous with steep slope and dense vegetation; the views were spectacular and the serenity breathtaking but that is not what I was looking for, I wanted to find some signs of human presence, an inhabited cave, a stone rest, some other object of interest and I did find stone structures square in shape and around 8 ft X 8 ft in dimension and about 2 to 3 feet high. But these structures weren’t of any particular curiosity as I have seen many such structures all over the hill range and its size and shape don’t particularly point towards their purpose.
After the usual hike over the hill I ambled into the dense Rajgir valley hoping to find some tools or something like it, little evidences of life that might have existed here. It wasn’t particularly welcoming, there were big bee hives and cob webs preventing human invasion and guarding a secret long kept. Once I braved through that there were monitor lizards and sharp edged rocks waiting to greet me, and all these obstruction made it more fascinating and more worthwhile to explore it further and see what is it that they are preventing me to get to, what are they hiding?
I didn’t have to go very far inside the valley when I encountered this piece of pre-historic story. I have never met a more vocal piece of rock in my life, it attracted my attention with its vibrant red color, screaming at me, telling me a story and I could understand the emotions it carried but I couldn’t understand it completely because there was a language barrier and a gap of several centuries; I just stood there for several minutes looking at the face of this small stone rest with a red colored painting. I did not understand what that piece of art meant, if it was a name, a message, an icon or an artistic expression but whatever it was, it was asking me to announce its existence to the world.
I was invigorated to find more, to explore and I moved just a few steps to find my next bit of surprise, there was another small stone rest surrounded by dense bushes and I was tempted peek inside and my curiosity was well rewarded. There under the stone I saw three pots and with the experience that I have had so far with such discoveries, I knew they were ancient. They looked fragile braving against weathering time and yet so intact and there was a sense of relieve in them, like my hands were the destination they were hoping to reach in their lifetime. Their long and mountainous journey ended when I found them, it was a feeling beyond explanation.
Although I didn’t exactly knew what century, what era or which set of settlers these pieces of history belonged to, it was clear I had just discovered something marvelous, these evidences of existence of life from so long ago that the distinction between art and science vanishes. These seemingly utilitarian stamps of a life long gone will probably serve as a clue about the earliest settlers of the area and provide the scientists develop and progress some tangible theories.
It was so interesting that these mesmerizing discoveries didn’t stop me in my tracks with triumph but motivated me to move on and keep exploring and I did continue. I found many interesting details and several thoughts and ideas kept crossing my mind. As I trekked some more I found a small pond; it looked like a regular water body but there was something in its eerie silence that prompted me to start my return journey for the day. I was also getting anxious to share my amazing discoveries and find out about its origin and see how far they have traveled in time.
As I safely found my way back and talked to the experts I now know that the red colored stone art is made by rubbing hematite (iron oxide) on the stone. From the features it appears to be Pre-Paleolithic stone art i.e. around 30 to 40 thousand years old…
My first hike into the valley and with the success I had with these discoveries intoxicated me to explore the area further and I returned there the next day. The area was full of possibilities and so the day after that I took my colleague Sailesh pandey with me. I didn’t want to leave any possibility unexplored; I wanted to find as many clues of history as I could. On these following days, I went deeper into the valley and went inside each cave for possibly more evidence of human settlement, more art or pots or something unexpected waiting to tell the story; though there were signs of inhabitation but nothing that would jump out and become an important piece of puzzle. Out of the many caves, four have been identified to have been occupied by the Paleolithic people and the signs are very evident that the caves were abandoned at some point in time and I would assume that there should be more of these kinds in the valley supplying us with more information about the past.
We did find a giant piece of rock with some horizontal and vertical lines but at this point we’d need more research to establish any link if there is any.
The valley it seems is hiding a lot of secrets and promises a lot more than what is visible to an untrained eye. The treasures could not have been hiding in more apt places the serenity of valley, the peace and quiet was gravitating and this is just the tip of the iceberg; I can totally picture other explorers from around the world visiting the area. Though I already had some queries about the law and order situation here and I have sent out a positive message but it is not something that any enthusiast needs to worry about, with a little help from a local interpreter you could be on your way to a new discovery too.
www.newkerala.com
www.india-server.com
www.bihartimes.com
www.inditop.com
But here's the story about how I came upon this discovery...
It was the earlier part of the morning when it jumped out at me from behind the bushes; a giant piece of rock shouting at me for attention like it was waiting for millions of years just for my arrival.
This journey started some time back when I decided that I need to take a hike into the valley, it was like my intuition was guiding me towards somewhere but the work pressure and the deadlines kept steering me away from it but finally after juggling my schedule and working around the hot sun, I took the decision to hike into the valley early one morning. It was the 19th of June… Though I knew that this area once supported pre historic man and that there were an abundance of Neolithic tools found in this valley but when I ventured into its vicinity I didn’t exactly knew what I am going to find. There was a conviction in mind that day and I kept it open for all possibilities; there could be inscriptions, sculpture, stone tools; ancient remains, the sky was the limit or so it was proved.
The terrain of the hike was treacherous with steep slope and dense vegetation; the views were spectacular and the serenity breathtaking but that is not what I was looking for, I wanted to find some signs of human presence, an inhabited cave, a stone rest, some other object of interest and I did find stone structures square in shape and around 8 ft X 8 ft in dimension and about 2 to 3 feet high. But these structures weren’t of any particular curiosity as I have seen many such structures all over the hill range and its size and shape don’t particularly point towards their purpose.
After the usual hike over the hill I ambled into the dense Rajgir valley hoping to find some tools or something like it, little evidences of life that might have existed here. It wasn’t particularly welcoming, there were big bee hives and cob webs preventing human invasion and guarding a secret long kept. Once I braved through that there were monitor lizards and sharp edged rocks waiting to greet me, and all these obstruction made it more fascinating and more worthwhile to explore it further and see what is it that they are preventing me to get to, what are they hiding? 
I didn’t have to go very far inside the valley when I encountered this piece of pre-historic story. I have never met a more vocal piece of rock in my life, it attracted my attention with its vibrant red color, screaming at me, telling me a story and I could understand the emotions it carried but I couldn’t understand it completely because there was a language barrier and a gap of several centuries; I just stood there for several minutes looking at the face of this small stone rest with a red colored painting. I did not understand what that piece of art meant, if it was a name, a message, an icon or an artistic expression but whatever it was, it was asking me to announce its existence to the world.I was invigorated to find more, to explore and I moved just a few steps to find my next bit of surprise, there was another small stone rest surrounded by dense bushes and I was tempted peek inside and my curiosity was well rewarded. There under the stone I saw three pots and with the experience that I have had so far with such discoveries, I knew they were ancient. They looked fragile braving against weathering time and yet so intact and there was a sense of relieve in them, like my hands were the destination they were hoping to reach in their lifetime. Their long and mountainous journey ended when I found them, it was a feeling beyond explanation.
Although I didn’t exactly knew what century, what era or which set of settlers these pieces of history belonged to, it was clear I had just discovered something marvelous, these evidences of existence of life from so long ago that the distinction between art and science vanishes. These seemingly utilitarian stamps of a life long gone will probably serve as a clue about the earliest settlers of the area and provide the scientists develop and progress some tangible theories.
It was so interesting that these mesmerizing discoveries didn’t stop me in my tracks with triumph but motivated me to move on and keep exploring and I did continue. I found many interesting details and several thoughts and ideas kept crossing my mind. As I trekked some more I found a small pond; it looked like a regular water body but there was something in its eerie silence that prompted me to start my return journey for the day. I was also getting anxious to share my amazing discoveries and find out about its origin and see how far they have traveled in time.As I safely found my way back and talked to the experts I now know that the red colored stone art is made by rubbing hematite (iron oxide) on the stone. From the features it appears to be Pre-Paleolithic stone art i.e. around 30 to 40 thousand years old…
My first hike into the valley and with the success I had with these discoveries intoxicated me to explore the area further and I returned there the next day. The area was full of possibilities and so the day after that I took my colleague Sailesh pandey with me. I didn’t want to leave any possibility unexplored; I wanted to find as many clues of history as I could. On these following days, I went deeper into the valley and went inside each cave for possibly more evidence of human settlement, more art or pots or something unexpected waiting to tell the story; though there were signs of inhabitation but nothing that would jump out and become an important piece of puzzle. Out of the many caves, four have been identified to have been occupied by the Paleolithic people and the signs are very evident that the caves were abandoned at some point in time and I would assume that there should be more of these kinds in the valley supplying us with more information about the past. We did find a giant piece of rock with some horizontal and vertical lines but at this point we’d need more research to establish any link if there is any.
The valley it seems is hiding a lot of secrets and promises a lot more than what is visible to an untrained eye. The treasures could not have been hiding in more apt places the serenity of valley, the peace and quiet was gravitating and this is just the tip of the iceberg; I can totally picture other explorers from around the world visiting the area. Though I already had some queries about the law and order situation here and I have sent out a positive message but it is not something that any enthusiast needs to worry about, with a little help from a local interpreter you could be on your way to a new discovery too.
Friday, June 26, 2009
List of Travelogues & Translation
As we mentioned earlier, the travelogues played a very important role in resurrecting history. The Buddhist monks used them as a guide to plan their religious and educational trips as they gave a detailed account of the pilgrimages with the description of the school of thoughts followed by different monasteries. These scriptures were always a cherished part of Chinese culture but they didn’t contribute much to the rest of the world till they were translated into the western languages.
It was in 1830’s that the first translation of the eyewitness accounts of two monks Fahien and Xuanzang were available in French and English and provided a major break through in understanding Buddhism and the places associated with Buddha.
This information was well appreciated among the enthusiastic orientalists and explorers. Subsequently many translations were published in 19th and 20th century giving better insight. These translations equipped the explorers with much needed details about the religion, the places associated with it, the history, the importance of monasteries, trade practices, people, demography etc. It proved to be the inspiration that many orientalists were looking for and hence conceived ambitious plans to bring to light the past of the silk route and the Indian subcontinent.
Given below is a list of translations:
A. Fahien translations
1. “Foe Koue Ki” of MM.Remusat, klaproth and Landresse. 1833. -- Remusat is the originator of the French translation work and then it was taken by Heinrich Julius klaproth and when both of them died in 1832 and 1835 respectively, it was taken up by M. Landresse who saw it through to publication. An English Summary of this book was prepared by Wilson in 1837.
2. The English translation “The pilgrimage of Fahien” from French edition of “Foe Koue Ki” of MM.Remusat, klaproth and Landresse was published in Calcutta in 1848 by Laidley.
3. A complete English version from original Chinese version was published in 1869 in by Rev. S. Beal.
4. “Records of Buddhist Kingdom By Fahien” translated by James Legge, 1886
B. Xuanzang Translations
1- 1st in 1853- Histoire de la vie de Hiouen Thsang by M. Julien
2- 2nd in 1857 Memoires sur les contrees occidentales by M.Julien
3- Buddhist records of the western worlds (“Travels”), translated from Chinese of Hiuen Tsiang (AD 629) by Samuel Beal in 1884
4- The life of Xuanzang (“Life”)- Shaman Hwui Li by Samuel Beal in 1911
5- On Yuan chwang’s travels in india(“Travels”) - Thomas watters in 1904-05
C. Wou-Itsing- A record of Buddhist region by J. Takakusu
D. Dharmasvamin--- Biography of Dharmasvamin by, Dr. G. Roerich
NEXT: Interpretation of travelogues
It was in 1830’s that the first translation of the eyewitness accounts of two monks Fahien and Xuanzang were available in French and English and provided a major break through in understanding Buddhism and the places associated with Buddha.
This information was well appreciated among the enthusiastic orientalists and explorers. Subsequently many translations were published in 19th and 20th century giving better insight. These translations equipped the explorers with much needed details about the religion, the places associated with it, the history, the importance of monasteries, trade practices, people, demography etc. It proved to be the inspiration that many orientalists were looking for and hence conceived ambitious plans to bring to light the past of the silk route and the Indian subcontinent.
Given below is a list of translations:
A. Fahien translations
1. “Foe Koue Ki” of MM.Remusat, klaproth and Landresse. 1833. -- Remusat is the originator of the French translation work and then it was taken by Heinrich Julius klaproth and when both of them died in 1832 and 1835 respectively, it was taken up by M. Landresse who saw it through to publication. An English Summary of this book was prepared by Wilson in 1837.
2. The English translation “The pilgrimage of Fahien” from French edition of “Foe Koue Ki” of MM.Remusat, klaproth and Landresse was published in Calcutta in 1848 by Laidley.
3. A complete English version from original Chinese version was published in 1869 in by Rev. S. Beal.
4. “Records of Buddhist Kingdom By Fahien” translated by James Legge, 1886
B. Xuanzang Translations
1- 1st in 1853- Histoire de la vie de Hiouen Thsang by M. Julien
2- 2nd in 1857 Memoires sur les contrees occidentales by M.Julien
3- Buddhist records of the western worlds (“Travels”), translated from Chinese of Hiuen Tsiang (AD 629) by Samuel Beal in 1884
4- The life of Xuanzang (“Life”)- Shaman Hwui Li by Samuel Beal in 1911
5- On Yuan chwang’s travels in india(“Travels”) - Thomas watters in 1904-05
C. Wou-Itsing- A record of Buddhist region by J. Takakusu
D. Dharmasvamin--- Biography of Dharmasvamin by, Dr. G. Roerich
NEXT: Interpretation of travelogues
Thursday, June 25, 2009
Interpretation of travelogues
The full title of the book by Xuanzang is “Ta-Tang-Hsi-yu-chi”, i.e., records of the western lands of the great Tang period.
The original text as written by Xuanzang and presented to king Taizong had 9 or 10 Chuan (chapter), in later centuries there is mention of the “His-yu-chi” (or Si-yu-Ki) i.e. “The records of the western lands”, with 12 Chuan. In some editions of His-yu-chi it says written by Xuanzang and compiled by Pien-chi and it is generally agreed that notes and comments may have been added by Pien-chi and by other contributors later in subsequent editions.
“His-yu-chi” exists in several editions like Han, Shan, Sung, Yuan, and Ming etc with considerable variations in explanations and the text. The book is one of the classical Buddhist books and is preserved in Buddhist monasteries in China, Korea and Japan.
The translation works carried out by orientalists have used one or many of the editions (A, B, C and D as mentioned by the translators) kept in various important monasteries in china, Japan and Korea. The translators found that subsequent editions had lots of alteration and many times its felt that the original facts were modified. This is one important reason why his “Travels” and “Life” vary considerably in the routes taken and places visited by Xuanzang. These discrepancies stems from the different edition used by different translators. Another reason is Xuanzang received information in local dialect which he transcripted in Sanskrit and sometimes he left them in their Pali form. For a good translation it is essential to have knowledge of Pali and Sanskrit. Many translators where not verse with Pali this also led to different interpretations. Besides that exact pronunciation of characters, names and places 1500 years back when the accounts were first written can not be exactly known. Pekinese and Morrison system of spellings were referred for transliterating the names of Chinese characters.
Of course as newer knowledge and techniques were found some of the old work was seen as obsolete or even incorrect in certain situations. The discrepancies between older and newer translation work sometimes contradicted the work previously done and has led to some criticism.
Julian made observations that Remusat work on Fahien is incorrect and is unreliable to use it as a reference. T.W.Rhys Davids has mentioned in preface of Thomas watters’ “Yuan Chwang travels in India”, that the translation done by Samuel Beal contains many mistakes.
Following suit Thomas watters labeled Julian’s translation a hasty and inaccurate work.
If we see the works published by Julian on Xuanzang’s “Record”, the first work published in 1853 was full of discrepancies. Explorers found it very difficult to interpret the names mentioned in the travelogues.
In last 1500 years the demography has totally changed and old cities like Kanyakubja, Kapilavastu don’t exist in there original state and are nowhere to be found on the map. The values of the unit of dimensions used in that era like, Li and Yojan has also transformed in the last 1500 years. The topography of the area and land-use changed over time and most of the remains were associated with local legends and folklores.
For example, Ashokan pillar at Nigliva was Bhimsen-Ki- Nigali (smoking pipe of Legendary Bhima from epic Mahabharata) for the local people and the big mound of “Remains of ancient Nalanda University” were mentioned as remains of Kundalpur fort of Raja Bhimika, father-in-law of Krishna (from epic Mahabharata).
Needless to say with plethora of information lying at every step and no standard way of validating any information posed a great challenge to put the history of the place together and in any proper sequence.
NEXT: Measurement units and verifications
The original text as written by Xuanzang and presented to king Taizong had 9 or 10 Chuan (chapter), in later centuries there is mention of the “His-yu-chi” (or Si-yu-Ki) i.e. “The records of the western lands”, with 12 Chuan. In some editions of His-yu-chi it says written by Xuanzang and compiled by Pien-chi and it is generally agreed that notes and comments may have been added by Pien-chi and by other contributors later in subsequent editions.
“His-yu-chi” exists in several editions like Han, Shan, Sung, Yuan, and Ming etc with considerable variations in explanations and the text. The book is one of the classical Buddhist books and is preserved in Buddhist monasteries in China, Korea and Japan.
The translation works carried out by orientalists have used one or many of the editions (A, B, C and D as mentioned by the translators) kept in various important monasteries in china, Japan and Korea. The translators found that subsequent editions had lots of alteration and many times its felt that the original facts were modified. This is one important reason why his “Travels” and “Life” vary considerably in the routes taken and places visited by Xuanzang. These discrepancies stems from the different edition used by different translators. Another reason is Xuanzang received information in local dialect which he transcripted in Sanskrit and sometimes he left them in their Pali form. For a good translation it is essential to have knowledge of Pali and Sanskrit. Many translators where not verse with Pali this also led to different interpretations. Besides that exact pronunciation of characters, names and places 1500 years back when the accounts were first written can not be exactly known. Pekinese and Morrison system of spellings were referred for transliterating the names of Chinese characters.
Of course as newer knowledge and techniques were found some of the old work was seen as obsolete or even incorrect in certain situations. The discrepancies between older and newer translation work sometimes contradicted the work previously done and has led to some criticism.
Julian made observations that Remusat work on Fahien is incorrect and is unreliable to use it as a reference. T.W.Rhys Davids has mentioned in preface of Thomas watters’ “Yuan Chwang travels in India”, that the translation done by Samuel Beal contains many mistakes.
Following suit Thomas watters labeled Julian’s translation a hasty and inaccurate work.
If we see the works published by Julian on Xuanzang’s “Record”, the first work published in 1853 was full of discrepancies. Explorers found it very difficult to interpret the names mentioned in the travelogues.
In last 1500 years the demography has totally changed and old cities like Kanyakubja, Kapilavastu don’t exist in there original state and are nowhere to be found on the map. The values of the unit of dimensions used in that era like, Li and Yojan has also transformed in the last 1500 years. The topography of the area and land-use changed over time and most of the remains were associated with local legends and folklores.
For example, Ashokan pillar at Nigliva was Bhimsen-Ki- Nigali (smoking pipe of Legendary Bhima from epic Mahabharata) for the local people and the big mound of “Remains of ancient Nalanda University” were mentioned as remains of Kundalpur fort of Raja Bhimika, father-in-law of Krishna (from epic Mahabharata).
Needless to say with plethora of information lying at every step and no standard way of validating any information posed a great challenge to put the history of the place together and in any proper sequence.
NEXT: Measurement units and verifications
Wednesday, June 24, 2009
Measurement units and verifications
In the previous posts you must have come across the old measurement units that are no longer considered a standard unit of distance. In this post we try to clarify a little on those terms and while you are trying to gauge distances based on these unit try to imagine the challenge that initial explorers must have had the first time they had to decipher what each unit might stand for…
Fahien has recorded the places in “Yojan”. “Yojan” and “Kos” is the Indian unit for measurement of long distances. Xuanzang has given equivalent of “Yojan” in terms of “Li”, he says traditionally one “Yojan” consists of 40Li but at his time of visit it was only 30Li. But Xuanzang didn’t mention the equivalent he used in his travelogue.
Li- it’s a traditional measurement unit in China and founds it origin in 2600 BC by Yellow Emperor. Its values have changed with periods reaching up to 644 Mts in Qing dynasty. At the time of Xuanzang when Tang dynasty (618- 907 AD) was in power the value was approximately 323 Mts. The Present value is 1 Li = 500Mts
Yojan- it was the longest unit of measurement employed in ancient India and it had as many meanings. Yojan has emanated from Yoga, it used to indicate how much distance a cow can pull the cart. Xuanzang in his “Travels” accounts has elaborately defined the measurement units existing in India at that point of time. Yojan according to him was distance covered by a royal army in a day. And it was obvious its value differed in different places at different times. Yojan was further divided into Krosa. Krosa or Kos for example meant the distance at which the cow could be heard. One “kos” for a Buddhist monk meant ideal place to live from a Village.
Jain tradition= 1 Yojan= 4 Kos=9 miles
As per kautaliya’ Arthasastra 4 Kos= 1 Yojan= 9 Miles
Value of Li and Yojan by different Orientalists,
Cunningham Estimation
We will study how Cunningham came to his values based on his observations. Cunningham has gone into roots of traditional measurement systems and calculated the values of “Li” and “Yojan”. He has corroborated values with real distance between the places mentioned by Fahien and Xuanzang. Fahien has recorded distance in “Yojan” and Xuanzang has used “Li”, to estimate the measure of “Li” and “Yojan” Cunningham recorded distance between well known places and found equivalent of Li, Yojan in terms of Meter and Mile by taking average.
1 Yojan= 39.25 Li
1 Yojan of Fahien = 6.71 Miles
1 Mile= 5.925 Li= 329 Meters
All the later explorer and archaeologists have used the values mentioned by Cunningham as a standard.
But the calculation by Cunningham was based a lot on assumptions. A Basic mistake in the calculation done by Cunningham is that Fahien never visited Nalanda Mahavihara instead he talks about Nala, the birth place of Sariputra. And the Sariputra’s birth place as per Xuanzang was 20li South East of meeting place of Bimbisara and Buddha which is around 14 Li south-west of Nalanda Mahavihara. Hence the place Nalanda mentioned for the comparison is different for Fahien and Xuanzang. Also Giriyak he assumes as the site of Indrasaila Guha which is again wrong as the Indrasaila guha was later identified near Parvati village which is further north -East of Giriyak. Also It’s not explained how General Cunningham comes up with the figure of 58 Li between Nalanda to Giriyak.
NEXT: Travelogue matrix for Nalanda and Rajgir
Fahien has recorded the places in “Yojan”. “Yojan” and “Kos” is the Indian unit for measurement of long distances. Xuanzang has given equivalent of “Yojan” in terms of “Li”, he says traditionally one “Yojan” consists of 40Li but at his time of visit it was only 30Li. But Xuanzang didn’t mention the equivalent he used in his travelogue.
Li- it’s a traditional measurement unit in China and founds it origin in 2600 BC by Yellow Emperor. Its values have changed with periods reaching up to 644 Mts in Qing dynasty. At the time of Xuanzang when Tang dynasty (618- 907 AD) was in power the value was approximately 323 Mts. The Present value is 1 Li = 500Mts
Yojan- it was the longest unit of measurement employed in ancient India and it had as many meanings. Yojan has emanated from Yoga, it used to indicate how much distance a cow can pull the cart. Xuanzang in his “Travels” accounts has elaborately defined the measurement units existing in India at that point of time. Yojan according to him was distance covered by a royal army in a day. And it was obvious its value differed in different places at different times. Yojan was further divided into Krosa. Krosa or Kos for example meant the distance at which the cow could be heard. One “kos” for a Buddhist monk meant ideal place to live from a Village.
Jain tradition= 1 Yojan= 4 Kos=9 miles
As per kautaliya’ Arthasastra 4 Kos= 1 Yojan= 9 Miles
Value of Li and Yojan by different Orientalists,
Cunningham Estimation
We will study how Cunningham came to his values based on his observations. Cunningham has gone into roots of traditional measurement systems and calculated the values of “Li” and “Yojan”. He has corroborated values with real distance between the places mentioned by Fahien and Xuanzang. Fahien has recorded distance in “Yojan” and Xuanzang has used “Li”, to estimate the measure of “Li” and “Yojan” Cunningham recorded distance between well known places and found equivalent of Li, Yojan in terms of Meter and Mile by taking average.
1 Yojan= 39.25 Li
1 Yojan of Fahien = 6.71 Miles
1 Mile= 5.925 Li= 329 MetersAll the later explorer and archaeologists have used the values mentioned by Cunningham as a standard.
But the calculation by Cunningham was based a lot on assumptions. A Basic mistake in the calculation done by Cunningham is that Fahien never visited Nalanda Mahavihara instead he talks about Nala, the birth place of Sariputra. And the Sariputra’s birth place as per Xuanzang was 20li South East of meeting place of Bimbisara and Buddha which is around 14 Li south-west of Nalanda Mahavihara. Hence the place Nalanda mentioned for the comparison is different for Fahien and Xuanzang. Also Giriyak he assumes as the site of Indrasaila Guha which is again wrong as the Indrasaila guha was later identified near Parvati village which is further north -East of Giriyak. Also It’s not explained how General Cunningham comes up with the figure of 58 Li between Nalanda to Giriyak.
NEXT: Travelogue matrix for Nalanda and Rajgir
Tuesday, June 23, 2009
Travelogue matrix for Nalanda and Rajgir
Given below is a list of places with respect to distance and direction as mentioned by Xuanzang and Fahien in a matrix format. For calculation purpose we have divided the places in 5 different groups.
Land use has changed a lot in last 1500 years; the endpoints for many measurements cannot be verified with precision specially the smaller distances. Many sites like Nalanda Mahavihara are very big and a small measurement up to 4li will fall within its premises. It holds true for places like Venuwan too whose size a few centuries ago must be much larger than the current site. In such cases these places can’t be used for identification of places in reference to them.
Since there is a vast range of interpretations between the travelogues and a few discrepancies have come up during the various revisions, detail matrices have been prepared for different translation works.
1- Fahien accounts- by James Legge
B- Xuanzang
1- The life of Hiuen-Tsiang by Shaman Hwui Li
By Samuel Beal
2- Record of western countries- Samuel Beal
Venuwan Details
Details of Nalanda and vicinity
3- Xuanzang travels in India- Thomas Watters
4- Xuanzang- Histoire de la vie de Hiouen Thsang- 1853 (Broadley-Buddhist remains of Bihar)
5 - Xuanzang - Memories sur les contrees occidentales- 1857 (Broadley-Buddhist remains of Bihar)
NOTE: Click on tables to view larger image
NEXT: 'Li' & 'Yojan' in Nalanda Using GIS
Land use has changed a lot in last 1500 years; the endpoints for many measurements cannot be verified with precision specially the smaller distances. Many sites like Nalanda Mahavihara are very big and a small measurement up to 4li will fall within its premises. It holds true for places like Venuwan too whose size a few centuries ago must be much larger than the current site. In such cases these places can’t be used for identification of places in reference to them.
Since there is a vast range of interpretations between the travelogues and a few discrepancies have come up during the various revisions, detail matrices have been prepared for different translation works.
1- Fahien accounts- by James Legge
B- Xuanzang
1- The life of Hiuen-Tsiang by Shaman Hwui Li
By Samuel Beal
2- Record of western countries- Samuel Beal
Venuwan Details
Details of Nalanda and vicinity
3- Xuanzang travels in India- Thomas Watters
4- Xuanzang- Histoire de la vie de Hiouen Thsang- 1853 (Broadley-Buddhist remains of Bihar)
5 - Xuanzang - Memories sur les contrees occidentales- 1857 (Broadley-Buddhist remains of Bihar)
NOTE: Click on tables to view larger image
NEXT: 'Li' & 'Yojan' in Nalanda Using GIS
just discoverd in Rajgriha...
Here is another tease about the discovery that 'Deepak Anand' made on the 19th of June.
He found a very rare cave art in Rajgriha and here’s a picture of it…
We are bubbling with excitement to share the rest of the story about its discovery but we have to jump through a few hoops before we can do that and so we’d ask you to wait till we can share it all with you…
And in the mean while we’ll continue our story about the discovery of Nalanda ruins…
He found a very rare cave art in Rajgriha and here’s a picture of it…
We are bubbling with excitement to share the rest of the story about its discovery but we have to jump through a few hoops before we can do that and so we’d ask you to wait till we can share it all with you…
And in the mean while we’ll continue our story about the discovery of Nalanda ruins…
Monday, June 22, 2009
'Li' & 'Yojan' in Nalanda Using GIS
As we had mentioned in an earlier post here is an attempt to use modern techniques to verify some established reference points from the available literatures...
We try to find the values of Li and Yojan between the places mentioned by Xuanzang and Fahien using GIS software and GPS. For this we take few fixed points (reference) which are now established and confirmed as the places mentioned by Fahien and Xuanzang in their travel accounts.
Fixed points- Nalanda, Rajgir, Indrasaila Guha (Isolated Hill, Parwati) and Telhada
The distances found using the GIS are the shortest distance between the places. We do not have any information on the path used during earlier times. Some sites like Nalanda, Telhada and Rajgir must be much bigger than the existing remains. Also the cart-tracks in old times must be longer. It’s also not clear if Xuanzang himself measured the distances or they were based on enquiry. Also we know Xuanzang moved around Nalanda on an Elephant. Taking every thing in consideration it’s safe to have a margin of error of ±10% of the measured value, for measurement of average distances as we shall do in Nalanda and around.
1 Li= 416Mts, Buffer= 378 mts to 458 mts
1 Yojan= 9.3 Kms, Buffer= 8.37Kms to 10.23Kms –Xuanzang
1 Yojan= 12.5 Km, Buffer= 11.25 Kms to 13.75 Kms-Fahien
We try to find the values of Li and Yojan between the places mentioned by Xuanzang and Fahien using GIS software and GPS. For this we take few fixed points (reference) which are now established and confirmed as the places mentioned by Fahien and Xuanzang in their travel accounts.
Fixed points- Nalanda, Rajgir, Indrasaila Guha (Isolated Hill, Parwati) and Telhada
The distances found using the GIS are the shortest distance between the places. We do not have any information on the path used during earlier times. Some sites like Nalanda, Telhada and Rajgir must be much bigger than the existing remains. Also the cart-tracks in old times must be longer. It’s also not clear if Xuanzang himself measured the distances or they were based on enquiry. Also we know Xuanzang moved around Nalanda on an Elephant. Taking every thing in consideration it’s safe to have a margin of error of ±10% of the measured value, for measurement of average distances as we shall do in Nalanda and around.
1 Li= 416Mts, Buffer= 378 mts to 458 mts
1 Yojan= 9.3 Kms, Buffer= 8.37Kms to 10.23Kms –Xuanzang
1 Yojan= 12.5 Km, Buffer= 11.25 Kms to 13.75 Kms-Fahien
Friday, June 19, 2009
Queries...
Another set of very interesting queries and surprisingly they are all from one person and quite specific too, its encouraging to know that somebody is following our blog so closely.
So here they are and hope you find them helpful, these questions are related to the posts ‘current situation of Nalanda Mahavihara’ and ‘birth place of Sariputra’
You have separately listed 7 villages supposed to be on the mound, but given the outline of only 4 villages. Could you mark the serial numbers of these villages on the mound also?
The villages are all clustered and are broadly clubbed in the four groups.
The villages motioned are in sequence of their position on the map with Muzzafarpur and Kapatiya at south end and Begampur and Daman khanda at the northern end and in between are Surajpur and Bargaon
Is it possible to get an aerial photograph of the complete mound along with the tanks?
We don’t have any aerial pictures of all the water bodies and the Nalanda ruins on a single canvas.
Kindly supply the latitude/longitude of the places. This will help in easily locating them on Wikimapia/ Google Earth.
Juafardih- (Kulika)- 25º 8′ 6" N , 85 º 25′ 41"E
Chandi Mau (Kalpinaka) - 25º 03′ 25" N, 85 º 29′ 59"E
Nanand (Kalpinaka) - 25º 04′ 27" N, 85 º 30′ 7"E
What is the source of the detailed map of the villages/ river/ canal?
The picture where you see the villages and rivers and roads mentioned is from the toposheet issued by the survey of India.
So here they are and hope you find them helpful, these questions are related to the posts ‘current situation of Nalanda Mahavihara’ and ‘birth place of Sariputra’
You have separately listed 7 villages supposed to be on the mound, but given the outline of only 4 villages. Could you mark the serial numbers of these villages on the mound also?
The villages are all clustered and are broadly clubbed in the four groups.
The villages motioned are in sequence of their position on the map with Muzzafarpur and Kapatiya at south end and Begampur and Daman khanda at the northern end and in between are Surajpur and Bargaon
Is it possible to get an aerial photograph of the complete mound along with the tanks?
We don’t have any aerial pictures of all the water bodies and the Nalanda ruins on a single canvas.
Kindly supply the latitude/longitude of the places. This will help in easily locating them on Wikimapia/ Google Earth.
Juafardih- (Kulika)- 25º 8′ 6" N , 85 º 25′ 41"E
Chandi Mau (Kalpinaka) - 25º 03′ 25" N, 85 º 29′ 59"E
Nanand (Kalpinaka) - 25º 04′ 27" N, 85 º 30′ 7"E
What is the source of the detailed map of the villages/ river/ canal?
The picture where you see the villages and rivers and roads mentioned is from the toposheet issued by the survey of India.
Thursday, June 18, 2009
Footsteps of Xuanzang- Identification of sites
Rediscovery of Nalanda Mahavihar
Rediscovery continued
Systematic excavations of Nalanda Mahavihar
Present situation of Nalanda Mahavihar
Birthplace of Sariputra
Kulika and Kolit gram
Bimbisara and Buddha meeting place
Indrasaila Guha
Rajgir and vicinity
Venuwan
Saptaparni stone house
Ashokan stupa to mark site of Mahasanghika
Ajaatsatru Relic stupa
Gridhkutta and North Gate Palace City
Sites around North Gate Palace City
Queries about coordinates
Rediscovery continued
Systematic excavations of Nalanda Mahavihar
Present situation of Nalanda Mahavihar
Birthplace of Sariputra
Kulika and Kolit gram
Bimbisara and Buddha meeting place
Indrasaila Guha
Rajgir and vicinity
Venuwan
Saptaparni stone house
Ashokan stupa to mark site of Mahasanghika
Ajaatsatru Relic stupa
Gridhkutta and North Gate Palace City
Sites around North Gate Palace City
Queries about coordinates
Wednesday, June 17, 2009
THE PROCESS OF REDISCOVERY OF NALANDA MAHAVIHAR
The ruins of the ancient university of Nalanda are one of the most popular destinations of Nalanda. Actually it is synonymous with Nalanda just like Eiffel tower is to Paris and it is no surprise that the discovery of such an existence in this part of the world put Nalanda on the hot spot and the curiosity grew about the how’s and the why’s. Its been almost 200 years since we first saw the first glimpse of it, at least on the record, and we are still waiting to know more…
Before we go into details lets see how it was rediscovered:
Nalanda Mahavihara was an ancient seat of learning in the glorious historical days and its ruins are situated 90 km from Patna and 80 Km from Gaya. The Nalanda Mahavihara was the culmination of the vihara system started at the time of Buddha. The first viharas were the makeshift dwellings made up of bamboos, this provided the Bhikkhus and the sangha much needed shelter at time of varsavaas. A small cluster of such small units away from villages and towns made an ideal place for meditation and discourses. Nalanda Mahavihara holds a special status for it was the first of its kind where Monks didn’t have to go to collect alms. All the arrangements for food, lodging and basic necessities were provided by the Kings and the local community. This university which flourished uninterrupted for more than 8 centuries served as a benchmark for all later establishments.
Centre of attraction of the Nalanda Mahavihara is Mulagandhakuti also known as temple no 3 at the centre of Establishment. This is also an important site because teachers from this university were founders of Buddhism and Lamaism in the great Himalayan country of Tibet.
Buchanan – 1812 AD
Dr. Francis Buchanan Hamilton was first to report about the extensive ruins of Bargaon. He was told that this was palace of the Raja Bhimika father of lord Krishna’s Wife Princess Rukmani. The Jain priests told him that the place was palace of Raja Srenik (Bimbisara).
Kittoe—1847-48
Kittoe was 2nd to notice the mound of Bargaon. Kittoe received a part translation of Fahien travelogue prepared by J .W. Laidley in 1848
Kittoe followed Fahien footsteps and started his journey from Patna. His first target was Indrasaila guha which according to Fahien was an isolated hill 7 Yojan SE from Patna. His assistants who took the measure mistook Bari Pahari (Bihar Sharif) as Indrasaila Guha which was actually further south east. Second leg he took was for Nala, Birthplace of Sariputra which as per Fahien was 1Yojan SW of Indrasaila Guha.
Since his 1st identification of Bari Pahari, Bihar Sharif as Isolated Hill (Indrasaila guha) was wrong his 2nd identification of Nala 1yojan SW, reach him at place which was not one Yojan east of Rajgir as mentioned by Fahien
Kittoe’s 1 Yojan= 4 Kos=8miles
In his 2nd expedition Kittoe went to Bargaon which he left to his assistants in his first expedition. He felt that Bargaon could be site of Nala (birthplace of Sariputra) though the calculation and direction mentioned by Fahien where not supporting his conclusion.
SPECIAL NOTE:
So far, we have been discussing how the area was re-discovered umpteen number of years ago and although it is very fascinating to re-visit someone else’s account of travel but you’ll have to agree it can not be as thrilling as sharing your own account of a new discovery.
As we have mention before that there is a lot that remains to be discovered in the beautiful settings of Nalanda and to give you a glimpse of that, we’ll talk about a recent discovery that ‘Deepak Anand’ made in the Valley of Rajgir. His own account of how he found it, the hardship, the exhilaration and the satisfaction… keep your eyes peeled!
Before we go into details lets see how it was rediscovered:
Nalanda Mahavihara was an ancient seat of learning in the glorious historical days and its ruins are situated 90 km from Patna and 80 Km from Gaya. The Nalanda Mahavihara was the culmination of the vihara system started at the time of Buddha. The first viharas were the makeshift dwellings made up of bamboos, this provided the Bhikkhus and the sangha much needed shelter at time of varsavaas. A small cluster of such small units away from villages and towns made an ideal place for meditation and discourses. Nalanda Mahavihara holds a special status for it was the first of its kind where Monks didn’t have to go to collect alms. All the arrangements for food, lodging and basic necessities were provided by the Kings and the local community. This university which flourished uninterrupted for more than 8 centuries served as a benchmark for all later establishments.
Centre of attraction of the Nalanda Mahavihara is Mulagandhakuti also known as temple no 3 at the centre of Establishment. This is also an important site because teachers from this university were founders of Buddhism and Lamaism in the great Himalayan country of Tibet.
Buchanan – 1812 AD
Dr. Francis Buchanan Hamilton was first to report about the extensive ruins of Bargaon. He was told that this was palace of the Raja Bhimika father of lord Krishna’s Wife Princess Rukmani. The Jain priests told him that the place was palace of Raja Srenik (Bimbisara).
Kittoe—1847-48
Kittoe was 2nd to notice the mound of Bargaon. Kittoe received a part translation of Fahien travelogue prepared by J .W. Laidley in 1848
Kittoe followed Fahien footsteps and started his journey from Patna. His first target was Indrasaila guha which according to Fahien was an isolated hill 7 Yojan SE from Patna. His assistants who took the measure mistook Bari Pahari (Bihar Sharif) as Indrasaila Guha which was actually further south east. Second leg he took was for Nala, Birthplace of Sariputra which as per Fahien was 1Yojan SW of Indrasaila Guha.
Since his 1st identification of Bari Pahari, Bihar Sharif as Isolated Hill (Indrasaila guha) was wrong his 2nd identification of Nala 1yojan SW, reach him at place which was not one Yojan east of Rajgir as mentioned by Fahien
Kittoe’s 1 Yojan= 4 Kos=8miles
In his 2nd expedition Kittoe went to Bargaon which he left to his assistants in his first expedition. He felt that Bargaon could be site of Nala (birthplace of Sariputra) though the calculation and direction mentioned by Fahien where not supporting his conclusion.
SPECIAL NOTE:
So far, we have been discussing how the area was re-discovered umpteen number of years ago and although it is very fascinating to re-visit someone else’s account of travel but you’ll have to agree it can not be as thrilling as sharing your own account of a new discovery.
As we have mention before that there is a lot that remains to be discovered in the beautiful settings of Nalanda and to give you a glimpse of that, we’ll talk about a recent discovery that ‘Deepak Anand’ made in the Valley of Rajgir. His own account of how he found it, the hardship, the exhilaration and the satisfaction… keep your eyes peeled!
Tuesday, June 16, 2009
REDISCOVERY OF NALANDA MAHAVIHAR contd:
Continuing with our story about how the ruins of Nalanda were discovered. Buchanan and Kittoe had made the first round of exploration and Cunningham followed through in the steps more than a decade later…
Cunningham- 1861
Cunningham faced no difficulty in identification of Ruins of Bargaon as the remains of Ancient Mahavihara. He was fortunate to have Xuanzang’s accounts to his help which Kittoe didn’t. As per the accounts the Nalanda University was 30 Li North of New Fort, Rajgir, which he had little difficulty in identifying given he already had the clues left by Buchanan and Kittoe.
Broadley- 1871-72
Broadley started excavation of biggest mound at the Bargaon site in an unsystematic and unscientific manner. More than 1000 labour where employed for uncovering the Mound (Temple no-12) which they completed in 10days. In this hurry laborers even pulled down a magnificent gate at the western side of the courtyard. Cunningham reached Bargaon as newly appointed director general of revived ASI, Cunningham was not happy with excavations carried by Broadley. He was further irritated by the justification offered by Broadley, excavations according to Broadley were justified on grounds that Nalanda was a quarry of bricks for centuries and it was necessary to see what lies inside the stupa. In hurry Broadley arranged a pillar upside down and in order to leave his marks he even ascribed his name in one of the pillars twice.
Cunningham- 1861
Cunningham faced no difficulty in identification of Ruins of Bargaon as the remains of Ancient Mahavihara. He was fortunate to have Xuanzang’s accounts to his help which Kittoe didn’t. As per the accounts the Nalanda University was 30 Li North of New Fort, Rajgir, which he had little difficulty in identifying given he already had the clues left by Buchanan and Kittoe.
Broadley- 1871-72
Broadley started excavation of biggest mound at the Bargaon site in an unsystematic and unscientific manner. More than 1000 labour where employed for uncovering the Mound (Temple no-12) which they completed in 10days. In this hurry laborers even pulled down a magnificent gate at the western side of the courtyard. Cunningham reached Bargaon as newly appointed director general of revived ASI, Cunningham was not happy with excavations carried by Broadley. He was further irritated by the justification offered by Broadley, excavations according to Broadley were justified on grounds that Nalanda was a quarry of bricks for centuries and it was necessary to see what lies inside the stupa. In hurry Broadley arranged a pillar upside down and in order to leave his marks he even ascribed his name in one of the pillars twice.
Monday, June 15, 2009
Systematic Excavations from 1915 to1937 by Spooner, Page, Hiranand sastri and others
This post is all pictures and no words, well almost no words...
The pictures are from the display board right in front of the main temple of the Nalanda ruins and pretty much explain the entire process.
The pictures are from the display board right in front of the main temple of the Nalanda ruins and pretty much explain the entire process.
Friday, June 12, 2009
Current situation of Nalanda Mahavihara
The excavated part of the ancient Nalanda Mahavihara is 1/10th of the existing remains. Rest of the mound is inhabited and buried under local peoples’ daily life and livelihood. The mound is surrounded by small and big water bodies from three sides. Earth removed from the water bodies were used in making the bricks used for the university.
Bricks of different sizes were used at different period, we will use the size
“18In X 13In X 4.5In”. We shall take 8 Feet as an average depth of water bodies for calculation of volume of earth used
Total area of 20 water bodies = 246.57 acres= 246.7 X 43560 Sq ft = 10746252 Sq ft
Volume of earth removed= 8 Ft X 10746252 Sq Ft = 85970016cu.ft
Volume of brick used at Nalanda = 1053 Cu.In= 0.609375Cu.Ft
Total no of bricks used= 141079001
Can you try and imagine that many number of bricks?
Villages on the Existing mound
1- Muzzafarpur
2- Kapatiya
3- Surajpur
4- Bargaon
5- DamanKhanda
6- Begampur
7- Mustafapur
Bricks of different sizes were used at different period, we will use the size
“18In X 13In X 4.5In”. We shall take 8 Feet as an average depth of water bodies for calculation of volume of earth used
Total area of 20 water bodies = 246.57 acres= 246.7 X 43560 Sq ft = 10746252 Sq ft
Volume of earth removed= 8 Ft X 10746252 Sq Ft = 85970016cu.ft
Volume of brick used at Nalanda = 1053 Cu.In= 0.609375Cu.Ft
Total no of bricks used= 141079001
Can you try and imagine that many number of bricks?
Villages on the Existing mound
1- Muzzafarpur2- Kapatiya
3- Surajpur
4- Bargaon
5- DamanKhanda
6- Begampur
7- Mustafapur
Thursday, June 11, 2009
Birth place of Sariputra
Sariputra was the chief disciple of Buddha and was also called Dhamma senapati (general of the Dhamma). As per the Pali sources he was born and died in Nalaka gram. Before he joined the Buddhist order he was disciple of Sanjaya Belatthaputta. He attained Nirvana in full moon night of Kartika Month.
Birth place of Sariputra is still a puzzle. Fahien and Xuanzang both visited Nala (Xuanzang’s Kalpinaka) and have given details of measure and direction. While Fahien reached Nala from Indrasaila Guha, Xuanzang reached Kalpinaka from Nalanda Mahavihara via Kulika (birth place of Moggallana).
We see as we apply the indications on a GIS map, the places don’t fall exactly at one place. Chandi-Mau and Nanand are among the most probable sites. Chandi-Mau falls in the radius of Fahien’s buffer and Nanand falls under the Xuanzang’s buffer, the archaeological remains at both the site are substantial. Broadley visited Chandi-Mau and said this could be Sariputra’s birth place Nala. The pottery found at the surface in Chandi-Mau don’t support any monastic or stupa structure before 5th century AD
Fahien’s Nala (birthplace of Sariputra)
Xuanzang’ Kalpinaka (birth place of Sariputra)
Putting Xuanzang and Fahien records together
Probable places of Sariputra’s birth place and Nalanda
Two most probable places which come under the probability zone are
1-Chandi-Mau (suggested by Broadley)
2-Nanand
Birth place of Sariputra is still a puzzle. Fahien and Xuanzang both visited Nala (Xuanzang’s Kalpinaka) and have given details of measure and direction. While Fahien reached Nala from Indrasaila Guha, Xuanzang reached Kalpinaka from Nalanda Mahavihara via Kulika (birth place of Moggallana).
We see as we apply the indications on a GIS map, the places don’t fall exactly at one place. Chandi-Mau and Nanand are among the most probable sites. Chandi-Mau falls in the radius of Fahien’s buffer and Nanand falls under the Xuanzang’s buffer, the archaeological remains at both the site are substantial. Broadley visited Chandi-Mau and said this could be Sariputra’s birth place Nala. The pottery found at the surface in Chandi-Mau don’t support any monastic or stupa structure before 5th century AD
Fahien’s Nala (birthplace of Sariputra)
Xuanzang’ Kalpinaka (birth place of Sariputra)
Putting Xuanzang and Fahien records together
Probable places of Sariputra’s birth place and Nalanda
Two most probable places which come under the probability zone are
1-Chandi-Mau (suggested by Broadley)
2-Nanand
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