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Bodhi Tree

Coordinates: 24°41′45.29″N 84°59′29.29″E / 24.6959139°N 84.9914694°E / 24.6959139; 84.9914694
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
For the tree species more generally, see Ficus religiosa.

24°41′45.29″N 84°59′29.29″E / 24.6959139°N 84.9914694°E / 24.6959139; 84.9914694

The Mahabodhi tree at the Sri Mahabodhi Temple in Bodh Gaya
The Diamond throne, or Vajrashila, where the Buddha sat under the Bodhi tree in Bodh Gaya.
A Buddhist monk in front of the Bodhi tree

The Bodhi tree ("tree of awakening" or "tree of enlightenment"[1]), also called the Mahabodhi tree or Bo tree,[2] is a large sacred fig tree (Ficus religiosa)[1][3] located in Bodh Gaya, Bihar, India. Siddhartha Gautama, the spiritual teacher who became known as the Buddha, is said to have attained enlightenment, or buddhahood, circa 500 BCE, under this tree.[4] In religious iconography, the Bodhi tree is recognizable by its heart-shaped leaves, which are usually prominently displayed.[5]

The original tree under which Siddhartha Gautama sat is no longer living, but the term "bodhi tree" is also applied to existing sacred fig trees.[6] The foremost example is the Mahabodhi tree growing at the Mahabodhi Temple in Bodh Gaya, which is often cited as a direct descendant of the original tree. This tree, planted around 250 BCE, is a frequent destination for pilgrims, being the most important of the four main Buddhist pilgrimage sites.[7]

Other holy bodhi trees with great significance in the history of Buddhism are the Anandabodhi tree at Jetavana in Sravasti, northern India, and the Sri Maha Bodhi tree in Anuradhapura, Sri Lanka.

The Forest Research Institute of India assists in the upkeep of the Bodhi tree since 2007.[8][9][10] Cloning was considered in 2008.[11] The tree's leaves can be bought by pilgrims as mementos.[11]

Origin and descendants

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Bodh Gaya

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1810 picture of a small temple beneath the Bodhi Tree, Bodh Gaya[12]
The Mahabodhi tree at Bodh Gaya in 2015
Illustration of the temple built by Asoka at Bodh Gaya around the Bodhi Tree. Sculpture of the Satavahana period at Sanchi, 1st century CE.
Main article: Mahabodhi Temple

The Bodhi tree at the Mahabodhi Temple is called Sri Maha Bodhi. Gautama Buddha is said to have attained enlightenment (bodhi) while meditating underneath a Ficus religiosa. According to Buddhist texts, the Buddha meditated without moving from his seat for seven weeks (49 days) under this tree. A shrine called Animisalocana cetiya was later erected on the spot where he sat.[13]

The spot was used as a shrine even in the Buddha's lifetime. Emperor Ashoka paid homage to the Bodhi tree and held a festival every year in its honour in the month of Kattika.[14] His queen, Tissarakkhā, was jealous of the tree, and three years after she became queen (i.e., in the nineteenth year of Ashoka's reign), she cursed it to be killed by means of thorns.[15] The tree, however, grew again, and a monastery was attached to the Bodhimaṇḍa, called Bodhimanda Vihara.[16] Every time the tree was destroyed, a new one was planted in the same place.[17]

Bodhi Tree sign, 2013

In 1862, the British archaeologist Alexander Cunningham wrote of the site as the first entry in the first volume published by the Archaeological Survey of India:

The celebrated Bodhi tree still exists, but is very much decayed; one large stem, with three branches to the westward, is still green, but the other branches are barkless and rotten. The green branch perhaps belongs to some younger tree, as there are numerous stems of apparently different trees clustered together. The tree must have been renewed frequently, as the present Pipal is standing on a terrace at least 30 feet above the level of the surrounding country. It was in full vigour in 1811, when seen by Dr. Buchanan (Hamilton), who describes it as in all probability not exceeding 100 years of age.[18]

However, the tree decayed further, and in 1876, what remained of it was destroyed in a storm. Cunningham wrote that the young scion of the parent tree was already in existence to take its place.[19][20]

Jetavana, Uttar Pradesh

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Ashoka's Mahabodhi Temple and Diamond throne in Bodh Gaya, built circa 250 BCE. The inscription between the chaitya arches reads: "Bhagavato Sakamunino/ bodho", meaning "the building round the Bodhi tree of the Holy Sakamuni".[21] Bharhut frieze (circa 100 BCE).

It is said that in the ancient Buddhist texts,[22] in order for people to make offerings in the name of the Buddha when he was away on pilgrimage, the Buddha sanctioned the planting of a seed from the Bodhi tree in Bodh Gaya in front of the gateway of Jetavana Monastery, near Sravasti. For this purpose, Moggallana took a fruit from the tree as it dropped from its stalk, before it reached the ground. It was planted in a golden jar by Anathapindika, with great pomp and ceremony. A sapling immediately sprouted forth, fifty cubits high, and in order to consecrate it, the Buddha spent one night under it in meditation. This tree, because it was planted under the direction of Ananda, came to be known as the Ananda Bodhi.

Anuradhapura, Sri Lanka

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King Ashoka's daughter Sanghamittā Theri brought a piece of the tree with her to Ceylon, where it continues to grow in the island's ancient capital of Anuradhapura.[19] It is named Jaya Sri Maha Bodhi.[23][24] According to the Mahāvaṃsa, Jaya Sri Maha Bodhi was planted in 288 BCE, making it the oldest verified specimen of any angiosperm. In this year (the twelfth year of King Ashoka's reign), the right branch of the Bodhi tree was brought by Sanghamittā to Anurādhapura and placed by the left foot of Devanampiya Tissa. The Buddha, on his deathbed, had resolved five things, one being that the branch to be taken to Ceylon should detach itself.[14] From Bodh Gayā, the branch was taken to Pātaliputta and thence to Tāmalittī, where it was placed on a ship and taken across the sea. It finally arrived at Anuradhapura, staying on the way at Tivakka.

Honolulu, Hawaii

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In 1913, Anagarika Dharmapala took a sapling of Jaya Sri Maha Bodhi to Hawaii, where he presented it to his benefactor, Mary E. Foster, who had funded much Buddhist missionary work. She planted it in the grounds of her house in Honolulu, by the Nuʻuanu stream. On her death, she left her house and its grounds to the people of Honolulu, and it became the Foster Botanical Garden.[25]

Chennai, India

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Sapling of the Maha bodhi tree planted in the year 1950 at the Theosophical Society Adyar

In 1950, Jinarajadasa took three saplings of the Sri Maha Bodhi to plant two in Chennai, India: one near the Buddhist temple at the Theosophical Society and the other at the riverside of Adyar Creek. The third sapling was planted near a meditation center in Sri Lanka.[26]

Trấn Quốc, Hanoi, Vietnam

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In 1959, to mark a visit to Vietnam by the first president of India, Rajendra Prasad, a cutting of the original tree in Bodh Gaya was gifted, and it presently stands on the grounds of Trấn Quốc Pagoda in Hanoi.[27]

Thousand Oaks, California

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In 2012, the Bangladeshi philanthropist Brahmanda Pratap Barua took a sapling of the Bodhi tree from Bodh Gaya, to Thousand Oaks, California, where he presented it to his benefactor, Anagarika Glenn Hughes, who had funded much Buddhist work and teaches Buddhism in the United States.[28]

Nihon-ji, Japan

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In 1989, the government of India presented Nihon-ji with a sapling from the Bodhi tree as a gesture of world peace.[citation needed]

Deekshabhoomi, Nagpur, India

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A Bodhi tree was planted at the Deekshabhoomi Buddhist monument in Nagpur, India, from three branches of the Bodhi tree at Anuradhapura in Sri Lanka. Bhadant Anand Kausalyayan brought the branches from Sri Lanka as a memorial of Buddha's enlightenment. The site is holy to Navayana Buddhism, as it is the place where B. R. Ambedkar converted to Buddhism, along with 600,000 followers, on 14 October 1956, during the Dhammachakra Pravartan Din festival.

Quezon City, Philippines

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A sapling of the Bodhi tree from Anuradhapura was planted on 15 May 2011 at Wisdom Park in New Manila, Quezon City, Philippines, by D. M. Jayaratne, Prime Minister of Sri Lanka, and Mariano S. Yupitun, founder of Universal Wisdom Foundation Inc.[citation needed]

Brisbane, Queensland, Australia

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A sapling of the Bodhi tree from Anuradhapura was planted in April 2008 at Kurilpa Point, the site of QAGOMA, by the artist Lee Mingwei, as the centerpiece to his "Bhodi Tree Project".[29]

Brazil

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There are two descendants of the Bodhi tree in Brazil: one in the Busshinji temple, the head temple of Sōtō in Latin America, in São Paulo, and another in the Sōtō temple Daissenji, in Florianópolis.[30]

Mahabodhi trees of other Buddhas

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Following is a list of the various Mahabodhi trees under which all of the Buddhas known to Theravada Buddhism attained buddhahood:[31]

Buddha (Pāli name) Bodhirukka (tree of enlightenment; Pāli name) binomial name
Taṇhaṅkara rukkaththana
Medhaṅkara kaela
Saraṇaṅkara pulila
Dīpaṃkara pipphali Ficus obtusifolia
Koṇḍañña salakalyanīka Oroxylum indicum
Maṅgala nāga Mesua ferrea
Sumana nāga Mesua ferrea
Revata nāga Mesua ferrea
Sobhita nāga Mesua ferrea
Anomadassi ajjuna Terminalia arjuna
Paduma mahāsona Oroxylum indicum
Nārada mahāsona Oroxylum indicum
Padumuttara salala Pinus roxburghii
Sumedha mahanīpa Neolamarckia cadamba
Sujāta mahavelu Bambusa bambos
Piyadassi kakudha Crateva religiosa
Atthadassi campaka Magnolia champaca
Dhammadassī bimbijala Pavetta indica
Siddhattha kanikara Pterospermum acerifolium
Tissa asana Terminalia elliptica
Phussa amakala Phyllanthus emblica
Vipassī pāṭalī Stereospermum chelonoides
Sikhī puṇḍarīka Mangifera indica
Vessabhū sāla Shorea robusta
Kakusandha sirīsa Albizia lebbeck
Koṇāgamana uḍumbara Ficus racemosa
Kassapa nigrodha Ficus benghalensis
Gautama Buddha (present Buddha) assattha Ficus religiosa
Metteyya (future Buddha)[32] nāga Mesua ferrea

Celebrations

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Bodhi Day

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On 8 December, Bodhi Day celebrates Buddha's enlightenment underneath the Bodhi tree. Those who follow the Dharma greet each other by saying, "Budu saranai!", which translates to "may the peace of the Buddha be yours".[33] It is generally seen as a religious holiday, much like Christmas in the Christian West, in which special meals are served, especially cookies shaped like hearts (referencing the heart-shaped leaves of the Bodhi) and kheer, the Buddha's first meal ending his six-year asceticism.[34]

Bodhi tree and Bihar emblem

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The Bo tree is the main part of the Bihar state emblem. During British rule, the State Reorganisation Act of 1935 adopted the Bo tree as the state emblem, following a recommendation to that effect being forwarded to the Royal Society.[35][36]

Bodhi puja

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Bodhi puja, meaning "veneration of the Bodhi tree", is a ritual to worship the Bodhi tree and the deity residing in it (Pali: rukkhadevata; Sanskrit: vrikshadevata).

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  • A Bodhi tree leaf with a raindrop
    A Bodhi tree leaf with a raindrop
  • Meditators at the Mahabodhi tree, Bodh Gaya
    Meditators at the Mahabodhi tree, Bodh Gaya
  • Mahabodhi tree, Bodh Gaya
    Mahabodhi tree, Bodh Gaya
  • "The sacred tree of Buddha". A photo from the Jami' al-tawarikh by Rasheed al-Din Al-Hamazani, Folio 47 Recto. Collection of the Royal Asian Society in London. Rab-i-Rashidi 1314.
    "The sacred tree of Buddha". A photo from the Jami' al-tawarikh by Rasheed al-Din Al-Hamazani, Folio 47 Recto. Collection of the Royal Asian Society in London. Rab-i-Rashidi 1314.
  • Indian stamp, 1997 – Colnect 163602 – Bodhi tree
    Indian stamp, 1997 – Colnect 163602 – Bodhi tree
  • A small temple beneath the Bodhi tree, Bodh Gaya, c. 1810
    A small temple beneath the Bodhi tree, Bodh Gaya, c. 1810
  • Bodhi tree photograph from the Bangkok National Museum, Thailand
    Bodhi tree photograph from the Bangkok National Museum, Thailand
  • Jaya Sri Maha Bodhi, Anuradhapura, Sri Lanka
    Jaya Sri Maha Bodhi, Anuradhapura, Sri Lanka

See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b Gethin, Rupert (1998). The Foundations of Buddhism. Oxford University Press. p. 22. ISBN 978-0-19-289223-2.
  2. ^ "Buddhism Fast Facts". CNN. 11 November 2013. Retrieved 14 October 2019.
  3. ^ Simon Gardner, Pindar Sidisunthorn and Lai Ee May 2011. Heritage Trees of Penang. Penang: Areca Books. ISBN 978-967-57190-6-6
  4. ^ Gopal, Madan (1990). K.S. Gautam (ed.). India through the ages. Publication Division, Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, Government of India. p. 176.
  5. ^ For more on the topic see also the chapter "Buddha, Buddhism, and the bodhi tree" in Belief, Bounty, and Beauty by Albertina Nugteren. doi:10.1163/9789047415619_004
  6. ^ "Ficus religiosa – Plant Finder". missouribotanicalgarden.org. Retrieved 8 December 2020.
  7. ^ "Botanic Notables: The Bodhi Tree – Garden Design". GardenDesign.com. Retrieved 8 December 2020.
  8. ^ Kazmi, S M A (7 August 2007). "Forest institute suggests methods to save Bodhi tree – Indian Express". The Indian Express Archives. Retrieved 7 April 2022.
  9. ^ Qadir, Abdul (31 August 2017). "Two Forest Research Institute scientists examine Bodhi tree, collect sample". The Times of India. Retrieved 7 April 2022.
  10. ^ Sahay, Anand Mohan (25 October 2007). "Branch of bodhi tree was cut 3 years ago: Report". rediff.com. Retrieved 7 April 2022.
  11. ^ a b Bedi, Rahul (9 April 2008). "Scientists turn to cloning in attempt to save Buddhism's holiest tree for posterity". The Irish Times. Retrieved 7 April 2022.
  12. ^ A small Hindu temple beneath a banyan tree, Bodhgaya British Library.
  13. ^ Malalasekera, G. P. (14 September 2003). Dictionary of Pali Proper Names. Asian Educational Services. ISBN 978-81-206-1823-7 – via Google Books.
  14. ^ a b "CHAPTER XVII_The Arrival Of The Relics". Mahavamsa, chap. 17, 17.
  15. ^ "CHAPTER XX_The Nibbana of the Thera". Mahavamsa, chap. 20, 4f.
  16. ^ "Chapter XXIX: The Beginning of the Great Thupa". Mahavamsa, chap. 29, 41.
  17. ^ J. Gordon, Melton; Martin, Baumann (2010). Religions of the World: A Comprehensive Encyclopedia of Beliefs and Practices (Second ed.). ABC-CLIO, Santa Barbara. p. 358. ISBN 978-1-59884-204-3.
  18. ^ Archaeological Survey of India, Volume 1, Four Reports Made During the Years 1862-63-64-66
  19. ^ a b "Buddhist Studies: Bodhi Tree". Buddhanet.net. Retrieved 1 August 2013.
  20. ^ Mahâbodhi, or the great Buddhist temple under the Bodhi tree at Buddha-Gaya, Alexander Cunningham, 1892: "I next saw the Tree in 1871, and again in 1875, when it had become completely decayed, and shortly afterwards, in 1876, the only remaining portion of the Tree fell over the west wall during a storm, and the Old Pipal Tree was gone. Many seeds, however, had been collected, and young scions of the parent tree were already in existence to take its place."
  21. ^ Luders, Heinrich (1963). Corpus Inscriptionum Indicarum Vol.2 Pt.2 Bharhut Inscriptions. p. 95.
  22. ^ "Guide to Buddhism A to Z".
  23. ^ "Rain-makers: The Sacred Bodhi Tree Part 2". Srimahabodhi.org. 24 April 2003. Retrieved 1 August 2013.
  24. ^ K.H.J. Wijayadasa. "Śrī Maha Bodhi". Srimahabodhi.org. Retrieved 1 August 2013.
  25. ^ Waikiki's "Central Park" – Fort DeRussy Armed Forces Reserve waikikioutdoorcircle.org
  26. ^ Madhavan, Chitra. "Buddhist shrine in Adyar". Madras Musings. Retrieved 14 November 2015.
  27. ^ "Statement by the President of India, Shri Pranab Mukherjee to the media on board the special aircraft on his way back from his state visit to the socialist republic of Vietnam". pib.gov.in. Retrieved 22 December 2022.
  28. ^ See "Navel in Buddha" on Academia.edu https://www.academia.edu/43042460/Navel_in_Buddha. Text is quoted verbatim. Multiple internet sites show the same text, but only this one appears to be a more reliable source.
  29. ^ "Lee Mingwei 'Bodhi Tree Project'". qagoma.qld.gov.au. 4 December 2022. Retrieved 9 January 2025.
  30. ^ "As Raízes Culturais da Comemoração do Despertar (Rohatsu)" [The Cultural Roots of the Awakening Celebration (Rohatsu)]. budismohoje.org.br (in Portuguese). 4 December 2021. Retrieved 9 January 2025.
  31. ^ Sayadaw, Mingun, ed. (1992). "Appendix: List of the Mahabodhi Trees of 24 Buddhas". The Great Chronicle of Buddhas. Vol. 1, Part 2. Yangon, Myanmar: Ti=Ni Press. pp. 316–317, 322.
  32. ^ "Cakkavatti Sutta: The wheel-turning Emperor". accesstoinsight.org.
  33. ^ "University of Hawaii".[dead link‍]
  34. ^ Prasoon, Shrikant (2007). Knowing Buddha: [life and teachings]. [Delhi]: Hindoology Books. ISBN 978-81-223-0963-8.
  35. ^ "All the State Emblems and Their Meaning – NLC Bharat". National Legislators Conference. Retrieved 4 February 2024.
  36. ^ "Bihar digging into history to discover roots of its emblem". Hindustan Times. 22 March 2010. Retrieved 4 February 2024.

Further reading

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