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The Stupas of Sanchi

By Anamika Mukherjee

Sanchi is a quiet little place, which is known only for the ancient Buddhist stupas and the Ashoka pillar here. Close to Jhansi (in UP) Sanchi is in MP, a bumpy 45 km drive from state capital, Bhopal. There seems to be only one narrow, rickety, single lane road, which goes to Sanchi and nowhere else.

Our auto took a left off this road and announced that we had arrived. There seemed to be nothing to substantiate his statement. Then we saw the MPT restaurant, and off we got. We were carrying all our belongings, as we were on our way from Khajuraho to Bhopal (from where we planned to journey onwards to Mandu - but that is another story), so we requested MPT to keep our luggage while we looked around. We weren't spending the night here, though the guidebook had spoken highly of sunrise in Sanchi.

Just a bit up the road, there was the ticket counter. Ticketing in MP is somewhat unfair. We paid Rs 5 per head, but foreign nationals are charged $ 5. They seem to identify foreign nationals primarily on the basis of appearance and fluency in the vernacular. We bought tickets for the museum as well as the monuments. The museum is quite interesting and has some huge and tiny sculptures that are wonderfully evocative of the splendor of a bygone era.

Searching for the Stupas

The monuments' enclosure is a fair bit up the road, making one wonder why the ticket counter can't be closer to the actual entrance. Through the gate there isn't much to be seen: you have to start on the long trudge uphill. There is a curving, tarred road, and part way up this, a set of steps leads off up the hill. We were going to stick to the road, when some kids informed us that the steps were a shortcut tot he same place, which indeed they turned out to be, though there were a lot of them.

The first thing you see, on reaching the top, is the New temple of Buddha. It is a graceful structure neatly finished in pastel colours, primarily pink. This is not what one expected. But the ancient stupas are not far, so perseverance pays off in short order.

The first stupa, or Stupa No. 1, as it is generally known, is the grandest. It has four doorways, facing the four directions. Each is more intricately carved than the next, and each is different. The carvings depict the life of Buddha and his attaining enlightenment. According to tradition though, the Buddha was never shown directly, but only symbolically, often as the Bodhisattva tree. The interpretation of the various scenes is explained in great detail on boards in front of each gate. Unfortunately, the explanations are only in chaste Hindi.

The four doorways (toranas) stand just outside the stone screen, which encircles the entire structure. This screen, a later addition to the Stupa (the toranas were an even later addition, around the first century BC) is essentially large blocks of stone linked together in a sort of chain. It looks smooth and delicate, though each of the stones it is composed of, is large and solid. Inside, there is just a narrow ambulatory passage, with the massive bulk of the stupa rising up to your right (if you walk in a clockwise direction, as you are supposed to). Outside there is greenery, and quiet. There are few tourists, and no traffic. This is peace. There is nothing more to this stupa, just the huge bulk of the dome, the delicately solid screen and the graceful toranas. A flight of steps takes you one layer up, where you can walk around the dome again and then go back down. A sign warns against attempting to climb up the dome, which is just as well, because at places the stones are placed just like extremely narrow steps, an invitation to the slightly adventurous.

As you enter the complex, facing the Great Stupa is the smaller Stupa No 3. This also has a torana, but is smaller and simpler in every respect. Beyond this, there are scattered circular mounds, which look like mini-stupas, though they are not domed. At a high level, reached by a flight of steps, are the ruins of a monastery and a temple. Here, with its back to the wall and the sun on its face, is a serene statue of Buddha, forever calm, forever unmoved. How it came to be here is a mystery, since this does not seem to be his rightful home, but he seems quite comfortable there, engrossed in his eternal contemplation.

The ruins of the monastery are fascinating; as you picture monks living and studying in sever austerity amidst the silence.

Back down the steps and beyond the mini stupas, going around the Great Stupa again in a clockwise direction, you come upon the Ashoka pillar. Its base still stands, but the rest of it lies rather sadly in a shelter nearby.

Sunset at Sanchi

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Copyright © 2006 Amit and Anamika Mukherjee. All rights reserved.