Sanchi Stupa 2, Sanchi, Madhya Pradesh India

 The Sanchi stupa, built in and around 283 BCE by Ashoka, the famous Indian emperor who converted to Buddhism, is better known for its scriptures. The second largest stupa in India after that of Amravati, the Sanchi stupa is surrounded by a railing with four carved gateways facing towards all four directions. The entire stupa comprises symbolic representation of the gifts of nature as if explaining the Buddhist doctrine by reflecting the people's love for the nature. The use of lotus in stupa symbolises the rise of people from the mud of materialism to the reality and spirituality of life. Similarly, the female tree spirits depicted in the gateways are symbols of fertility.

Sanchi is unique in having the most perfect and well-preserved stupas anywhere in India. These monuments record the genesis, efflorescence and decay of Buddhist art and architecture from the third century BC to the twelfth century AD, almost covering the whole range of Indian Buddhism. It is located near Bhopal in the state of Madhya Pradesh. The Stupa is a wonderful testimony to the artistic skill of Buddhist monks.

The foundation of the great religious establishment at Sanchi, destined to become an important centre of Buddhism for many centuries, was probably laid by Asoka, when he built a stupa and erected a monolithic pillar here.

The stupas are large hemispherical domes containing a central chamber, in which the relics of Buddha are placed. The stupas at Sanchi traced their development from the 3rd century BC to 12th century AD and represent finest example of Buddhist architecture and sculpture. Its nucleus was a simple hemispherical brick structure built over the relics of the Buddha. It was crowned by the `Chhatra`, a parasol-like structure symbolising high rank, which was intended to honour and shelter the relics.

It is well accepted that the structures of Sanchi Stupa are the most organized construction, which went into the engineering of temples in the mediaeval period. The framework of Sanchi Stupa reflects people`s love for nature. The most frequently shown flower in the various structures is lotus, which symbolizes a particular meaning. As lotuses grow from the mud in the bottom of water body but produces a beautiful white blossom, Buddhist believe that like lotuses people can also rise to from the mud of materialism to the sunlight of spiritualism. The decoration of the stupa gateways also includes male and female tree spirits. The female tree spirits are the symbols of fertility, which often clutch overhanging trees full of flowers and fruits. Buddhists use them as welcoming figures on the gateways.

The Sanchi hill goes up in shelves with Stupa 2 situated on a lower shelf, Stupa 1, Stupa 3, the 5th century Gupta Temple No.17 and the 7th century temple No. 18 are on the intermediate shelf and 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 Satavahanas.

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 AD. 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.