Stupa

stupa
Meening
 The first and most fundamental of Buddhist

architectural monuments, the Buddhist
stupa (aka dagoba, chorten, pagoda) serves as a
marker for a sacred space, a symbolic representation
of the Buddha’s burial mound.
 Stupa a term used both in Pali and Sanskrit. The
etymological meaning of the word is 'mound' or
'hillock'
Definition
Dome shaped structures used to house sacred relics of
the monks and hence also known as relic shrines.
In different South Asian countries it is called 'Chedi'
which is synonimous with the Pali . In Chinese, it is
called 'Pagoda'.
History
The Jains had the practice of building stupas. In the
Vedic era, stupas were normally built on the mortal
remains of the deceased.
Stupa is a sacred architectural structure in Buddhist
order. Buddhist stupa is regarded as the oldest religious
form of architecture; and also as the symbol of the
enlightenend mind of Buddha and the way to
internalize it. In Buddhism, stupa represents the body
of Goutam Buddha, his' words and his soul.
The stupas built during emperor Ashoka are regarded as the
oldest among the ones discovered till date. It is said that in
the 3rd centruy BC, Ashok unearthed ashes from the initial
stupas and distributed the ashes through building some
thousand stupas across the Indian subcontinent to heighten
the image of Buddhism and to give it a permanent imagery.
In course of time, the eight places of the initial stupas
became important and sacred places to the followers of
Buddhism, thus places of funeral and devotional offering.
With this, changes were taking place with the rituals of
Buddhism. Starting with the 1st century BC, the stupas
became unified with the hall of Chaitya.
 stupa became the symbol of Buddha and Buddhism
and thus an object of worship. Along with this,
Buddhist devotees used to build small and large stupas
as their offerings while worshipping at the places of
pilgrims. This kind of stupa was called Nibedan stupa.
During the reign of Sunga dynasty (185-75 BC) the
main building material of stupa was stone. The moon-
shaped hemispherical Sunga dynastic Satchi stupa .it
was built with stone in 2nd century BC. It is considered
to be the oldest among the stupas that exist in good
shape till date. It was built with bricks.
In the early days, the stupas were like half-moon
shaped mound or hillocks. This part used to be called
'Aundo‘. that stupas, as earlier examples of Buddhist
architecture in Bengal, became wide-spread during the
Mouryan era. The stupas found in Bengal are mostly
small in size.
Construction materials
Earth materials convered with stone or bricksd .the
plan evlevation and the basic structure all derived
from the circle.
Types
 Sarika stupa
Raised over body relics.
 Paribhojika stupa
Erected over the articles like the bowl the sanghati.
 Uddeshika stupa
Stupa built as commemorative monument.
Sanchi stupa
It is located 40 km north east of bhopal and 10 km
from besnagar and vidisha in the central part of the
state of madhya pradesh.
It was built by ashaka.
The simple structure was damaged at some point
during the 2nd century bce.
This stupa is located on the top of the sanchi hill which
raise about 100 m hight above the plain.
This is oldest stone strucal in india.
Descraption
The building is 120 feet (37 metres) wide and 54 feet (17 metres)
high.
The central structure consists of a hemispherical dome (anda) on
a base, with a relic chamber deep within. The dome symbolizes,
the dome of heaven enclosing the earth. It is surmounted by a
squared railing (harmika) that can be said to represent the world
mountain. A central pillar (yashti) symbolizes the cosmic axis
and supports a triple umbrella structure (chattra), which is held
to represent the Three Jewels of Buddhism—the Buddha, the
dharma(doctrine), and the sangha (community). A circular
terrace (medhi), enclosed by a railing, surrounds the dome, on
which the faithful are to circumambulate in a clockwise direction
The entire structure is enclosed by a low wall (vedika),
which is punctuated at the four cardinal points by
toranas(ceremonial gateways). The toranas of the
Great Stupa are the crowning achievement of Sanchi
sculpture. Each gateway is made up of two squared
posts topped by capitals of sculptured animals or
dwarfs, surmounted by three architraves. All the
elements are covered with relief sculpture depicting
the events of the Buddha’s life, Jataka stories (about
the Buddha’s previous lives), scenes of early
Buddhism, and auspicious symbols. The names of
donors are also inscribed, the most notable one being
the ivory workers of Vidisha.
Structural features
The stupa done by symbolized the infinite space of the
sky. The dom is called as anda.
A hemispherical mound (anda)
 The anda’s domed shape recalls a mound of dirt that
was used to cover the Buddha’s remains.. Consistent
with their symbolic associations, the earliest stupas
contained actual relics of the Buddha; the relic chamber,
buried deep inside the anda, is called the tabena. Over
time, this hemispherical mound has taken on an even
grander symbolic association: the mountain home of the
gods at the center of the universe.
A square railing (harmika) The harmika (red
highlights) is inspired by a square railing or fence that
surrounded the mound of dirt, marking it as a sacred
burial site.
A central pillar supporting a triple-umbrella form
(chattra) The chattra, in turn, was derived from umbrellas
that were placed over the mound to protect it from the
elements (purple highlights). The central pillar that holds
the umbrellas has come to represent the pivot of the
universe, the axis mundi along which the divine descends
from heaven and becomes accessible to humanity. And the
three circular umbrella-like disks represent the three
Jewels of Buddhism, which are the keys to a true
understanding of the faith: (a) Buddha;
(b) dharma (Buddhist teachings or religious law); and
(c) sangha (monastic community).
Enclosure wall with decorated gateways (toranas)
at the cardinal directions The wall — with its
trademark three horizontal stone bars (in the top
image) — surrounds the entire structure
A circular terrace (medhi) The terrace — surrounded

by a similar three-bar railing — supports the anda and
raises it off the ground

Stupa

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stupa

 The first and most fundamental of Buddhist

A circular terrace (medhi) The terrace — surrounded

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