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The Stūpa of Bharhut

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The Stūpa of Bharhut CORNELL UNIVERSITY LIBRARY GIFT OF Alexander B. Griswold FINE ARTS Cornell Univ.;rsily Library NA6008.B5C97 The stupa of Bharhut:a Buddhist monumen 3 1924 016 181 111 ivA Cornell University Library Al The original of this bool< is in the Cornell University Library. There are no known copyright restrictions in the United States on the use of the text. http://www.archive.org/details/cu31 92401 6181111 ; THE STUPA OF BHARHUT: A BUDDHIST MONUMENT ORNAMENTED WITH NUMEROUS SCULPTURES ILLUSTRATIVE OF BTJDDHIST LEGEND AND HISTOEY IN THE THIRD CENTURY B.C. BY ALEXANDER CUNNINGHAM, C.S.I., CLE., ' ' ' ^ MAJOE GENERAL, EOYAL ENGINEERS (BENGAL, RETIRED). DIRECTOR GENERAL ARCHffiOLOGICAL SURVEY OF INDIA. " In the sculptures ancL insorvptions of Bharliut we shall have in future a real landmarh in the religious and literary history of India, and many theories hitherto held hy Sanskrit scholars will have to he modified accordingly."— Dr. Max Mullee. UlM(h hu Mw af i\( Mx(hx^ tii ^tate Ux %nVm in €mml LONDON: W^ H. ALLEN AND CO., 13, WATERLOO PLACE, S.W. TRUBNER AND CO., 57 & 59, LUDGATE HILL; EDWARD STANFORD, CHARING CROSS; W. S. WHITTINGHAM AND CO., 91, GRACECHURCH STREET; THACKER AND CO., 87, NEWGATE STREET. 1879. CONTENTS. page E.—SCULPTURED SCENES. PAGE PREFACE V 1. Jata^as, oe pebvious Bieths of Buddha - 48 2. HisTOEicAL Scenes - - - 82 3. Miscellaneous Scenes, insceibed - 93 I.—DESCRIPTION OF STUPA. 4. Miscellaneous Scenes, not insceibed - 98 1. Position of Bhakhut 1 5. HuMOEOUS Scenes - - - 104 2. Desckipiion of Stupa 4 F.— OF WORSHIP 3. Peobable Age of Stupa - 14 OBJECTS 1. Saeibika, oe Bodily Relics - 109 2. Uddesika, oe Buildings and Symbols 110 3. Paeibhogika, oe Peesonal Relics - 112 II.—SCULPTURES. A.- SUPERHUMAN BEINGS. G.—DECORATIVE ORNAMENTS 116 1. Yakshas 19 H.—BUDDHIST BUILDINGS. 2. Devas 22 1. Palaces - - - - 118 3. NIgas 23 2. PuNYASALAS, oe Religious Housbs - 119 4. Apsaeases 27 3. VajeIsan Canopies - 119 4. Bodhimanda-Theones - - 120 B.—HUMAN BEINGS. 6. PiLLAES - - - - - 121 - 1 Eoyal Peesonages 29 6. Ascetic Heemitages - 122 2. Religious Persons - 30 7. d-\velling-houses - - 123 3. Royal and Lat Costume • 31 4. Militaey Costume 32 K.—MISCELLANEOUS OBJECTS. 5. Female Deess and Oenaments 33 1. Veiiiclbs ----- 124 6. Tattooing - - - 39 2. fuenitueb - - - 125 3. Utensils ----- 125 4. Musical Insteuments - - 126 C—ANIMALS 41 D.—TREES AND FRUITS 45 III.—INSCRIPTIONS 127 H255. Wt. P 455. A 2 — — LIST OF PLATES. I. Generai, Map. XXIX.- -] Bodhi Trees. II. Map cp Site, and Plan op Ruins. XXX.- III. Plan and Elevation op SitpA, XXXI.- -Objects op Worship. IV. Plan and Elevation op Innbe Railing. XXXIL- -Military Subjects. v. Plan and Elevation op Outer Railing. xxxin.- -Monkey Scenes. VI. Elevation op Toean, ok E. Gateway XXXIV.- -Ornamental Medallions. [restored]. XXXV.- - Do. VII. Pinnacles restored prom existing Fragments. XXXVL- - Do. VIII. -Details op Toran ditto ditto. XXXVII.- - Do. IX.- -Ends op Toran Beams. XXXVIII.- - Do. X. -Capitals op Gateway Pillars. XXXIX.- -Lions at Ends op Coping. XI. -Outside View op E. Gateway. XL.- XII.- -Inside View op E, Gateway. XLI.- XIII.- -Upper Basrelieps | XLII.- ' XIV. -Middle Basrelieps > XLIII.- jit Pillar. ^ I Peasena -Lower Basrelieps XV. J XLIV,. — A-COPINGS. XVI.- -Lbpt Side. I W. Gate, XLV.- Pillar. XVII.- -Right Side. J Ajatasatru XLVI.- XVIII.- -Lept Side. In. Gate. XLVIL- XIX. -Right Side. Vituea Pillar. XLVIII. J XX. -Corner Pillae [from Pathora]. XLIX.- -Frontlets, Eaerings, Aemlets.' XXI. L.- -Necklaces. XXII. > Statue Pillars. LI.- -Beacelets, Girdles, Anklets. XXIII. LII.- -Tattoo Maeks. o XXIV. -Medallion Busts. LIII.- XXV. LIV. -1:Inscriptions. XXVI. ]>Jatakas. LV. XXVII. LVI. XXVIII,. —Historical Scenes. LVII., Jetavana Monastery—[large size]. PREFACE. The remains of the Great Stupa of Bharlmt were first discovered by me in tlie end of November 1873 ; but as the whole of my camp was then on its way to Nagpur, I was not able then to do more than to ascertain the fact that portions of two ga'teways, with the included quarter of the circular railing, were still in situ, although nearly all thrown down and buried under a mound of rubbish from 5 to 7 feet in height. On my return from the Ohanda district in February 1874, 1 spent 10 days at Bharhut, when I succeeded in uncovering the whole quadrant of the buried railing. The curious sculptures were a source of much wonder to the people who visited the place by hundreds every day. But the inscriptions excited even greater curiosity when it was known that I was able to read them. At every fresh discovery I was importuned to say what was the subject of the writing, and great was the disappointment when I made known the simple records of gifts to the Stupa, or of the names of the guardian Yakshas, Devatas, and Nagas. Few natives of India have any belief in disinterested excavations for the discovery of ancient buildings, or of works of art, or of records of ancient times. Their only idea of such excavations is that they are really intended as a search for hidden treasure, and from the incredulous looks of many of the people, I have no doubt that I was regarded as an arch deceiver who was studiously concealing the revelations made by the inscriptions as to the position of the buried treasures. In the beginning of March the work of excavation was taken up by my zealous assistant Mr. J. D. Beglar, who continued the excavation round the whole circle of the railing. To him we owe the discovery of the valuable Prasenajit Pillar, of the famous Jetavana scene, and of many of the most interesting coping stones. He made photographs of the sculptures as they were found ; but as each day's discoveries only showed how much was still left to be explored, the work was closed in the beginning of April. In the middle of that month I forwarded to Government a statement of the discoveries that had been made up to that time. This statement was published in the London papers, and I was much gratified to find that my discovery was everywhere received with much interest. To it I owe the beginning of a correspondence with Professor Childers which ended only with his too premature death. The age which I then assigned to the Stupa, between 250 and 200 B.C., has not been shaken by any subsequent discoveries, and I have reason to believe that it is now almost universally admitted. ; VI PEE-FACE In November 1874 I again returned to Bharhut with Mr. Beglar to make a complete exploration of the mound of ruins, and to photograph all the sculptures systematically on the fixed scale of one-sixth of the original size for all basreliefs, and of one-twelfth for all statues and larger objects. It was during these excavations that all the smaller pieces of the East Gateway were found ; from which I was able to make .the restoration shown in Plate VI. The exploration was carried on until the end of December, by which time the whole extent of ground covered by the railing to a breadth of 10 and 12 feet, both inside and outside, was completely excavated. At the same time all the neighbouring villages within a circuit of 10 miles were carefully explored for portions of the missing sculptures. This search was rewarded with the discovery of two pillars of a second or outer railing of which portions had already been found in situ at Bharhut. The basrelief of the Ind/ra Sdla-guha, or " Indra's Cave Hall," was then discovered at Batanmara, and the missing half of the famous Ghhadanta JdtaJca at Pataora, 7 miles distant, degraded to the ignoble position of a washerman's plank. During 1874 I had written an account of the discoveries made during the first season's excavations, but all these important additions necessitated a re-arrangement of the plates and the re-writing of the whole account of the Stupa. This was in great part done during 1875, at the same time that I was carrying on the arrangement of Asoka's inscriptions to form Vol. I. of the projected " Corpus Inscriptionum Indicarum." The discovery of a new inscription of Asoka at Sahasaram, in which I believed that there was a figured date, similar to some unknown symbols in another recently discovered record of Asoka at Rupnath, made it necessary that I should visit Sahasaram myself, which I did during November 1875. During all this time I was in frequent correspondence with Professor Childers in London, and with the learned Buddhist priest Subhuti of Ceylon, regarding the subjects of the Bharhut sculptures, and more especially of the JdtaJcas, or previous Births of Buddha. In the summer of 1876 I completed the present account of Bharhut, but as I had reason to believe that some further discoveries might still be made, Mr; Beglar and myself visited the place a third time, and once more thoroughly explored the whole neighbourhood. The remains of the corner pillar of one of the missing gateways were then -discovered together with several fragments. These are not included in the plates but I may mention that the story represented on the pillar was almost certainly the celebrated Wessantara Jdtalca. About two thirds of each face have been cut away, but in the remaining portion of one of the scenes there is a four-horse chariot with a boy and girl being led by the hand, which leave no doubt in my mind that these are intended for the two children of Prince Wessantara. This last visit proved of value in another way, which, though not quite unexpected, serves to show how judicious was the course which I took for the acquisition and PREFACE.
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