STUPAS IN DIFFERENT PARTS OF

THE WORLDBY:SHRADDHASRISHTI KUNDALIYASRISHTI SINGHUDAYAN AWASTHI ANKUSH GOYALKANIKA MALIKSAAHIL KUMAR

Stupas became a cosmic symbol in response to a major human condition: death. With the enlightenment of the Buddha, stupas became a particularly Buddhist symbol.

ORIGINS

SYMBOLISM "The shape of the stupa

represents the Buddha, crowned and sitting in meditation posture on a lion throne. His crown is the top of the spire; his head is the square at the spire's base; his body is the vase shape; his legs are the four steps of the lower terrace; and the base is his throne."

 White-domed solid stupa On a hilltop in Chanspa, Leh district, Ladakh.It was built in 1991 by Japanese Buddhist Bhikshu, Gyomyo Nakamura.

STRUCTUREThe Stupa is built as a two-level structure.

 a central golden Buddha image sits on a platform depicting the “turning wheel of Dharma” .

FIRST LEVEL

SECOND LEVEL has reliefs depicting the “birth” of Buddha, the

death of Buddha and Buddha “defeating the devils” while meditating

ARCHITECTURE This stupa is a STUPA OF MODERN TIME. Neither it has a boundary nor it has TORANAS,

instead it has two stambhas each side of the staircase.

There is only one staircase for the first level of stupa, connected to the PRADAKSHINA PATH of first level.

On first level, image of Dharma Chakra is sculptured on wall.

There are two staircase provided for the second level, both the staircase are connected to a platform through which PRADAKSHINA PATH of second level is attached.

In cavity of DOME on the second level there is a golden idol of Buddha in sitting position, just in front of the platform.

There are other sculptured idol in the cavity each facing three directions.

Walls depicts images of parinirvana (nirvana-after-death) and some small rows of buddha images.

CHATTRA

HARNIKA

STUPA

PRADAKSHINAPATH

STAIRCASE

VEDICA

STAIRCASESTAMBHA STAMBHA

VEDICA

KESARIYA STUPA

•Kesariya Stupa is located in east district of Bihar. It is believed to date back to somewhere around 200 AD and 750 AD. The stupa was built to commemorate the end-life of Lord Buddha.

ARCHITECTUREcircumference = 1400 ft

Approxheight =104 feetinitially, the height of the

stupa was approximately 150 feet

It has a lofty brick mound capped by a solid brick tower.

Formerly, it was only a mud stupa.

This stupa is a six floors structure.It has five terraces and each terrace differs in

shape. There are a number of images

of Lord Buddha, in ‘Bhoomi Sparsh Mudra’ and other sitting

postures.

Each terrace has niches with the life size statues of the Buddha with in it.

The Khaljis in the 13th century AD, had partly destroyed these statues.

COMPARISONStructure is larger than the

Borobudur stupa in Indonesia.

The striking similarity in the two is that both have six floors, and the diameter of the Kesaria stupa is equal to that of the width of the Borobodur.

When seen from above, the stupa gives an impression of a mandala, nearly twice as large as that of Sanchi.

Dhamekh Stupa is at Sarnath.Constructed by the great Mauryan king Ashoka.It is 34 m high and 28.3 m in diameter. It is believed that Lord Buddha delivered his first

sermon at the Dhamekha Stupa, after attaining enlightenment, to his disciples that revealed his “Eightfold Path“.

DHAMEKH

The foundation of the structure is made of very large brickwork.

The lower part is made of stones.

These stones are supported by iron.

The base of the Stupa still stands as it would have been in the Ashoka’s structure and the front stone bears floral designs of Gupta period.

The lower part has eight faces

with niches.The design

consists of a broad band of Swastika

carved in different geometrical

patterns. Lotus buds and human figures are

carved in in the band.

BOROBUDUR TEMPLE INDONESIA

BOROBUDUR TEMPLE IS NOT ONLY KNOWN AS A BUDDHIST SHRINE, BUT ALSO FOR A PILGRIMAGE.

ARCHAEOLOGISTS AND HISTORIANS ESTIMATED THAT IT WAS BUILT DURING THE SYAILENDRA DYNASTY IN THE 8TH CENTURY.

INTRODUCTION

AERIAL VIEW OF THE TEMPLE

HISTORIC TIMELINE

EARLY RESTORATION

BOROBUDUR IN 1897

PRESENT

Borobudur is a single large stupa. When viewed from above takes the form of Buddhist mandala . Also representing the Buddhistcosmology and often drawn as a meditative mechanism.Working from the exterior to the interior, three zones of consciousness are represented, with the central sphere representing unconsciousness or Nirvana. According to this Buddhist cosmology, the universe is divided in to three major zones. The Borobudur temple represents these zones in its layers.

OVERVIEW: BOROBUDUR

KAMADHATU

RUPADHATU

ARUPADHATU

ZONE1

•The phenomenal world, the world inhabited by common people.

ZONE2

•The transitional sphere, in which humans are released from worldly matters.

ZONE 3

•The highest sphere, the abode of the gods

Kamadhatu

Rupadhatu

Arupadhatu

• The foundation is a square, approx 8 metres on each side.• The one main dome in the centre is the highest point of the monument: 35 metres above ground level.• It has nine platforms, of which the lower six are square and the upper three are circular.• The upper platform features 72small stupas surrounding one large central stupa.• Each stupa is bell-shaped and pierced by numerous decorative openings. Statues of the Buddha sit inside it.

BUILDING STRUCTURE

CROSS SECTION AND RATIO OF THE TEMPLE

There are Buddha statues

inside niches on each wall in

Rupadhatu level, and inside

each stupa in Arupadhatu

level.

Zone 3 ArupadhatuNo reliefs.

Zone 2 Rupadhatu• Jataka and Avadana

720 panels• Bhadracari 72 panels

• Lalitavistara 120 panels

• Gandavyuha 388 panels

Zone 1 Kamadhatu• Karmawibhangga 160

panels

BOROBUDUR BELIEFS

BOROBUDUR STATUS

VARIOUS POSTURES OF BUDDHA

RELIEF PANELS

AMARAVATI STUPATHE AMRAVATI STUPA ALSO KNOWN AS MAHACHAITYA STUPARUINED BUDDHIST MONUMENT LOCATED AT AMARAVATHI VILLAGE, ANDHRA PRADESH IT IS THE LARGEST STUPA(95 FEET HIGH) IN INDIA.BUILT - 2ND CENTURY BCE TO 3RD CENTURY AD, THE STUPA WAS A SIMPLE STRUCTURE,BUT WHEN RENOVATED BY THE SATAVAHANA RULERS, BECAME A HIGHLY MARKED ARCHITECTURAL MONUMENT. AMRAVATI STUPA WAS FOUNDED BY AN EMISSARY OF EMPEROR ASHOKA. 

THE MAIN PART WAS A SOLID GREAT DOME WHICH WHICH WAS 18M HIGH.

THE DOME WAS MADE OF PALE GREEN LIMESTONE WHICH WAS MOST PROBABLY PAINTED WITH BRIGHT COLOURS.

THE LOWER PART OF DOME WAS COVERED WITH STONE RELIEFS.

A SMALL BOX WAS USUALLY PLACED WITHIN THE DOME OF A STUPA. WHICH CONTAINS ASHES OF BUDDHA,CALLED HARMIKA.

THERE WERE FOUR GATEWAYS IN THE RAILING AROUND THE STUPA. EACH ONE OF THE GATEWAYS MARKED ONE OF THE FOUR DIRECTIONS.

EACH GATEWAY INTO THE AMARAVATI STUPA WAS A GROUP OF FIVE PILLARS. THE PILLARS WERE MOUNTED ON A SPECIAL PLATFORM.

AROUND THE OUTER LIMITS OF THE STUPA WAS A TALL RAILING MADE OF LIMESTONE. THE RAILING MARKED BOUNDARIES OF STUPA.

LION SCULPTURES WERE PLACED AT THE GATEWAYS. LIONS REPRESENTED POWER AND STRENGTH TO PROTECT THE STUPA.

AMARAVATI TODAYIn the late nineteenth

century most of the main sculptures of the stupa were taken from the site and sent to museum.

Reconstruction of the stupa is done based on Douglas Barrett’s (Sculptures from Amaravati in the British Museum, 1954)

SANCHI STUPA IN THE CENTRAL PART OF THE STATE OF MADHYA PRADESH.

SANCHI STUPA WAS BUILT BY ASHOKA (273-236 B.C.)

SANCHI STUPAS IS LOCATED ON THE TOP OF THE SANCHI HILL, WHICH RAISE ABOUT 100M HIGH ABOVE THE PLAIN.

THE 'GREAT STUPA' AT SANCHI IS THE OLDEST STONE STRUCTURE IN INDIA

SANCHI STUPA

LOCATION

STUPAS WERE ERECTED OVER THE SACRED RELICS OF THE MONKS AND WORSHIPED WITH GREAT REVERENCE. THEY ARE THEREFORE KNOWN AS RELIC-SHRINES.

SITE PLANNING

THE STUPA MORE THEN A FUNERAL MOUND WAS PLANNED LIKE A VEDIC VILLAGE

Great Stupa, Sanchi (Madhya Pradesh)

SITE PLANNING

Steps leading to upper ambulatoryLower Ambulatory 3.35 m. high

Harmika or triple umbrella

Upper Ambulatory 1.8m wide3.35m high

Stone vedica

Suchi 60 cm dia

Urdhava patas 45cm dia60-90 cmc/c

Ushnisha

FEATURES

VIEW OF TORNA FROM UPPER AMBULATORY

ELEPHANTS AND YAKSHI OF THE EASTERN TORANA, GREAT STUPA, SANCHI, MID-1ST CENTURY BC - AD 1ST CENTURY

FRONT VIEW OF SANCHI STUPA

FRONT VIEW OF TORANA

COLUMN OF TORANA