"Bodh Gaya is the place where Gautama Buddha attained unsurpassed, supreme Enlightenment. The historical place at which the Enlightenment took place became a place of pilgrimage. Though it is not mentioned in the scriptures, the Buddha must have visited Bodh Gaya again in the course of his teaching career. About 250 years after the Enlightenment, the Buddhist Emperor, Ashoka visited the site and is considered the founder of the Mahabodhi Temple. According to the tradition, Ashoka, as well as establishing a monastery, erected a diamond throne shrine at

The complex, located about 96 kilometres from Patna, at 24°41′43″N 84°59′38″E / 24.69528°N 84.99389°E / 24.69528; 84.99389,contains the Mahabodhi Temple with the diamond throne (called the Vajrasana) and the holy Bodhi tree. This tree was originally a sapling of the Sri Maha Bodhi tree in Sri Lanka, itself grown from a sapling of the original Bodhi tree.

The temple's architecture is superb but its history is shrouded in obscurity. It was constructed with the main intention of making it a monument and not a receptacle for the relics of the Buddha. Several shrines were constructed with enshrined images for use as places of worship.

The basement of the present temple is 15m square, 15m in length as well as in breadth and its height is 52m which rises in the form of a slender pyramid tapering off from a square platform. On its four corners four towers gracefully rise to some height. The whole architectural plan gives pose and balance to the observers.

Inside the temple there is a colossal image of the Buddha in the "touching the ground pose", bhumisparsha mudra. This image is said to be 1700 years old and is facing east exactly at the place where the Buddha in meditation with his back to the Bodhi tree was enlightened.

The Bodhi Tree

For seven days after the Enlightenment, the Buddha continued to meditate under the Bodhi tree without moving from his seat. During the second week he practiced walking meditation. A jewel walk, Chankramanar, was built as a low platform adorned with nineteen lotuses which are parallel to the Maha Bodhi temple on its north side. For another week the Buddha contemplated the Bodhi tree. In this place a stupa was built called Animeschalochana situated to the north of the Chankramanar.

On the back of the main temple situated to the west (see picture) there is an ancient pipal tree Ficus religiosa or Bodhi tree. It was under this tree that Gautama sat for enlightenment. The present tree is considered only as the descendant of the original tree. There is a tradition that Ashoka's wife had it secretly cut down because she became jealous of the time Ashoka spent there. But it grew again and a protective wall was also built at the time. Many sacred trees in India and other countries are originally raised from seeds brought from the ancient Bodh Gaya tree. A shoot of the original Bodhi tree was taken to Sri Lanka in the 3rd century B.C. by Bhikkhuni Sangamitta, daughter of Ashoka, where the Lankan king Devanampiyatissa planted it at the Mahavihara monastery in Anuradhapura where it still flourishes today. While the Vajrasana was the specific site of the enlightenment, the Bodhi tree, closely linked to the Buddha's accomplishment, became a central focus of devotion early in the history of the Sangha. Pilgrims sought the Bodhi Tree's seeds and leaves as blessings for their monasteries and homes.

Around the Bodhi tree and the Mahbodhi temple there are quadrangular stone railings around 0.2m high with four bars including the top piece. These are of two types and can be distinguished from each other in style and material used. The older set is dated to about 150 BC and made of sandstone while the latter set is probably of the Gupta period (300-600 AD) and constructed from course granite. The older set has a number of designs representing scenes from the purchase of Jetavana by Ananthapindika at Sravasti, Lakshmi being bathed by elephants, Surya riding a chariot drawn by four horses, etc. On the latter set there are figures of stupas, Garudas, etc. In most of these railings lotus motifs are commonly used.

Bodhgaya Revitalised

Since 1953, Bodh Gaya has been developed as an international place of pilgrimage. Buddhists from Sri Lanka, Thailand, Burma, Tibet, Bhutan and Japan have established monasteries and temples within easy walking distance of the Mahabodhi compound. The site of the enlightenment now attracts Buddhists and tourists from all over the world.

At any time during the cooler months between December and March, a visitor to Bodh Gaya can observe a continual stream of Indian and international pilgrims walking the roads or arriving in buses, circumambulating the temple, performing prostrations and offering prayers in a multitude of languages. For those who aspire to awaken their full potential, Bodh Gaya today is truly a field vibrant with the potentiality of enlightenment. Enriched by devotion of Buddhists of all traditions, this holy site is emerging as a powerful inspiration to the modern world, awakening people of all nations to the real possibility of enlightenment.

Controversies

There have been several controversies regarding the temple involving both the management and care of the temple, and claims made by Hindus and Buddhists regarding ownership or rights of access to the temple.

In August 2005, individuals associated with the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) were stopped by police while attempting to enter the Mahabodhi Temple to make an offering of blessed water to a pedestal or broken pillar within the temple complex. BJP officials claimed that a pedestal within the temple may be part of a Shiva linga, and that Hindus should be permitted access to the temple to make offerings to the pedestal. Buddhist monks associated with the temple claim that this represents an attempt by Hindu nationalist elements to assert control over the temple, and to establish the primacy of Hinduism by advancing the claim that the Buddha was an incarnation of the god Vishnu. They also claim that the structure which some Hindus have identified as a lingam is actually the broken base of a statue of the Buddha.

In 2006, it was alleged that a branch of the bodhi tree had been removed and sold to wealthy buyers in Thailand with the cooperation of senior members of the temple's management committee. Former temple secretary Kalicharan Yadav has denied this claim, contending that the branch was removed much earlier as part of a needed pruning effort recommended by botanists working with the temple. Government officials denied the claim that the tree had been recently cut or harmed, providing pictures of the tree from previous years and organizing an outing lead by the Bihar home secretary to examine the alleged damage to the tree.

Arup Brahmachari, a Hindu monk, has called for investigations into the financial records of the temple, and the personal finances of individuals involved in running and managing the temple, alleging corruption among senior management. Bhante Pragyadeep, treasurer of the Buddhist Monks Association of India, has also called for investigations into the temple's finances and the use of money donated to the temple.

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In September 2007, the three-year term of the Temple Management Committee ended. Rather than immediately appointing a new committee, the government of Bihar opted to appoint the Gaya District Magistrate, a former member of the Temple Committee, as sole administrator responsible for the temple. As of March 2008, a new Committee has not been appointed to administer the temple, prompting criticism of the government by both Hindu and Buddhist leaders, with some Buddhists asserting that the government's delay was an attempt to exclude Buddhists from involvement in the administration of the temple.