Lanka holds sole living link to Buddha’s enlightenment
THE JAYASIRI MAHA BODHI: Bark of the same bark, sap of the same sap as the original Bodhi which gave shelter to the Buddha. Pic by Athula Bandara
Thousands braved the monsoonal torrents this week to converge on the ancient capital of Anuradhapura and celebrate the thrice blessed day of Vesak by paying reverence to the living symbol of Buddha’s enlightenment that no country but Lanka is honoured and proud to possess.
For neither in the far off plains of Nepal’s Lumbini where the Buddha was born nor in Uruwela now known as Buddha Gaya where he attained enlightenment by the banks of the Neranjana nor in Kushinagar where he passed away at the age of 80 does there exist a single living link to the Buddha, and to that most momentous event of enlightenment.
It is found only in Lanka, manifested in a living, breathing fig tree over 2,000 years old, universally known as the Sri Maha Bodhi – an offshoot of the right branch of the original Bodhi that gave shelter to Siddhartha in his quest for enlightenment.
So how did this noble tree, bark of the same bark, sap of the same sap as the original Bodhi tree find its way to the isle shores of Lanka?
When the godless gospel of the Buddha first arrived in the island in the year 250BC, the Sinhala king on the Lankan throne was Devanampiyatissa whose very name meant ‘Beloved of the Gods.’
But on a full moon night in the month of June the king discovered his serendipity when out on a hunting expedition in the nearby jungles of Anuradhapura. Whilst stalking deer, he stumbled on the figure of the Maha Thera Mahinda, a son of India’s Emperor Ashoka. The monk had landed on a special mission on the orders of his father to spread the Buddha’s Word.
It was the night Lanka kept her tryst with destiny; and the lives of her king and her people would thenceforth be transformed indelibly. Mahinda’s exposition of Buddhism’s sublime ideals struck a chord in the king’s heart and he instantly embraced Buddhism soon elevating it to the status of the nation’s state religion. Thousands abandoned their old creeds and faiths and took to Buddhism with gusto. The new wave religion swept across the land.
On Maha Thera Mahinda’s suggestion, King Devanampiyatissa dispatched a diplomatic team to the court of Emperor Ashoka. Their assignment was to bring the daughter of the Emperor and sister of Thera Mahinda, Theri Sanghamitta. The Emperor, delighted to be informed of the immense progress made in his conversion campaign and how the new philosophy was taking deep root in the nation’s soil, readily agreed to the request. But the Emperor’s daughter could not be sent empty-handed. As a special gift to the king and people of Lanka, he sent through her the right branch of the sacred Bodhi Tree at Buddha Gaya which had sprouted from its main stem.
On the ship that sailed from the port Tamralipiti in India were 18 different castes of people, including artisans, each sect sent to perform specific services necessary for the well being of the Bodhi sapling which Theri Sanghamitta brought with her. Apart from the maidens of the royal court entrusted with the task of sprinkling water on the infant tree and responsible for its proper growth, there was also a special contingent of guards aboard the ship who were to provide the necessary security to the sapling.
They were the founders of the Lankan Mauryan dynasty and were gifted with nearby temple lands for the indispensable service they provided. Their descendents still live on those gifted lands and still perform those duties and are known as the Bodhi haraka kula or Bodhi Tree-bearers. Because of their descent from the original guardians and due to them being related to the imperial line of Emperor Ashoka, their right to the Sinhala throne had been lawfully maintained in the Mauryan dynasty.
The ship landed in the port of Jambukola in the north of Jaffna. The year was 249BC. King Devanampiyatissa built the Jambukola Viharaya to commemorate the arrival of the Bo sapling. Later one of the first offshoots of the Bodhi was planted at the temple. Today however, the ancient temple has been lost to time and, in its place a new temple has been built.
Lanka’s ancient historical chronicle the Mahavamsa records that King Devanampiyatissa had caused the road from the capital’s north gate to Jambukola to be made ready for the arrival of the Bodhi. For three days solemn ceremonies of many kinds were carried out; and, on the tenth day, the king placed the Bodhi sapling in a beautiful chariot and personally accompanied the tree to the capital. The road to Anuradhapura was ‘sprinkled with white sand, bestrewn with various flowers and adorned with planted pennons and festoons of blossoms’. On the fourteenth day he brought the Bodhi to the spot prepared for it and, amidst much fanfare, planted it.
The Bodhi tree is situated on the seventh terrace, 21 feet above ground zero. The ground terrace is called the Vali Maluwa, the sand terrace. The Parivara Bodhi, the accompanying Bodhi trees which act as a buffer against strong winds and thus protect the Sri Maha Bodhi, grow on this terrace. The second terrace is called the Deva Maluwa, where pilgrims are allowed to enter. The third called the Devala Maluwa is reserved for the lay officials of the temple. The fourth terrace is known as the Ranweta Maluwa on account of a gilded fence being erected round the sacred tree. The fifth terrace, known as the Uda Maluwa is open to very important people, like visiting heads of state. The sixth level is strictly only for the temple monks and for the king or now the Head of State. The seventh and final terrace, the vada sitina Maluwa is where the Bodhi is embedded. Not even monks step onto this terrace.
Every morning starting at 6 and ending at 7 and every evening beginning at 5.30 and ending at 6.30 a special ritual takes place in the service of the Bodhi Tree. Chosen temple monks enter the sixth terrace and begin their cleaning duties. They sweep the sandy ground, clear the fallen leaves; clean any dirt and bird droppings that may have fallen upon the terrace. Leaves and other material which may have fallen on the seventh terrace are removed by hand since it is taboo even for the temple monks to enter this pinnacle terrace.
Then a monk performs an ancient tradition not found in the cleaning process at other Buddhist temples. The monk draws a design for the day on the sandy bed of the sixth terrace. This design shall not be treaded upon by anyone until the evening cleaning session begins. It is also considered to be done as a safety measure for if the design has been messed up, it will serve as a warning to monks that a trespasser had violated the sanctity of this terrace.
Unlike at other Buddhist temples where the Bodhi is bathed morn, noon and night by a host of devotees, the Sri Maha Bodhi is never bathed as a rule. A special kind of grass known as Aswani and Udupiyalie grow near the tree. It has moisture retaining qualities and the sacred Bodhi draws its water requirement from them. However, a plant belonging to the algae variety or a similar kind also grows nearby. If this plant shows signs of dying, it is taken as a sign that the Bodhi itself is in need of water. Then it is action stations. Younger monks of the temple accompany a bowser to the Tissa Wewa where a special well exists solely for the use of the Sri Maha Bodhi. From this well, water is drawn and the water bowser returns to the temple.
Here, with the assistance of the Director of the Peradeniya Botanical Gardens who is the official legally responsible for the health of the Bodhi, the water is tested for chemicals or any other pollutant. Once the all clear signal has been given, it is stored and monks thereafter sprinkle water drawn from the storage tank during the drought ridden period. “Since the Sri Maha Bodhi has existed in a dry zone for over two thousand years with the bare minimum of water,” says the temple monk the Ven. Morogolle Siri Rathana Thera, “a surfeit of it would be harmful.”
Sole living link to Buddha’s enlightenment
The old tradition of pilgrims bringing water in procession from the Tissa Wewa to bathe the sacred Bodhi on special days has now been abandoned due to the danger of the water being poisoned by evil agents. Four great festivals are held annually. They are the New Year Festival, the Kartika festival, the New Rice Festival and the Bathing Festival. Devotees who yearn to bathe the Sri Maha Bodhi have to be content in bathing the Parivara Bodhi trees on the lower terraces instead.
After the fall of Anuradhapura due to Chola invasions, and the long period of isolation that followed with the Sinhala kingdom moving further south, it was inevitable that the jungle should lay claim to the sacred Bodhi compound. Yet villagers and members of the above mentioned Bodhi-haraka kula tended the sacred tree and even lit bonfires to frighten the wild elephants away. Soon the villagers grew accustomed to stockpiling a year’s supply of firewood in the vicinity for the bonfires.
This was done on the Nikini full moon day which falls in July – August. To this day, a daramiti perehera or firewood procession is held on this Poya day.
The site chosen for the planting of the Sri Maha Bodhi is next to the first aramaya built in Lanka by King Devanampiyatissa and offered to the Maha Thera Mahinda as his temple residence. After the monk’s demise, the area became a cultural centre and served as the hub of education and Buddhist studies and development and became known as the Mahaviharaya.
The sacred area also has its share of inexplicable lights in the night. “This generally happens on nights where there are lesser number of people,” says Ven Siri Rathana Thera, “and usually only after 9 p.m. The king chose a persona named Kalu Bandara who came with the original guardian caste with Sanghamitta, to be the main guardian of the Bodhi. After his death, it is believed he has been elevated to the status of a guardian deity and the flash of lights indicates his presence as he makes his rounds.”
Alas, the original Bodhi Tree which gave shelter to the Buddha was unfortunately destroyed by the jealous fourth wife of Emperor Ashoka in the last years of his reign in or round 232 BC. The Buddha had always rejected appeals by his disciples to erect statues of him to pay reverence imploring the monks and followers that those who best followed his Dhamma, best paid homage and respect to him. But he made one exception. He finally relented under great pressure from his chief disciple the Venerable Ananda who was exhorting him to provide an object of reverence in his absence.
In desperation the Venerable Ananda asked the Buddha’s permission to bring a seed from the great Bodhi Tree at Buddha Gaya and plant it at the entrance to the Jetawana for people to pay their reverence in the Buddha’s absence from the park whereat he resided. “Very well, Ananda plant it. It will then be as if I constantly abide in Jetawana,” the Buddha replied. Venerable Ananda proceeded to do so and the Bodhi tree so planted came to be known as the Ananda-Bodhi.
History has lost track of the fate that may have befallen the Ananda-Bodhi, a Bodhi born of the same flesh as the Great Bodhi; the only object of reverence the Buddha expressly authorised as a fit and proper object of reverence.
But no such mystery surrounds the fate or whereabouts of the other Bodhi which sprouted from the main stem of the great Bodhi of Buddha Gaya. It’s found in Anuradhapura, Lanka. Its birth, its journey to Lanka, its chequered history is faithfully documented beyond reasonable doubt, thus making its worship even more profound. It’s the only object of reverence in existence today, living and breathing life, which has sprung from the same source of the great Bodhi as did the Ananda-Bodhi. And worship of this unique universal treasure of all humanity, is akin to worshiping the Buddha himself for its presence here is as if the Buddha “constantly abides’ in Anuradhapura,
Manu Gunasena is the author of the book The Prince, a fictionalized account of Prince Siddhartha’s quest for enlightenment which was nominated for the world’s richest literary book award, the International IMPAC Dublin Literary Award 2010. It is published by Vijitha Yapa Publications.