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Coordinates: 25°22′51″N 83°01′28″E / 25.3808°N 83.0245°E / 25.3808; 83.0245
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'''Dhamek Stupa''' (also spelled ''Dhamekh'' and ''Dhamekha'') is a massive [[stupa]] located at the archaeological site of [[Sarnath]] in the state of [[Uttar Pradesh]], [[India]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.iloveindia.com/indian-monuments/dhamekh-stupa.html|title=Dhamekh Stupa Sarnath, Varanasi India|publisher=iloveindia.com}}</ref> Dhamek Stupa marks the precise location where [[the Buddha]] preached [[Dhammacakkappavattana Sutta|his first discourse]] to his first five disciples ([[Kaundinya]], [[Assaji]], [[Bhaddiya]], [[Vappa]] and [[Mahānāman|Mahanama]]), and where all five eventually became fully liberated.<ref name=vridhamma>{{cite web|title=Historical Places of the Buddha &#124|publisher=Vipassana Research Institute|location=Igatpuri, Maharashtra, India|url=https://www.vridhamma.org/Historical-Places-of-the-Buddha|accessdate=December 13, 2022}}</ref>
'''Dhamek Stupa''' (also spelled ''Dhamekh'' and ''Dhamekha'') is a massive [[stupa]] located at the archaeological site of [[Sarnath]] in the state of [[Uttar Pradesh]], [[India]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.iloveindia.com/indian-monuments/dhamekh-stupa.html|title=Dhamekh Stupa Sarnath, Varanasi India|publisher=iloveindia.com}}</ref> Dhamek Stupa marks the precise location where [[the Buddha]] preached [[Dhammacakkappavattana Sutta|his first discourse]] to his first five disciples ([[Kaundinya]], [[Assaji]], Bhaddiya, Vappa and Mahanama), and where all five eventually became fully liberated.<ref name=vridhamma>{{cite web|title=Historical Places of the Buddha &#124|publisher=Vipassana Research Institute|location=Igatpuri, Maharashtra, India|url=https://www.vridhamma.org/Historical-Places-of-the-Buddha|accessdate=December 13, 2022}}</ref>


==Etymology==
==Etymology==
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==History==
==History==
[[File:Sarnath Dhamek Stupa 1814.jpg|350px|thumb|left|Dhamek Stupa, as it appeared in January 1814]]
[[File:Sarnath Dhamek Stupa 1814.jpg|350px|thumb|left|Dhamek Stupa, as it appeared in January 1814]]
Dhamek Stupa marks the precise location where [[the Buddha]] preached [[Dhammacakkappavattana Sutta|his first discourse]] to his first five disciples ([[Kaundinya]], [[Assaji]], [[Bhaddiya]], [[Vappa]] and [[Mahānāman|Mahanama]]), and where all five eventually became fully liberated.<ref name=vridhamma/> This event marked the formation of the [[sangha]]. Several of the ancient sources describe the site of this first sermon as a ''Mriga-dayaa-vanam'' or a sanctuary for animals. (In Sanskrit, the word ''mriga'' is used in the sense of game animals, with deer being the most common).
Dhamek Stupa marks the precise location where [[the Buddha]] preached [[Dhammacakkappavattana Sutta|his first discourse]] to his first five disciples ([[Kaundinya]], [[Assaji]], Bhaddiya, Vappa and Mahanama), and where all five eventually became fully liberated.<ref name=vridhamma/> This event marked the formation of the [[sangha]]. Several of the ancient sources describe the site of this first sermon as a ''Mriga-dayaa-vanam'' or a sanctuary for animals. (In Sanskrit, the word ''mriga'' is used in the sense of game animals, with deer being the most common).


After the [[parinirvana]] of the Buddha in 544 BCE, his remains were cremated and the ashes were divided and buried under eight stupas, with two further stupas encasing the urn and the embers. Dhamek Stupa was presumably among these eight stupas. In 249 BCE, [[Mauryan]] King [[Ashoka]] commissioned the expansion of Dhamek Stupa.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.indian-heritage.org/aindex.html|title=Stupas|publisher=Indian Heritage|accessdate=2006-11-20|archive-date=8 January 2007|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070108045253/http://www.indian-heritage.org/aindex.html|url-status=dead}}</ref> Dhamek Stupa was further expanded in 500 CE.<ref>''[[Sir Banister Fletcher's a History of Architecture]]'', 20th ed. (ed. by [[Dan Cruickshank]]). Architectural Press, 1996. {{ISBN|0-7506-2267-9}}. Page 646.</ref>
After the [[parinirvana]] of the Buddha in 544 BCE, his remains were cremated and the ashes were divided and buried under eight stupas, with two further stupas encasing the urn and the embers. Dhamek Stupa was presumably among these eight stupas. In 249 BCE, [[Mauryan]] King [[Ashoka]] commissioned the expansion of Dhamek Stupa.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.indian-heritage.org/aindex.html|title=Stupas|publisher=Indian Heritage|accessdate=2006-11-20|archive-date=8 January 2007|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070108045253/http://www.indian-heritage.org/aindex.html|url-status=dead}}</ref> Dhamek Stupa was further expanded in 500 CE.<ref>''[[Sir Banister Fletcher's a History of Architecture]]'', 20th ed. (ed. by [[Dan Cruickshank]]). Architectural Press, 1996. {{ISBN|0-7506-2267-9}}. Page 646.</ref>

Revision as of 21:56, 3 January 2023

Dhamek Stupa
धामेक स्तूप (in Hindi)
Dhamek Stupa is located in Sarnath, Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh, India
Religion
AffiliationBuddhism
StatusPreserved
Location
LocationIndia Sarnath, Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh, India
Dhamek Stupa is located in India
Dhamek Stupa
Location in Uttar Pradesh, India
Dhamek Stupa is located in Uttar Pradesh
Dhamek Stupa
Dhamek Stupa (Uttar Pradesh)
AdministrationArchaeological Survey of India
Geographic coordinates25°22′51″N 83°01′28″E / 25.3808°N 83.0245°E / 25.3808; 83.0245
Architecture
TypeStupa
StyleBuddhist, Gupta
Completed500 CE
Specifications
Length28 metres (92 feet)[1]
Width28 metres (92 feet)[1]
Height (max)43 metres (141 feet)[1]
Materialswhite makrana marble

Dhamek Stupa (also spelled Dhamekh and Dhamekha) is a massive stupa located at the archaeological site of Sarnath in the state of Uttar Pradesh, India.[2] Dhamek Stupa marks the precise location where the Buddha preached his first discourse to his first five disciples (Kaundinya, Assaji, Bhaddiya, Vappa and Mahanama), and where all five eventually became fully liberated.[3]

Etymology

The name Dhamek derives from the Sanskrit word dharmeksā, which means "pondering of the law" in the Sanskrit language.[4]

Location

Dhamek Stupa is located 180 metres (590 feet) to the east of Dharmarajika Stupa at the archaeological site of Sarnath. Sarnath is located 12 kilometres (7.5 miles) to the northeast of Varanasi, in Uttar Pradesh, India.

Description

Dhamek Stupa is the most massive structure in Sarnath.[5] In its current shape, the stupa is a solid cylinder of bricks and stone reaching a height of 43.6 meters and having a diameter of 28 meters. The basement seems to have survived from Ashoka's structure, while the stone facing displays delicate floral carvings characteristic of the Gupta era. The wall is covered with exquisitely carved figures of humans and birds, as well as inscriptions in Brahmi script.[6] The stupa was enlarged on six occasions but the upper part is still unfinished.[7] While visiting Sarnath in 640 CE, Xuanzang recorded that the colony had over 1,500 priests and the main stupa was nearly 300 feet (91 m) high.[8]

An Ashoka pillar with an edict engraved on it stands near the site.

History

Dhamek Stupa, as it appeared in January 1814

Dhamek Stupa marks the precise location where the Buddha preached his first discourse to his first five disciples (Kaundinya, Assaji, Bhaddiya, Vappa and Mahanama), and where all five eventually became fully liberated.[3] This event marked the formation of the sangha. Several of the ancient sources describe the site of this first sermon as a Mriga-dayaa-vanam or a sanctuary for animals. (In Sanskrit, the word mriga is used in the sense of game animals, with deer being the most common).

After the parinirvana of the Buddha in 544 BCE, his remains were cremated and the ashes were divided and buried under eight stupas, with two further stupas encasing the urn and the embers. Dhamek Stupa was presumably among these eight stupas. In 249 BCE, Mauryan King Ashoka commissioned the expansion of Dhamek Stupa.[9] Dhamek Stupa was further expanded in 500 CE.[10]

A 17th-century Jain manuscript describes a Jain temple in Varanasi as a pilgrimage site for Jains. The temple is located close to "a famous Bodisattva sanctuary" at a place called dharmeksā.[4]

In the earliest mention of the ruins at Sarnath in modern literature,[11] Jonathan Duncan described the discovery of a stone reliquary. The reliquary was discovered in January 1794, during the dismantling of the Dharmarajika Stupa by employees of Babu Jagat Singh (an official of the government of Maharaja Chait Singh of Banaras).[12][13]

  • Dhamek Stupa, as it appeared in 1891
    Dhamek Stupa, as it appeared in 1891
  • Dhamekh Stupa
    Dhamekh Stupa
  • History of Dhamekh Stupa
    History of Dhamekh Stupa
  • Dhamekh Stupa close-up
    Dhamekh Stupa close-up
  • Dhamekh Stupa wall close-up
    Dhamekh Stupa wall close-up
  • Sarnath - Plan of Excavations
    Sarnath - Plan of Excavations

References

  1. ^ a b c "Sarnath attractions that you shouldn't skip". The Times of India.
  2. ^ "Dhamekh Stupa Sarnath, Varanasi India". iloveindia.com.
  3. ^ a b "Historical Places of the Buddha &#124". Igatpuri, Maharashtra, India: Vipassana Research Institute. Retrieved 13 December 2022.
  4. ^ a b Oertel 1908, p. 60.
  5. ^ "Dhamekh Stupa". Varanasicity.com. Retrieved 16 October 2006.
  6. ^ "Dhamekh Stupa". Retrieved 19 September 2006.
  7. ^ Bradnock, Robert W. Footprint India. Footprint Travel Guides, 2004. ISBN 1-904777-00-7. Page 191.
  8. ^ Arnett, Robert A. India Unveiled. Atman Press, 2006. ISBN 0-9652900-4-2.
  9. ^ "Stupas". Indian Heritage. Archived from the original on 8 January 2007. Retrieved 20 November 2006.
  10. ^ Sir Banister Fletcher's a History of Architecture, 20th ed. (ed. by Dan Cruickshank). Architectural Press, 1996. ISBN 0-7506-2267-9. Page 646.
  11. ^ Cunningham, Alexander (1871). Four reports made during the years 1862-63-64-65. Vol. 1. Shimla, Himachal Pradesh, India: Archaeological Survey of India. pp. 103–30.
  12. ^ Duncan, Johnathan (1799). "An Account of the Discovery of Two Urns in the Vicinity of Benares". Transactions of the Society Instituted in Bengal, for enquiring into the History and Antiquities, the Arts, Sciences and Literature, of Asia. 5: 131–2.
  13. ^ "Buddhist Trails in Sarnath". Explore Varanasi. Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh, India: incrediblevaranasi.com. 21 August 2018. Retrieved 13 December 2022.

Cited works

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