Buddhist Sites
-| Kaushambhi | -
Location: Lat 25º 20' N, Long 81º 23' E
The site was visited by Lord Buddha in the 8th and 9th years after his enlightenment.
He delivered several sermons, elevating the place to a centre of learning for
Buddhism. The site is situated 51.5 kms. South-west of Allahabad in Uttar Pradesh,
on the banks of Yamuna river. The ruins have spread over several villages and
two of them still remind of the ancient name of the city. According to the Buddhist
literature, the famous Chinese traveller also visited the site. The inscriptions
of Mauryan Emperor Ashoka on the Allahabad pillar (that is now in Allahabad
fort on the bank of Sangam - the confluence of Ganga Jamuna and the legendary
Saraswati), which had originally been set up at Kaushambhi itself, prove that
Kaushambhi was the headquarter of Maha – matras. The strategically located
on the river Yamuna and distantly being overlooked by the Vindhya Hills to its
south, the ancient city of Kaushambhi was located on the confluence of many
ancient highways, including the one leading to the Deccan.
The numerous ruins are enclosed by an impressive fortification with an average
height of 10-6 meter above the surrounding fields and with the shape of a quadrilateral
of about 6-4 kms. perimeter. The fortification with salients and bastions at
regular intervals, had five main gateways – two each on the north and east,
one on the west and six subsidiary ones.
The fortified city had a monastic complex rectangular on plan that could be
entered through a gate. The monastery has been identified as Ghoshitarama monastery,
the nucleus of which was laid by the Lord Buddha's disciple Ghosita. The main
stupa was a massive structure, square on plan with doubly recessed corner. There
are also two subsidiary stupas, a shrine of Hariti and an apsidal structure
flanked by two stupas at the entrance. The whole ancient city has evidence of
16 phases of structural activity, the earliest activity dating back to the 5th
Century BC and latest one dated at 6th Century AD.
Kaushambhi - Buddhist, Archaeology
in India
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