Sri Lanka to give India Maha Bodhi tree sapling

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Pic.1 –  The Bodhi Tree at the Sri Mahabodhi Temple. Propagated from the Sri Maha Bodhi, which in turn is propagated from the original Bodhi Tree at this location at Bodh Gaya, Bihar.

Pic.2 – The Sacred Jaya Siri Maha Bodhi in Anuradhapura, Sri Lanka.

Patna is to plant Maha Bodhi sapling in India

Colombo, Apr 27 (Hindu Existence News Bureau) :  This year Holy Buddha (Purnima) Jayanthi falls on 27th May, Thursday. To commemorate 2,600 years of Buddha Jayanti, Sri Lanka will present India a sapling of the Maha Bodhi tree under which Gautama Buddha is believed to have attained enlightenment.

The tree will be planted in the new Buddha Udyanaya being created in Patna to commemorate 2,600 years of Sambuddha Jayanti. An Indian government backed 10-member delegation has arrived in the Buddhist city of Anuradhapura in north central

Sri Lanka in connection with Sambuddha Jayanti. The delegation is expected to brief the Sri Lankan government about Sambuddha Jayanti celebrations to be held in India for a whole year, the state run Daily News reported on Tuesday.

Jaya Sri Maha Bodhi is a sacred fig tree in Anuradhapura, Sri Lanka, which is said to trace its roots to the historical Bodhi tree. Planted in 249 BC, it is reportedly the oldest living human-planted tree in the world with a known planting date.

The Jaya Sri Maha Bodhi is a sacred fig tree at Anuradhapura town and is said to be a sapling of the historical Bodhi tree. It is the oldest recorded tree in the world.

According to a statement by the government, a 10-member Indian delegation is currently at Anuradhapura to receive the sapling. It will be planted in the new Buddha Udyana being created in Patna to commemorate 2,600 years of the Sambuddha Jayanthi.

The delegation is expected to brief the Sri Lankan government on the Sambuddha Jayanthi celebrations to be held there for a whole year.

Meanwhile, Indian High Commissioner to Sri Lanka Ashok K. Kantha paid a courtesy call on the newly appointed Prime Minister, D.M. Jayaratne.

“The High Commissioner noted the close and friendly relations between India and Sri Lanka,” the Indian mission said in a statement.

The Bodhi tree at the Mahabodhi Temple is called the Sri Maha Bodhi. According to Buddhist texts the Buddha, after his Enlightenment, spent a whole week in front of the tree, standing with unblinking eyes, gazing at it with gratitude. A shrine was later erected on the spot where he stood, and was called the Animisalocana cetiya. The Sri Maha Bodhi in Sri Lanka was planted in 249 BC, making it the oldest verified specimen of any angiosperm. In this year (the twelfth year of King Asoka‘s reign) the right branch of the Bodhi tree was brought by Sanghamittā to Anurādhapura and placed by Devānāmpiyatissa in the Mahāmeghavana. The Buddha, on his death bed, had resolved five things, one being that the branch which should be taken to Ceylon should detach itself. From Gayā, the branch was taken to Pātaliputta, thence to Tāmalittī, where it was placed in a ship and taken to Jambukola, across the sea; finally it arrived at Anuradhapura, staying on the way at Tivakka. Those who assisted the king at the ceremony of the planting of the Tree were the nobles of Kājaragāma and of Candanagāma and of Tivakka. The page on Ashoka says his reign was from 273 BC-232 BC.

The Sacred Jaya Siri Maha Bodhi in Anuradhapura is reckoned as the oldest surviving historical tree in the world. It was brought to Sri Lanka by the Theri Sangamitta, daughter of Emperor Asoka and was planted in the Mahameghavana Park in Anuradhapura in 249 BC by King Devanampiyatissa. It is said to be the southern branch of the Jaya Siri Maha Bodhi at Buddha Gaya in India under which Lord Buddha attained Enlightenment.

The Mahavamsa or the Great Chronicle of the Sinhalese provides an elaborate account of the establishment of the Jaya Siri Maha Bodhi in the island. Bodhi means wisdom that understands the four Noble Truths. Thus the tree which assisted Lord Buddha to achieve wisdom or enlightenment is called Bodhi.

As per Jaydeva Dasavatar Sthoratham Lord Buddha is the 9th incarnation of Lord Vishnu according to Hindu Mythology.

Posted by Upananda Brahmachari.

One comment on “Sri Lanka to give India Maha Bodhi tree sapling”

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   July 1, 2010

   

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