April 29, 2004

Bodhgaya: brought to you by Pepsi Cola

Seated in meditation Siddhartha made the determination -'Even if my blood should run dry I will not leave this seat until truth has been realised!' He recalled his innocent meditation under the Rose Apple tree as a child and thought this would be a good way to start. And then ... Mara came! All that is beautiful, alluring and pleasant - and all that is terrifying, monstrous and fearful. 'What right have you to pretend you are sitting on the throne of enlightenment?' Mara boomed, surrounded by his great army.

Unmoved, sitting under the Bodhi tree on the full moon of May in his 35th year, Siddhartha became enlightened. Ignorance was dispelled and wisdom arose. He knew: 'Delivered am I, rebirth is ended, fulfilled is the holy life, I have done what was to be done.' He touched the ground calling the earth itself to bear witness.
-- This message was brought to you by Pepsi Cola



According to a sign next to the present day bodhi tree, the Buddha remained seated "unwinking" for a week after that momentous insight - just no one around to wink at, I guess.

As the holiest of Buddhist pilgrimage places, I decided to make my own trip to Bodhgaya a little pilgrimage of sorts, following the oilgrima on their rounds and rising before dawn for meditation. The Mahabodhi stupa was magnificent, if a little tacky on the inside and covered in scaffolding on the ouside. But what I didn't know, and wat would itself be reason enough to come again, was that Bodhgaya is also home to what could be the best banana lassi in India!



Bodhgaya has a very international flavour - something of a Buddhist supermarket: Buddhist countries from all around the world have gone to great lengths to build a representative temple in their country's own unique style. The Tibetan temples were amazing, the Japanese temples extraordinary, and the Thai temple and its exquisite contemporary murals took my breath away. But the Korean temple... well.... it speaks for itself:

Posted by Andrew Wallace @ 7:35 PM