The Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) has unearthed a Buddhist monastery, believed to be at least 900 years old, buried under a mound in a village situated in a hilly area of Hazaribagh district of Jharkhand.
Details of the excavation
- The findings were significant since the monastery is on the old route to Varanasi, 10 km from Sarnath, where the Buddha gave his first sermon.
- Archaeologists found four statues of the deity Tara in Varad Mudra and six statues of the Buddha in bhumisparsa Mudra
- So it is a significant finding as deity Tara’s statues mean this was an important centre of the Vajrayana sect of Buddhism.
- Vajrayana is a form of Tantric Buddhism, which flourished in India from the 6th to 11th century.
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Learning: Various Mudra of Buddha
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