Buddhists from all over the world are joining the All India Buddhist Forum (AIBF)-led protest at the epicentre of Buddhism where Gautama Buddha attained his Enlightenment – Bodhgaya. Since February 12, an indefinite hunger strike has been ongoing in the religious village in Bihar. Even as doctors, pilgrims and tourists came and went, monks, nuns and other demonstrators sat outside the Mahabodhi Mahavihara gate, silently protesting for their rights.
Recently, the Bihar Police detained 25 monks at midnight, most of whom were fasting, as a result of which, the protest site now had to be shifted two kilometres ahead from Mahabodhi Mahavihara, in Domuhan road, which connects to the highway to Patna. This incident has sparked widespread outrage around the world, more so because it came out of nowhere.
Earlier that day, talks and discussions were happening with “high-ranking officials”, which made the protestors hopeful that maybe everything was going in the right direction.
Akash Lama, general secretary of AIBF, said, “We had to spend our 17th-day protest in the medical college.” Meanwhile, AIBF President Jambu Lama exclaimed, “We are actually peace-loving people, but now we are forced to come out in the streets and hold this dharna!”
The Mahabodhi Mahavira complex, outside which the monks and nuns are protesting, houses the Bodhi Tree. It is not just a historic or religious monument but also the most revered site for Buddhists.
Protesting monks hold placard shedding light on their main demand. Photo: Avidha Raha
In historical records too, this place has been under frequent attacks, especially by Brahmins or upper caste rulers, if Buddhism kept spreading. There were multiple attempts in the past to even destroy the Bodhi tree, henceforth erasing the spiritual significance of this Buddhist site. The current Bodhi tree inside the Mahabodhi complex is a fourth generation tree.
The main purpose of the Mahabodhi Mukti Andolan is to “repeal the Bodhgaya Temple Act 1949” to protect the sanctity of Buddhism and ensure that the sacred premises of Mahabodhi Mahavihara are controlled by Buddhists only. To understand why this is happening, we need to delve into the layers of systematic fading of the Buddhist essence from its own spaces.
Bodhgaya Temple Act and its consequences
The Bodhgaya Temple Act of 1949 is a law that allows non-Buddhist control and jurisdiction over the Mahabodhi Mahavira – the most sacred Buddhist site, flocked by thousands of international visitors and pilgrims all around the year.
The Bodhgaya Temple Management Committee (BTMC) formed after the Act included both Hindu and Buddhist members, with the majority being from upper-caste Brahmin background. Out of the nine committee members, only four are Buddhists, four are Hindus, while the chairman, who is the district magistrate of Gaya, is also from a Hindu background.
Speaking to The Wire, Jambu Lama says, “Earlier, there was even a clause that said that the DM should always be Hindu, but later in 2012, that clause got removed. Even then, the majority members of the committee in BTMC are non-Buddhist and the remaining four Buddhists are powerless, just for show.”
This committee, the AIBF says is “under Brahmanical influence”. It should have made efforts to make Budhha’s teachings more widespread and accessible, rather enforced non-Buddhist practices and rituals inside the Mahavira premises, disrespecting the sanctity of the place and also violating the Buddhist faith.
A nun on hunger strike in Bodhgaya. Photo: Avidha Raha
Most of these rituals contradict the teachings of Buddha himself – such as placement of the controversial Shiva Lingam symbols, performing Hindu rites with chants, worshipping the statue of Buddha like Hindu deities, decorated with silk robes and bright colours, idolising Buddha as an incarnation instead of an educator.
Jambu Lama says, “They (committee members) are trying to convince everyone that the Shiv Linga inside the Mahabodhi premises have always been there, but that is not true! There was no such figure even 30 years back, when Surai Sasai, a Buddhist monk from Japan had visited in 1996 and he was amongst the first people who pointed out this gradual Brahminisation of Mahabodhi Mahavihara.”
He adds, “For historical accuracy, we can also go through Chinese traveller and scholar Hiuen Tsang’s writings about India when he visited in 629 AD. He mentioned that there were no traces of any other religion, except for a stone statue of Avalokiteshvara inside the Mahabodhi complex.”
There are already plenty of myths about Buddha, a popular one being he is an incarnation of Vishnu – this robs Buddhism off its unique identity. This blending of Hindu ideas into Buddhism, to an extent that the real teachings of Buddha are almost forgotten, did not happen by coincidence, it has been happening over decades.
The implementation of Bodhgaya Temple Act, 1949, further encouraged the violation of Articles 25, 26, 29 and 30 of the Indian constitution, which guarantees religious freedom and minority rights. Despite being a minority in India, Buddhists are deprived of managing their own holy site.
It must be noted that legal control also means monetary control in this context. Jambu Lama explains, “It’s not about anything philosophical or spiritual, it’s all about the money after all. Itna saara paisa aata hai donation box mein toh woh sab chipak ke baitha hai, koi security nahi, koi audit nahi. Agar paisa involve nahi hota toh yeh log toh kab ka chhod ke chale jate (So much money is there in the donation box so they are glued to the temple. If there was no money involved, they would have left a long time ago).”
Over 30,000 Buddhists sign the petition
With more than 30,000 signatures and support from 500+ worldwide Buddhist organisations, AIBF had already submitted a memorandum to the Bihar government, demanding the repeal of the Bodhgaya Temple Act 1949, but nothing substantial has happened yet. BTMC staff has also refused to comment on it.
An international petition called ‘In Solidarity: Demand Buddhist Control Over the Mahabodhi Temple’ has further garnered over 5,000 signatures, making this an issue of global concern.
“There are some people who come and take photographs and interviews of us, but not much in the mainstream media, probably because all of them have Brahmins or upper caste Hindus in power holding positions. As of now, very few regional Bahujan media has covered us. We hope to reach a bigger audience and spread more awareness about what is happening in Bodhgaya,” says Akash Lama.
He then asks, “Every religion has their own space and their own people in its control, are we demanding too much to want just the same?”
With the demands of AIBF, they have proposed to form the Bodhgaya Mahabodhi Mahavihara Chaitya Trust, with the vision to reclaim Bodhgaya’s sacred heritage. The trust will be completely managed by Buddhists, appoint only Buddhist staff for administration, security and maintaining the purity of the Dhamma, ensure strict discipline and adherence to Buddhist values and respect for the sacred nature of Mahabodhi.
The new trust, if it happens, shall also create centres solely devoted to Buddha’s teachings, which would involve Bhikkhu training, community welfare services, Dhamma education and meditation programs.
Avidha Raha is a photojournalist interested in stories related to gender, culture, sustainable ecologies and travel.
