Middle Path

This is the holiest of all places for Buddhists. About 15 km from gaya, prince siddharth’s quest for enlightenment was fulfilled more than 2500 years ago under a peepal tree in bodhgaya, and thus was born Buddhism. Historians say that the present tree is probably the fifth descendant of the original tree to be planted at the site. The entire courtyard of the temple is studded with a large number of stupas- all in different sizes but extremely elegant, built 2,500 years ago. Some other sacred spots in the temple include chankaramana, where Buddha meditated for a week, animeshlochana, where he spent time looking at the mahabodhi tree, and the sacred lotus tank, the sacred tank where he spent a week before he attained nirvana. The quiet, serene village is dotted with a number of other Buddhist temples; like the Tibetan, thai, Chinese, Bhutanese and Japanese monasteries.