Sarnath, archaeological site north of Varanasi, eastern Uttar Pradesh state, northern India.

It is
one of the holiest Buddhist sites in the world, Sarnath is famous as the place where Gautama
Buddha delivered his first sermon. From then to the 12th century CE – nearly 1,700 years – it
remained a centre of great learning, a place of pilgrimage and a vihara (monastery) for monks
and scholars.

Just 10 km north-east of Varanasi, near the confluence of the Ganga and Varuna Rivers in Uttar
Pradesh, Sarnath was initially known as ‘Isipatana’, ‘where the holy men landed’ in the early
Buddhist Pali text, and ‘Mrigadava’ or ‘deer park’. Legend has it that a Bodhisattva turned
himself into a deer and offered his life to a king instead of the doe that the latter was planning to
kill. The king was so moved that he created the park as a sanctuary for deer. It is at this deer
park, a part of which still exists adjoining the archaeological complex at Sarnath, that the Buddha
is believed to have delivered his first sermon after he attained enlightenment under a Bodhi tree
in Bodh Gaya, in the 6th century BCE.

But why did he choose Sarnath? Buddhist texts tell you that the five men who had accompanied
Buddha on his journey of asceticism, and later abandoned him, had settled in Sarnath. So when
Buddha gained enlightenment, he felt they should be the first to know what he had learned. So he
proceeded to Sarnath and preached his teachings here for the first time. Buddha’s first teaching is
known as the Dharmachakrapravartana Sutra, the ‘turning of the wheel of law’.

The Sutra is one of the most important sermons in Buddhism and, through it, the Buddha
explained the Four Noble Truths and the teachings associated with it. The first truth is that there
is sorrow (dukha) in this world; the second relates to the origin and cause of sorrow; the third
explains the cessation of sorrow; and the fourth expounds the Eightfold Noble Path (arya-
ashtangika-marga), which leads to the end of sorrow and to the attainment of peace,
enlightenment and nirvana.

Many historians believe that Buddha chose Sarnath due to its proximity to Varanasi, which by
that time was already a centre of great learning. This would give him a chance to have discourses
with learned men and take his learnings to the very doorstep of Vedic orthodoxy. Incidentally,
Sarnath later also flourished because of the kings and wealthy merchants based in Banaras (now
Varanasi) who patronised Buddhism.

According to Buddhist texts, Buddha also laid the foundation of his five monks, Buddha founded
the first Sangha of 60 monks and sent them in various directions to preach his Dharma. Much of
what you see in Sarnath today, however, is from the time of Mauryan Emperor Ashoka (r. 269 –
232 BCE). After the famous Battle of Kalinga, when Ashoka embraced the Buddhist faith, he
began building several monuments at Sarnath, one of which was the Dharmarajika Stupa, which
was crowned by a monolithic railing.

Ashoka also installed a monolithic pillar topped by a lion capital with a crowning Dharmachakra
here. This lion capital was later adopted by India as the national emblem. This pillar was
inscribed with an Ashokan edict in the Brahmi script, in which the emperor warns monks and
nuns against creating schisms or divisions in the Sangha.

The stupa which stands tall at Sarnath today is the Dhamekh Stupa, which also seems to have
had its origin in Ashoka’s time. Excavations also revealed more than a dozen railing pillars near
the main shrine dated to the 1st century BCE, probably installed by the Shunga rulers (2nd to 1st
century BCE). When you look at the Dhamekh Stupa, halfway up the base, there are eight niches
which must have held images. Immediately below them runs a broad course of elaborate carving
with geometrical and floral patterns combined with birds and human figures.

Sarnath then came under the Kushanas in 1st century CE and many new monuments were added.
In the third year of Kushan Emperor Kanishka’s reign, one Bhikshu Bala of Mathura established
a colossal Bodhisattva image in red sandstone. This period also saw a new inscription being
added to the Ashokan pillar. This second inscription refers to the 40th year of Ashvaghosha, a
ruler of Kaushambi, who also held sway over Banaras and Sarnath. There is a third inscription on
the pillar, written in the early Gupta script, which mentions the teachers of the Sammitiya school,
one of the earliest schools of Buddhism.

Sadly, the pillar is in pieces, with some of the pieces on display in Under the Guptas (3rd-6th
century CE), Sarnath saw a lot of activity and art flourished. The Chinese monk Fa-Hien, who
visited Sarnath during the period of Chandragupta II (390 CE), reports that there were four
stupas and two monasteries here. The Dharmarajika Stupa seems to have been enlarged and the
Dhamekh Stupa was encased with floral designs carved in stone. The Gupta Empire was greatly
weakened by repeated invasions of the Huna people (5th/6th century CE) and this impacted
Sarnath, whose structures and statues suffered their wrath.

The north of India then came under the rule of the Vardhana Dynasty (6th and 7th century CE),
whose ruler Harshavardhana (r. 606 – 647 CE) initiated the restoration of Sarnath. Chinese monk
Hiuen Tsang, who visited Sarnath during this time, has left accounts of its monuments. He saw
both the Dharmarajika stupa and the Ashokan pillar, which he stated was shining like a mirror.
He was probably referring to the famous Mauryan polish. He also said that the great monastery
had 1500 resident monks and that the main shrine had a big metal image of Buddha in the
attitude of ‘turning the wheel’.

Sarnath continued to prosper during the reign of the Pala kings (8th to 12th century CE). But
in 1017 CE, when Banaras faced the brunt of Mahmud Ghazni’s attacks, the monuments of
Sarnath too were damaged. After that, efforts were made to resurrect Sarnath. The last great
monument was added in Sarnath in the 12th century. Govindachandra (1114-1154 CE) of the
Gahadavala Dynasty, which ruled parts of present-day Uttar Pradesh and Bihar, had made
himself master of Kanauj, Ayodhya and Banaras. His queen Kumaradevi was a pious Buddhist
and she built a large monastery at Sarnath called the Dharmachakra-Jina-Vihara.

Another notable monument at Sarnath is the Chaukhandi Stupa, a lofty brick structure crowned
with an octagonal tower. Interestingly, the octagonal tower is a Mughal monument built by
Govardhan, son of Raja Todarmal (governor under Emperor Akbar) in 1588 CE. It was built to
commemorate a visit by Emperor Humayun to Sarnath.

Sarnath today is a collection of vast ruins. Among these, the remains of the Dharmarajika Stupa
stand out. Believe it or not but the stupa was pulled down by Jagat Singh, the Diwan of the
Banaras king, Chet Singh, to be used as building materials for the construction of a market place
in the city which the king also named after himself.
In 1815, Colonel Colin Mackenzie, the first Surveyor General of India (who also discovered the
ruins of Hampi in Karnataka), started the first systematic excavation of the site of Sarnath. He
was followed by Alexander Cunningham, founder of the Archaeological Survey of India, who
during his excavations found a relic box that seemed to have been displaced by the workers of
Jagat Singh. It was a round sandstone box that contained a cylindrical marble box full of bones,
gold and silver ornaments, pearls and rubies. Cunningham later presented it to the museum of the
Bengal Asiatic Society.

The last major excavation at Sarnath was conducted by Daya Ram Sahni in 1921-22. During all
the excavations, a large number of statues, stone umbrellas, inscriptions, bas reliefs and other
sculptural panels were collected and these are on display at the Sarnath Museum. Instead of the
original ones, ASI has installed terracotta replicas to provide a sense of what the place would
have looked like hundreds of years ago.

Along with the Dharmarajika Stupa, the Dhamekh Stupa, Ashokan pillar, and the remains of
monasteries and votive stupas, Sarnath reflects the evolution of Buddhism and its heritage for
more than a millennium and a half. It is truly a macrocosm of the Buddhist world in India, and a
radiating centre of light throughout the

Sarnath as centre of Art

Sarnath became a famous centre of Indian art and developed a sweeter and more elegant version
of the Buddha image than Mathura’s. Instead of the rather strict frontal posture, the weight of the
body is thrown more on one leg, resulting in a very subtle contrapposto position, in which the
hips, shoulders, and head are turned in different directions. This lends a certain movement to the
figure, so that it does not quite possess the static, steadfast quality of Mathura. The robes are no
longer ridged with folds but are plain, and the surface of the stone is even more abstractly
handled than is the Mathura. The faces are heart-shaped, the transitions from one part of the body
to another smoother, so that the images have great refinement even if they do not possess the
strength of Mathura. The characteristic Sarnath style, the preferred material of which is the local
buff Chunar sandstone, seems to have developed in the late 5th century, the few earlier works
being closer to the Mathura school. The most famous image from the site and one of the
masterpieces of Indian art is that of the seated Buddha preaching (Sarnath Museum). It is
exceptionally well preserved and delicately carved. The face, with serene features and a gentle
smile playing on the lips, suggests the joy of supreme spiritual achievement. The halo behind the
Buddha is also very beautifully carved, with exquisite floral patterns. Large numbers of Buddha
and bodhisattva images have been excavated at Sarnath and are to be found in the museum at the
site and in major collections throughout the world.