An Appeal
After having practiced all forms of the severest austerities in Uruvela Forest for six long years, on the full-moon night of Wesak in 528 BCE, the Buddha, endowed with Perfections (Paramis) fulfilled in his last existence, attained the Perfect Enlightenment (Sama Sambodhi) under the Bodhi tree, developing the three extraordinary knowledges–the supernormal ability to remember his past lives, the supernormal vision to see the death and rebirth of beings, and the supernormal knowledge with regard to the destruction of passions and the comprehension of things as they truly are.
After Enlightenment, the Buddha remained in the vicinity of the Bodhi tree for forty-nine days in various contemplations. Then he set off for Migadavana (present-day Sarnath) near Varanasi, where he taught his First Sermon to the five ascetics, who had earlier been his companions in austerities.
This historic place where the Buddha attained Enlightenment became a pilgrimage destination from the time of the Buddha himself. In the Mahaparinibbana Sutta, He clearly stated, “Ananda, there are four places the sight of which will arouse strong emotion in those with faith. Which four places? The place where the Tathagata was born; the place where the Tathagata attained Enlightenment; The place where the Tathagata set in motion the Wheel of the Dhamma; The places where the Tathagata attained final Nibbana. Bhikkhu, Bhikkhuni, Upasaka and Upasaki should visit these places. And anyone who dies while making pilgrimage to these places with a devoted heart will, at the breaking up of the body at death, be born in heaven.”
This sacred spot became even more important two hundred fifty years after the Buddha’s Enlightenment when the renowned Buddhist Emperor Ashoka visited the place. He is considered the actual founder of the Mahabodhi Temple. According to tradition, Ashoka established a monastery, erected a canopy with four pillars over the Vajrasana, the Diamond Throne of Enlightenment.
Even before King Ashoka, a monk named Bodhirakshita from Sri Lanka visited the place and donated some railing; he may well have been the first pilgrim to visit Buddhagaya from outside India. In 405 CE the famous Chinese traveller, Fa Hien, visited the site and recorded his impressions. Another Chinese monk, Huien Tsiang, risked his life to reach here. Thanks to these Chinese pilgrims and their detailed travelogues, we can recognize and identify many historical and important places.
When pilgrims visited, they had to have shelter. In the 4th century CE, the king of Sri Lanka, Sri Meghavanna, had a monastery built at Buddhagaya, Even after a lapse of three hundred years, Huien Tsiang saw this monastery and wrote that it was still in good condition.
Unlike those ancient days, pilgrims from all over the world are able to come to pay homage at this sacred site by means of convenient direct flights. Although there are a number of international monasteries which have sprung up all around, during the peak pilgrim season, all the monasteries, hotels and guest-houses are inadequate to provide hospitality to all. Thus, it is desirable to have more monasteries in the vicinity of the Mahabodhi Temple. With this need in mind, our Buddhist Mission (official Name: Russa Road Young Buddhist Student Literacy Mission) headed by Ven. Dr. Nando Batha, intends to purchase a plot of land measuring 32400 square feet, as near to the great Mahabodhi Main Temple as possible. There we will build a monastery to serve the needs of visiting monastics and pilgrims and also serve to better promote the excellent Dhamma of the Buddha in the land of its origin.
Some advance payment for this project has already been done but more remains. All devotees are cordially invited to contribute in this most meritorious project.
Your donation can be done by unit, with a unit being 3 square feet of land and the donation for one unit is 40 USD. Kindly inform us your donation by e-mail at
With Metta,
Nando Batha
Transaction Reference No. :
Instruction for Remittance in US Dollars for Savings Account:
To: JP Morgan Chase Bank
N.Y, USA
SWIFT – CHASUS33
ABA – 021000021
For Credit To: 001-1-407376 CHIPS UID 340191
AXIS Bank Ltd., Mumbai
For Further Credit To: AXIS Bank Ltd.
Kolkata Main Branch
SWIFT – AXISINBB005
Ultimate Beneficiary: Name: Russa Road Young Buddhist Student Literacy Mission
S.B. A/C No. 021010100009202
