Indian Heritage and Monuments

Excavation undertaken in the year 1870 at Bhattiprolu stupa unearthed three mounds while the one carried out in 1892 led to the discovery of three inscribed stone relic caskets containing crystal caskets, relics of Buddha and jewels. The diameter of the stupa measures around 40 m with an additional basement of 2.4 m wide running all around. The most important discovery is the crystal relic casket of sarira dhatu of the Buddha from the central mass of the stupas.

In Viharas, monks taught Buddhist scriptures to disciples. Apart from imparting education in Viharas, monks were also treating the physical ailments of people. We find many inscriptions from these Viharas which tell us that ordinary men and women farmers,traders, soldiers, and artisans made liberal donations for building and expenses of these Viharas.

Chaitya was a rectangular prayer hall with a stupa placed in the centre. The purpose of Chaityas was prayer. The Chaitya was divided into three parts, and had an apsidal ending, i.e, a semicircular rear end. The central part of the hall (also called the nave) was separated from the two aisles by two rows of pillars, The Chaityas also had polished interior walls, semicircular roofs and horse-shoe shaped windows called the Chaitya windows.

Nalanda, a large Buddhist monastery, now in ruins, was one of the most publicly acknowledged Mahaviharas of ancient India located in ancient Magadha kingdom (modern Bihar). It remained a learning centre from 7th century BCE through c. 1200 CE and is many a time categorised as one of the early universities of India along with other institutions like Vikramashila and Taxila. Pilgrims like Hu-en-Tsang, and others spent time studying in Nalanda (Bihar) the most famous Buddhist monastery of the period.

Amaravati Stupa in Guntur district is the most famous one in Andhra Pradesh. This was built during the rule of Satavahanas about 1900 years ago. The stupa was covered with panels of sculptures depicting the Buddha and his teachings. Today, the Amaravathi stupa is just a mound of rubble. 

Viharas were the monasteries or living places of Buddhist monks where religious education was imparted. A Vihara usually had small rooms around an open courtyard and had a small shrine containing a stupa or an image of the Buddha at one end.

Many people went to live in the forests in ashrams. In these ashrams, they meditated and pondered over several questions. They also had discussions with people who came to visit them and shared their teachings with others. People who lived in ashrams like this were called Rishis and Munis (sages).

Begum Hazrat Mahal, the wife of Nawab Wazid Ali Shah of Awadh ruled on behalf of her 11-year-old son Birjis Qadar and led the revolt of 1857 in Lucknow. She refused to accept the pension offered to her by the British and choose to die unmourned in Nepal.

Varanasi is the city in the northern Indian State of Uttar Pradesh dating to the 11th century B.C Regarded as the spiritual capital of India, the city draws Hindu pilgrims who bathe in the Ganges River's sacred waters and perform funeral rites.Along the city's winding streets are some 2,000 temples , including Kashi Vishwanath, the "Golden Temple," dedicated to the HIndu god Shiva.

The word Janapada literally means the land. Archaeologists have excavated a number of settlements in these Janapadas, such as Purana Qila in Delhi, Hastinapur near Meerut, and Atranjikhera, near Etah (the last two are in Uttar Pradesh).

Thanjavur and Kumbakonam are specialised in the production of bronze statues and musical instruments.

Delhi is the place with maximum number of monuments present in India. Some of them include Lal Bangla, The Moti Gate, Lal Gumbad, Ashoka'a pillar, Delhi Gate, Lal Darwaza, taj mahal etc. The main reason for its greatest architecture is Mughals who enormously worked on building up of art and architecture.

Ellora cave temples are the place where we find temples of three faiths. The three faiths are Buddhism, Hinduism, and Jainism. These are situated near Aurangabad of Maharashtra. 

Varnasi, Rishikesh, and Vaishnodevi are all located within the Northern Plains or the Himalayan foothills associated with the region. Madurai is a famous temple city located in Tamil Nadu, which is in Southern India.

Kurukshetra is a place of great historical and religious importance. This city is situated in Haryana and lies in Punjab-Haryana plain. It is the place where the battle of Mahabharat was fought. Lord Krishna preached his philosophy of ‘Karma’ which is enshrined in the Holy Bhagwad-Gita to Arjuna at Kurukshetra. Kurukshetra is intimately related to the Aryan civilization and its growth all along the sacred river Saraswati. According to Hindu mythology, the Kurukshetra is spread over, a circuit of about 48 Kos  which includes a large number of holy places, temples and Sacred tanks connected with the religious events, Mahabharat war and Kurus, the ancestor of Kouravas and Pandavs.