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| Chaneti Buddhist Stupa Jagadhri Haryana en.wikipedia.org |
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| Chaneti Buddhist Stupa justdial.in |
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| Gateway Chaneti Buddhist Stupa Jagadhri archaeology.haryana.gov.in |
Historical Foundations and Travel Accounts
The history of the Chaneti Stupa is intrinsically linked to the ancient city of Shrughna (modern Sugh), situated roughly three kilometers southeast of Chaneti. During the reign of the Mauryan Emperor Ashoka, Shrughna developed into a major trade hub and monastic center along the Grand Trunk trade corridor.When the Chinese pilgrim Xuanzang (Hiuen Tsang) visited Shughni in the 7th century CE, he recorded a flourishing Buddhist community complete with a central monastery and dozens of surrounding stupas built to commemorate the Buddha's presence. Modern archaeologists identify the Chaneti mound as one of the prominent surviving stupas described in Xuanzang’s travelogues.
Architectural Elements and Structural Evolution
Standing approximately eight meters high and occupying an area of nearly one hundred square meters, the stupa showcases classic early Mauryan brickwork techniques:
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| Chaneti Buddhist Stupa Haryana yappe.in |
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| Location map Jagadhri Haryana state onefivenine.com |
Superstructure (Harmika): At the apex, archaeologists discovered a square earthen space measuring 1.5 meters across, which originally held the harmika (a square railing structure) and the chhatravali (triple umbrella).
Perimeter Railings: Although no stone balustrades were recovered, evidence suggests the original enclosure featured timber railings that decayed over time.
Kushana Era Additions: During the Kushana period (1st–3rd century CE), builders expanded the layout by installing four cardinal shrines near the old circumambulatory path (pradakshina patha) and constructing a wider lower pathway to accommodate larger crowds of devotees.
Religious Significance
As a funerary and devotional monument, the Chaneti Stupa functioned as a physical focus for ritual circumambulation (pradakshina). Monks and lay pilgrims walked clockwise around its perimeter to internalize the teachings of the Dharma.By erecting such monumental brick structures near major urban nodes like Shrughna, Mauryan rulers and merchant guilds transformed rural landscapes into sacred topographies. Today, preserved under the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI), the Chaneti Stupa remains a rare link to the origins of Buddhist architectural design in Northern India.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chaneti_Buddhist_Stupa
https://yamunanagar.nic.in/tourist-place/chaneti-bhudhist-stupa
https://www.archaeology.haryana.gov.in/node/48
K. N. Jayaraman Ph. D (1977 - univ. of Washington, Seattle)
retd Earth Scientist. Vocational Interest: Colonial history, heritage
structures, etc. (Author: navrangindia.blogspot.com)
