Buddhism in Kanchi – An Ancient City of Learning
seshadri sridharan
Buddhism in Kanchi – An Ancient City of Learning
Kanchi (Kanchipuram) in Tamil Nadu was the most significant Buddhist center of learning in South India. Kanchi produced world-renowned scholars and masters of Buddhism such as Bodhidharma, Dignaga, Dharmapala, Buddhaghosa, etc., spanning across Sravakayana and Mahayana. It is also one of the twenty-four power places of the dakini (the spontaneous play of the basic space) according to Vajrayana Buddhism. Guru Padmasambhava too visited Dravida land and turned the wheel of Vajrayana there. For an enthusiast in Buddhist history, Kanchi remains a treasure trove of Buddhist statues and other pieces of archeological evidence still being uncovered.
There is so much to tell about this one place, Kanchi, that we could not make this writeup any shorter :). All through in Kanchi, we can see statues, motifs, pillars, etc., that have something to tell about its Buddhist past. We can spot ancient Buddha statues enshrined even in a police station and a school.
Buddhist History of Kanchi
Kanchi rose to fame as a Buddhist center right from the 2nd Century BCE, when Poompuhar, the earlier center in Tamil Nadu, submerged in the sea. Buddhist presence in Kanchi finds mention in many Tamil Sangam texts like Manimekalai, Silappatikaram, and Maduraikkanchi. According to the Tamil epic Manimekalai, the Buddhist master Aravana Adigal was staying in Kanchi, and he guided the protagonist, Manimekalai, in the path of Buddhism. Manimekalai, according to the epic, is a Bodhisattva Bhikshuni who spreads her compassionate activities to alleviate the suffering and hunger of many and finally attains nirvana at Kanchi.
By the time Xuanzang, the Chinese monk-traveler (7th century CE) visited Kanchi, it was at the height of its glory. He recorded [Ref-1] about hundreds of Mahayana viharas and 10,000 monks there. Xuanzang also mentions about a 100 ft high Stupa built by Ashoka in Kanchi. About people of Kanchi, Xuanzang wrote, “People there are courageous. They deeply hold the principles of honesty and truth, and highly respect learning. The monks there belonged to Mahayana and practiced the Vinaya of Sthavira school.” Xuanzang also reported that there were about 80 Deva temples and many Nirgranthas (Jains).
As we shall see, other reliable records indicate that Buddhist Mahayana monasteries remained active in Kanchi even up to the 14th Century CE.
Kanchi produced many great Buddhist masters and philosophers. Bodhidharma, the founder of Zen Buddhism is said to be the son of the king of Kanchi (possibly a Pallava king). The world acclaimed Buddhist logician Dignaga is also from Kanchi. His disciple Dharmakirti is from a nearby place, Trimala (Thirumala / Thirupathi). Aryadeva, the famed disciple of Acharya Nagarjuna is also said to have lived in Kanchi during his last days. Dharmapala, an abbot of Nalanda and a great master of Yogacara Buddhism was also from Kanchi. He was the main teacher of Xuanzang. Kanchi also produced Buddhaghosa, the author of Visuddhimagga, an acclaimed practice manual of Theravada tradition. Dhammapala, another famous commentator of Pali Suttas and Anuruddha Thera, the author of Abhidhammatthasaṅgaha were also from Kanchi. According to the Vajrayana tradition, Siddha Nagarjuna, one of the 84 Mahasiddhas was also from Kanchi.
According to Tibetan Buddhist master Jetsun Taranatha, Guru Padmasambhava (Guru Rinpoche) visited the Dravida land (Tamil Nadu) in the 8th Century and taught Sutra and Vajrayana Buddhism there for 12 years. Taranatha narrated this based on the accounts of Indian masters that he could access in the 16th Century. Since in the 8th Century Kanchi was one of the most important Buddhist centers in the Dravida land, Padmasambhava would have blessed Kanchi with his presence and taught there. According to Taranatha, even at his time (16th-17th Century CE), Guru Rinpoche’s lineage of Vajrayana practices was active in Dravida land.
As per the inscriptions from the excavation of a renowned Buddhist vihara at Kurkihar near Gaya, Bihar (9th/11th Century CE), many statues found there were donated by people from Kanchi. This indicates that Kanchi was flourishing with Buddhism even in that period. In the 13th Century, Marco Polo, the European traveler, saw seven Pagodas (chaithyas) on the seashore of Mahabalipuram near Kanchi. In the 14th Century, an eminent poet of Java mentioned in his writings about the presence of thirteen Buddhist monasteries in Kanchi [Ref-2, p. 97]. According to a 14th Century inscription in Korea, Dhyanabhadra from Kanchi went to Korea in 1370CE and established a Mahayana monastery (Zen / Seon) there [Ref-3, p. 7]. The inscription also mentions that he received the teaching of Avatamsaka Sutra in Kanchi. All these records indicate that Buddhism was very much alive in Kanchi even in the 14th Century, though in a phase of gradual decline.
Some of the ancient Viharas (Buddhist monasteries) of Kanchi that find mention in historical works are Raja Vihara and Mulasoma Vihara. None of them are as such identifiable now. An 11th Century Manuscript of Prajna-paramita-sutra obtained from Nepal [Ref-4], has a miniature painting of a statue of Vasudhara Tara from a renowned Mahayana Vihara in Kanchi.
Kanchi as One of the 24 Power-places
According to Vajrayana Buddhism, Kanchi is one of the twenty-four sacred power places. As per many Vajravarahi and Chakrasamvara Sadhanas Kanchi is the heart of the Dakini (the spontaneous play of the basic space) and a sacred place of Dakinis (where the vibrancy of wisdom activities naturally plays out). Even according to some of the Tantras revealed in Tibet, e.g., Yumka Dechen Gyalmo of Longchen Nyingthik, Kanchi is at the heart of the dakini (Yumka, the Great Bliss Queen).
The Current Structure of Kanchi
As of now, Kanchi has two main areas, Siva Kanchi and Vishnu Kanchi, dedicated to many temples of Lord Siva and Lord Vishnu respectively. There is also a Jina Kanchi where two Jain temples exist even today. We do not find a separate Buddha Kanchi here now, however, Buddha and Bodhisattva statues and motifs can be seen all around the present-day Siva Kanchi and Vishnu Kanchi.
Buddha Statues of Kanchi
The following is the list of archeological evidences that still remain of the grand and vibrant presence of Buddhism in ancient Kanchi. We explored these with the purpose of revealing history. However, the essence of Buddhism is not about statues but about cleansing our minds. And, hence there is no intention of making claims on statues or places. Read Dealing with History without Attachment for more details on how to stay clear of afflictive emotions and deal with History without attachment.
1. Two Buddha statues from Kanchi Kamakshi
Ancient Buddha statue ( in broken condition) from Kanchi Kamakshi Temple, reported by Gopinatha Rao a century back, but not traceable now. Could be in a Museum reserve.The earliest of the Buddha statues found from Kanchi is a standing Buddha statue from the 5th Century CE of a majestic height of 8ft. It resembles Amaravati and Gandhara statues in style. This is now kept in the Chennai Museum. According to the archeologist Gopinatha Rao (d. 1919) [Ref-5, p.128], during his time, this statue was in the inner prakara of the Kanchi Kamakshi Temple in Siva Kanchi. One more Buddha statue was found in the outer prakara in a broken condition. Gopinatha Rao inferred that Kanchi Kamakshi Temple was originally a temple of Tara. When we correlate with other connections that can be seen, a link to Vajrayana Buddhism can be inferred for this temple. The principal deity of this temple is Kamakshi (meaning, the passionate eyed one). They practice Srividya tantra (which in Tibetan means,དཔལ་ལྡན་རིག་པ) and the tantric deity according to that tantra is Lalita Tripura Sundari (ཁམས་གསུ་རོལ་པའི་མཛེས་མ།). Nature and hand emblems of Kamakshi are same as Kurukullā (Red Tara) of the Vajrayana Buddhist tantras. The emblems are — hook (ankusha), noose (pāśa), flower-arrow and sugarcane-bow. However, the current idol is in a formal sitting posture, not in the usual dynamic form of kurukullā. There were also two miniature Buddha carvings (one sitting and one standing) on a stone pillar of the temple when we visited in 2012.
2. Buddha statues from a school
Another one of the earliest of the Buddha statues of Kanchi is kept in Govt. C. M. Subbaraya Mudaliyar Higher Secondary School, next to Kanchi Kamakshi Temple. This statue is from the 5th-6th Century CE and is of a height of 5’6”. According to Gopinatha Rao [Ref-5, p.129], this statue was in a garden adjacent to Kanchi Kamakshi Temple. Probably, the school came up in the garden later. The earlier photos of this Buddha that we could access are with his eyes closed. Recently, someone seems to have tried to ‘improve’ it by chiseling open the eyes. According to Gopinatha Rao, there are two more Buddha statues under the soil there yet to be excavated. Even though more than 100 years have passed, it is still not excavated. (Gopinatha Rao was an archeologist during the British rule.)