So once and for all we
know essentially just what half century that Buddha lived. It turns out that tradition got it
right. It was sixth century BC and even
the early date of 623 BC becomes quite feasible.
That provides two to
three centuries for the movement to become significant enough to be taken
seriously by Ashoka who then sponsored it.
At least now we can lock down the chronology and carry on.
It is rare to uncover
such a site so linked to an ancient historical personage so closely that it
becomes possible to lock down the time lines.
'Earliest shrine'
uncovered at Buddha's birthplace
By James MorganScience reporter, BBC News
25 November 2013
The remains lay buried beneath the present day Maya Devi Temple
Archaeologists digging at Buddha's birthplace
have uncovered remains of the "earliest ever Buddhist shrine".
They unearthed a 6th Century BC timber
structure buried within the Maya Devi Temple at Lumbini in Nepal.
The shrine appears to have housed a tree. This
links to the Buddha nativity story - his mother gave birth to him while holding
on to a tree branch.
Its discovery may settle the dispute over the
birth date of the Buddha, the team reports in the journal
Antiquity.
Radiocarbon
Every year thousands of Buddhists make a holy
pilgrimage to Lumbini - long identified as the birthplace of Siddhartha
Gautama, who became the Buddha.
Yet despite the many texts chronicling his
life and teachings, it is still uncertain when he lived.
Estimates for his birth stretch as far back as
623 BC, but many scholars believed 390-340 BC a more realistic timeframe.
Until now, the earliest evidence of Buddhist
structures at Lumbini dated no earlier than the 3rd Century BC, in the era of
the emperor Ashoka.
To investigate, archaeologists began
excavating at the heart of the temple - alongside meditating monks, nuns and
pilgrims.
They unearthed a wooden structure with a
central void which had no roof. Brick temples built later above the timber were
also arranged around this central space.
To date the buildings, fragments of charcoal
and grains of sand were tested using a combination of radiocarbon and optically
stimulated luminescence techniques.
"Now, for the first time, we have an
archaeological sequence at Lumbini that shows a building there as early as the
6th century BC," said archaeologist Prof Robin Coningham of Durham
University, who co-led the international team, supported by the National
Geographic Society.
The holy site remained open for meditation while archaeologists
excavated
"This is the earliest evidence of a
Buddhist shrine anywhere in the world.
"It sheds light on a very long debate,
which has led to differences in teachings and traditions of Buddhism.
"The narrative of Lumbini's establishment
as a pilgrimage site under Ashokan patronage must be modified since it is clear
that the site had already undergone embellishment for centuries."
The dig also detected signs of ancient tree
roots in the wooden building's central void - suggesting it was a tree shrine.
Tradition records that Queen Maya Devi gave
birth to the Buddha while grasping the branch of a tree within the Lumbini
Garden.
The discovery could aid conservation
efforts at the holy site - which has been neglected despite its
Unesco World Heritage status.
"These discoveries are very important to
better understand the birthplace of the Buddha," said Ram Kumar Shrestha,
Nepal's minister of culture, tourism and civil aviation.
"The government of Nepal will spare no
effort to preserve this significant site."
Archaeologists hope their discovery will aid conservation
efforts at the site
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