From Bodh Gaya to Sri Lanka, Buddhism's greatest export success story

Over two millennia ago, beneath the stillness of a Bodh Gaya in present-day Bihar, Prince Siddhartha Gautama—who had abandoned royal comforts for the austere path of truth—attained enlightenment and became the Buddha. That profound awakening sparked a spiritual revolution that first transformed the Gangetic plains, drawing thousands to his middle path of compassion and wisdom. While Buddhism gradually diminished in its birthplace after the Gupta era, its flame never truly extinguished in India, persisting in pockets from Ladakh to Arunachal Pradesh. Yet the Dharma found perhaps its most enduring sanctuary in Sri Lanka, where it became the cornerstone of national identity. There, Buddhism didn't simply arrive—it took root, shaped a civilization, and continues to thrive as the soul of a nation.

As devotees across the subcontinent prepare to celebrate Buddha Purnima on May 12—commemorating Siddhartha Gautama's birth, enlightenment, and parinirvana—the ancient spiritual bonds between India and its neighbouring nations come into sharp focus. Today, Indian pilgrims journey reverently to sacred sites like Sri Maha Bodhi in Anuradhapura, embodying what historian Dr. Anuradha Seneviratne poignantly describes as “returning a branch to its roots”—a relic of one of history's most transformative spiritual exchanges.

The Ashokan Mission

In the 6th century, around 528 BCE, in the shadows of the Himalayan foothills, a prince named Siddhartha Gautama embarked on a quest for enlightenment that would reshape the spiritual landscape of Asia. Born in Lumbini (in present-day Nepal but firmly within the cultural sphere of ancient India), his transformation into Buddha—the Enlightened One—under the Bodhi tree in Bodh Gaya, Bihar, marked the beginning of a philosophical tradition that transcends borders and centuries. “Buddha's awakening wasn't just a personal achievement; it was the birth of a universal message,” explains Dr. Ananda Wahihana Palliya Guruge, renowned Buddhist scholar, prolific author and former Sri Lankan diplomat, highlighting—that the Four Noble Truths (Dukka, Samudaya, Nirodha and Magga), and the Eightfold Path were never meant to be confined within geographical boundaries. “They were a prescription for humanity's suffering, regardless of nation or culture.”

Today, Indian pilgrims journey reverently to sacred sites like Sri Maha Bodhi in Anuradhapura.

Siddhartha Gautama (The Buddha) passed away around 483 BCE. After his Mahaparinirvana, his disciples preserved his teachings orally. Over the next century or so, Buddhist communities began to organize, debate, and standardize the teachings through major Buddhist Councils. By the 3rd century BCE, under Emperor Ashoka's reign (c. 268–232 BCE), Buddhism had grown significantly in India. Ashoka, after the Kalinga War, converted to Buddhism and became its most powerful royal patron. In the 250 BCE, Ashoka sent his son Mahinda to Sri Lanka, to formally introduce Buddhism—during the reign of King Devanampiya Tissa, who ruled from his capital at Anuradhapura.

Dr. Sudarshan Seneviratne, a distinguished Sri Lankan archaeologist, academic, and former Director General of Sri Lanka's Central Cultural Fund, underscores through his research that, “When Mahinda arrived at Mihintale, near Anuradhapura, he didn't come as a conqueror or colonizer. He came as a messenger of peace.” The stories tell that his first encounter with King Devanampiyatissa occurred during a deer hunt—where Mahinda addressed the king as “Tissa,”—symbolic of his transition from violence to compassion. Historical chronicles like the Mahavamsa recount how Tissa embraced Buddhism and declared it the state religion, setting in motion a religious and cultural transformation that would define Sri Lankan identity for millennia to come. “Ashoka's revelation was that true conquest wasn't of territory but of hearts and minds,” writes K.K. Aziz, historian and author of “Ashoka and the Decline of the Mauryas.”

Equally monumental was the arrival of Ashoka's daughter, Sanghamitta, who brought with her a sapling from the original Bodhi tree under which Buddha attained enlightenment. That sapling was ceremoniously planted in Anuradhapura, where it thrives to this day as the Sri Maha Bodhi, one of the oldest recorded trees in the world with a known planting date. “The planting of the Bodhi tree created a living, breathing link between India and Sri Lanka,” says Chaminda Munasinghe, Assistant PR Director of Sri Lanka Tourism Board. “It turned Anuradhapura into a sacred axis of Buddhist pilgrimage.” Ven. Banagala Upatissa Thero, a distinguished Sri Lankan Buddhist monk and President of the Mahabodhi Society of Sri Lanka, often expresses, “The Sri Maha Bodhi is not merely a biological masterpiece; it serves as a lasting symbol of the unshakable spiritual ties between India and Sri Lanka.”

The flowering of Theravāda Buddhism

Sri Lanka's isolation as an island played a crucial role in preserving Theravāda Buddhism. While the mainland experienced waves of cultural and religious influences that transformed or sometimes displaced Buddhist practice, Sri Lanka maintained a more continuous tradition. Experts point to several intertwining reasons. Politically, the Sinhalese monarchy of the time was looking to strengthen statecraft through religious legitimacy. Spiritually, Buddhism offered a profound ethical and philosophical system that resonated with both rulers and citizens. Sri Lanka was at a cultural crossroads, open to influence yet keen on identity. Theravāda Buddhism gave it both—a system rooted in introspection and community, with minimal ritualism and strong moral discipline.

While other parts of South Asia saw Buddhism decline under waves of revivalist Hinduism and Islamic conquests, Sri Lanka's isolation as an island played a crucial role in preserving the Theravāda school of Buddhism and safeguarding its teachings, monasteries, and monastic lineages. Sri Lanka maintained a more continuous tradition, becoming what some scholars call the 'dhamma-dīpa'—the island of dharma. This preservation wasn't passive. The great Buddhist councils held at Anuradhapura, particularly during King Vattagamani Abhaya's reign in the 1st century BCE, were instrumental in committing the oral Buddhist canon to writing. The Tripitaka (Three Baskets of Wisdom) was inscribed on palm leaves, ensuring the teachings would survive even if the lineage of monks who memorized them did not. The writing down of the Pali Canon was one of the most crucial moments in Buddhist history. That act of textual preservation was Sri Lanka’s greatest gift to global Buddhism.

In her book—Sri Lanka in the Modern Age: A History of Contested Identities, Dr. Nira Wickramasinghe, Professor of Modern South Asian Studies at Leiden University explores how historical narratives have been employed to foster a sense of unity and legitimacy, particularly in the post-colonial context. In her study “Producing the Present: History as Heritage in Post-War Patriotic Sri Lanka,” she discusses instances where archaeological findings and religious monuments are utilized to assert a continuous Buddhist presence across the island, sometimes at the expense of acknowledging the multicultural and multi-religious history of certain regions.

Buddhism in stone and earth

The depth of Sri Lanka's Buddhist devotion is perhaps most visible in the monumental architecture that transformed Anuradhapura into one of Asia's greatest religious centres. The city's massive stupas—hemispherical structures containing relics—are among the largest ancient monuments in the world, rivaling Egypt's pyramids in scale and sophistication. The Ruwanwelisaya stupa, commissioned by King Dutugemunu in the 2nd century BCE, rises 103 meters high and required engineering expertise that was remarkably advanced for its time. The even larger Jetavanaramaya stupa, built in the 3rd century CE, was the third-tallest structure in the ancient world when completed, surpassed only by two Egyptian pyramids.

Dr. Senake Bandaranayake, a distinguished scholar, archaeologist, and former Sri Lankan Ambassador to UNESCO, underscores in his research, the intersection of architecture, religion, and statecraft in ancient Sri Lanka, while emphasising—“These stupas weren't just religious monuments; they were statements of national identity and royal power aligned with Buddhist principles. Their scale tells us something profound about the resources the kingdom was willing to devote to Buddhism and how central it had become to Sri Lankan civilization.” A symbiotic relationship developed between the sangha (monastic community) and the state, creating what scholar Stanley Tambiah called a "galactic polity" where religious and political authority reinforced each other. The king was seen as the protector of Buddhism, while the sangha provided religious legitimacy to the throne.

Beyond the stupas, the sophisticated monastery complexes of Anuradhapura such as Mahavihara housed thousands of monks and served as the intellectual and spiritual powerhouses of the Theravāda world. 

Beyond the stupas, the sophisticated monastery complexes of Anuradhapura—Mahavihara, Abhayagiri, and Jetavanarama—housed thousands of monks and served as the intellectual and spiritual powerhouses of the Theravāda world. Their libraries contained not just religious texts but works on medicine, astronomy, linguistics, and other sciences. “The monasteries were the universities of their day," says Munasinghe. Monks from across Asia—from China, Burma, Thailand—came to study at these centres.

Modern pilgrimage—completing the circle

Today, thousands of Indian Buddhists make pilgrimages to Sri Lanka annually, drawn by the living traditions that have sometimes faded in Buddhism's homeland. The circuit between India's Buddhist holy sites and Sri Lanka's ancient capitals forms what some call the greater Buddhist mandala. “When I bring Indian pilgrims to Anuradhapura, many are moved to tears,” says Thushara, a local guide. “They feel they're reconnecting with something precious that was born in India but preserved abroad. It's like meeting a long-lost relative who carries your family traditions.” This sentiment is echoed by Dr. Ravindra Panth, former Director of the Nava Nalanda Mahavihara: “For many Indian Buddhists, especially those from Maharashtra and Uttar Pradesh where Buddhism has seen revival movements, visiting Sri Lanka is about reclaiming heritage. They're not just tourists; they're spiritual seekers completing a historical circle.”

In today's geopolitical context, this shared Buddhist heritage serves as a cultural bridge between India and Sri Lanka, whose relations have sometimes been complicated by regional politics, the Tamil conflict, and China's growing influence in the Indian Ocean. “Buddhism provides a foundation of mutual respect and understanding that transcends political differences,” implies H.E. Gopal Baglay, India's High Commissioner to Sri Lanka who underscored that, “When Prime Minister Modi visited Sri Lanka in 2017, his first stop was at the sacred Seema Malaka Temple in Colombo. These gestures acknowledge our shared spiritual heritage.”

The Indian government has invested significantly in joint Buddhist projects, including restoration work at ancient sites and support for pilgrim infrastructure. The Buddha Jayanti celebrations have become occasions for diplomatic engagement emphasizing cultural ties. “What's remarkable is how this ancient connection continues to shape modern identity on both sides,” observes Riaan George, PR professional and digital content creator operating out of Mumbai and Colombo. “For Sri Lankans, Buddhism remains central to national identity. For Indians, particularly those engaged in Buddhist revival movements, Sri Lanka represents a living laboratory of what Buddhism might have continued to be in India had history taken a different course.”

For ordinary devotees like Kumari Perera, a Buddhist pilgrim from Kandy who regularly visits India's sacred sites, the connection is more personal: “When I meditate at Bodh Gaya and then return to worship at our ancient temples in Anuradhapura, I feel I'm participating in a conversation across time and space. The Buddha's message began in India but found its home with us—now it belongs to both nations and to the world.”

Abhayagiri Vihara

When Buddha Purnima's full moon illuminates the night sky this May 12th, its light will bathe ancient stupas across both countries in a symbolic connection. Though modern challenges from climate change increasingly endangers archaeological sites that preserve this shared history across both nations, while the rise of religious nationalism sometimes strains interfaith dialogue and mutual understanding. For future generations, the critical task lies in honouring this common spiritual and cultural legacy without exploiting it for divisive political purposes. These architectural treasures stand as enduring monuments to an extraordinary spiritual exchange that began with Siddhartha Gautama's enlightenment and evolved into one of humanity's most significant cultural transmissions, continuing to unite these neighbouring lands despite modern challenges.