Ratnagiri Buddhist Site

23.01.2025

Ratnagiri Buddhist Site

Why in the news?                        

Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) has discovered significant Buddhist remains during renewed excavations at the historic Ratnagiri site in Jajpur district adding another chapter to its 1,200-year-old legacy.

About Ratnagiri Site:

• It is located 100 km northeast of Bhubaneswar, Odisha.
• The site stands on a hill between Birupa and Brahmani rivers and is Odisha’s most famous and most excavated Buddhist site.
• It is part of the famous Diamond Triangle of Odisha along with Udaygiri and Lalitgiri, translated as the ‘Hills of Jewels’
• Time Period: Experts date Ratnagiri to the 5th and 13th Century, although the peak period of construction is dated between the 7th and 10th centuries.
• It was a center for Mahayana and Tantrayana (also known as Vajrayana) Buddhism.
• There are some studies that suggest that the renowned Chinese Buddhist monk and traveller, Hiuen Tsang visited here during 638-639 AD.
• So far ASI have unearthed a colossal Buddha head, a massive palm, an ancient wall and inscribed Buddhist relics, all of which are estimated to date back 8th and 9th Century AD.

Buddhism in Odisha and links with Southeast Asian countries:

• Mauryan Emperor Ashoka is believed to have invaded Kalinga in 261 BC but, deeply moved by the bloodshed in the war, he eventually embraced Buddhism.
• In Odisha, Buddhism is stated to have particularly flourished under the Bhaumakara dynasty, which ruled parts of the State in between the 8th and 10th Century.
• Odisha has long enjoyed maritime and trade links with Southeast Asian countries. According to historians, pepper, cinnamon, cardamom, silk, camphor, gold, and jewellery were popular items of trade between the ancient kingdom of Kalinga and Southeast Asia.
• The State also annually holds Baliyatra, literally ‘voyage to Bali’ – a seven-day festival to commemorate the 2,000-year-old maritime and cultural links between Kalinga and Bali and other South and Southeast Asian regions such as Java, Sumatra, Borneo, Burma (Myanmar) and Ceylon (Sri Lanka).

                                                           Source: Indian Express

Ratnagiri, recently in news, is located in:

A.Andhra Pradesh

B.Tamil Nadu

C.Bihar

D.Odisha

Answer D