DECLINE OF STUPAS-

INTERNAL FACTORS:

Religious patronage-The main arrangement with regard to Northern

India and some parts of the South, is that the primary reason for the decline of
the religion was the urban decay and the resultant decline of trading activity.
Buddhism always depended on the patronage of the urban communities
particularly guilds and traders. His theory may find support in the dilapidated and
deserted monastic structures in urban areas, especially those situated along the
main trade routes pointing to the lack of support for their sustainance. Moreover,
Buddhism didn’t see any firm royal patronage after Mauryans, Kushanas,
Satvahanas and Pala. Asoka, Harshavardhana and Kanishka took some notable
steps to promote Buddhism. For instance, guild of ivory workers financed of the
the gateways of Sanchi.

Shift in religious practices n hostility of rulers - Hinduism’s origin

is currently being simplified and made more appealing by abandoning the complicated
system of ceremonies and rituals. Hindus eventually embraced the Buddha as a 9th
incarnation of Vishnu and the nonviolence ideal. This aided in the revival of Hinduism
origin and its resurgence in popularity. Post-Mauryan period, recorded in
the Divyavadana, a Buddhist Sanskrit work from the early
centuries of the Common Era, which describes the Brahmin ruler
Pushyamitra Shunga as a great persecutor of Buddhists. He is
said to have marched out with a large army, destroying stupas,
burning monasteries and killing monks as far as Sakala, now
known as Sialkot, where he announced a prize of one hundred
dinars for every head of a Shramana. Asokas dhamma baning animal
sacrifices and elaborate ceremonies also led to hostility amongst Brahmins for
Buddhism. Further Shashanka of Gauda destroyed Buddhist stupas of Bengal and was
a major oppressor in the east. In the twelfth year of his reign, Aśoka's daughter
Saṇghamittā took a branch of the Bodhi Tree to Sri Lanka. When the
original Bodhi Tree was destroyed in the 7th century it was replaced with
another one from the shoot exported to Sri Lanka by King Aśoka in the third
century bce. This was planted in the Mahābodhi temple where it flourishes
today. Harsavardhan pushed the Brahmins out of Kanauj’s religious council. Under
Kumarila Bhatta’s leadership, these Brahmins escaped to the Deccan. Brahmanism
made a comeback under Bhatta’s leadership. Like the rise of Brahminical
orthodoxy, led by Adi Shankara, and the emergence of Bhakti (alvars n
naiyanars), or mystical devotionalism, in south India. One could say that there
was a big churn in the religious market, and more satisfying products were
turning up. During his journey to India, he conquered Buddhist experts in religious
debates held in various locations. In the 6th century, the Hun ruler Mihirakula, a
Shaivite, destroyed stupas, monasteries, and killed monks in the northwest.

Conversion of Buddhist sites- The destruction of Buddhist stupas and

viharas or converting them into Hindu shrines took place in many parts of India,
at times with royal backing.. in Magadha or Bengal. A tradition recorded in a
twelfth-century Kashmiri text, the Rajatarangini of Kalhana, mentions one of
Ashoka’s sons, Jalauka, unlike his father was a Shaivite, and destroyed
Buddhist monasteries. Patanjali, Jha says, he “famously stated in his
Mahabhashya that Brahmins and Shramanas are eternal enemies, like the
snake and the mongoose. All this taken together means that the stage was
set for a Brahminical onslaught on Buddhism during the post-Mauryan
period, especially under Pushyamitra Shunga, who may have destroyed
the Ashokan Pillared Hall and the Kukutarama monastery at Pataliputra—
modern-day Patna.” At Ahmedpur, for instance, a Brahminical temple
seems to have been constructed on a stupa base in the fifth century, and
icons have been found at several sites around Vidisha, which were
transformed into Shaivite or Jain places of worship around the eighth
century. Ghantai temple appears to have been built on the remains of a
Buddhist monument in the ninth or tenth century by the Jains. During the
Kushana period, Jha says, “Some present-day Brahminical temples, such
as those of Bhuteshwar and Gokarneshwar, were Buddhist sites in the
ancient period. Here, the Katra Mound, a Buddhist centre during Kushana
times, became a Hindu religious site in the early medieval period.” at
Kaushambi, near Allahabad, “the destruction and burning of the great
Ghositaram monastery has been attributed to the Shungas — more
specifically to Pushyamitra”, says Jha, adding, “Sarnath, near Varanasi,
where the Buddha delivered his first sermon, became the target of
Brahminical assault. This was followed by the construction of Brahminical
buildings, such as Court 36 and Structure 136, probably in the Gupta
period, by reusing Mauryan materials.” Suspecting that even the Jagannath
temple at Puri, one of the most prominent Brahminical pilgrimage centres in
eastern India, built in the twelfth century during the reign of the Eastern
Ganga ruler Anantavarman Chodaganga Deva, “is said to have been
constructed on a Buddhist site” something which “may be contested”, Jha
says, “There is hardly any doubt that the temples of Purneshvara,
Kedareshvara, Kanteshvara, Someshvara and Angeshvara, all in Puri
district, were either built on Buddhist viharas, or made of material derived
from them.”

Historical neglect n natural decay-Natural elements such as

weathering, erosion, and vegetation growth have also affected
the preservation of the site. Exposure to the elements over time
can cause structural instability and damage to the monuments.

Colonial excavations (Amravati)-During the British colonial

period in India, extensive excavations were carried out at the site
of the Amravati Stupa and its surroundings. During the survey of
1816-1817 several sculptural panels were sent from Amravati to
Masulipatnam then shipped Calcutta, it was done to build a
monument in the central marketplace at Masulipatnam under the
supervision of Francis W. Robertson ( Head assistant to the
collector at Masulipatnam). Walter Elliot the commissioner of
Guntur visited Amravati and collected several sculptural panels
and took them away to madras called the Elliot marbles, the were
re established in the lawn in front of the college St Fort George.
Moreover, the slabs from Amravati were taken to different places
like Asiatic society of Bengal, to India office madras and some
even to London. Some of these antique slabs were also found
adorning the gardens of british officials.
EXTERNAL FACTORS-

INVASIONS- By the time the invaders reached Eastern India where the major
Buddhist centers thrived, they had already had the experience of attacking the
Hindu and the other religious centers of Western and Central India, mainly for the
enormous wealth that had accumulated in those institutions. Although the author
seems to belittle the significance of the religious factor behind these attacks, the
Muslim writers themselves testify to the ferocity of these attacks. Especially, with
regard to the Nālandā- mahavihara, the description found in the Tabaqat-i Näsin
based on Minhaju S Siraj’s reference alone is sufficient to gain an idea of the
cruelty of the attackers and is supported by heaps of ashes and coal evidence.
Having well known that the monks were unarm and helpless, many of whom the
attackers could capture were put to death. If Bhaktyar-Khalji was only interested
in the wealth, there was no reason to carry out a massacre, as apparently there
was no resistance from the residents of Nālandā. Above all, the monastic
buildings, too, were set on fire by Bhaktyar's soldiers ( contro with DN JHA).
Therefore, Sarao 's assertion that economic motives alone were behind these
attacks does not stand on firm ground. Not only Nalanda but also other major
Buddhist centers like, Vikramasila and Uddandapura suffered a similar fate. d.
Thus, the end result of the Turko-Afghan attacks was the destruction of the major
Buddhist centers, and it no doubt accelerated the disappearance of Buddhism
from those areas. Revival of Islam went hand-in-hand with the destruction of
Buddhism. When the Muslim Turkic Qarakhanids captured the Buddhist city of
Khotan in Xinjiang in 1006 CE, one of their poets penned this verse: “We came
down on them like a flood/We went out among their cities/We tore down the
idol-temples/We shat on the Buddha’s head.” In the Islamic world, a destroyer of
idols came to be known as a but-shikan (‫)بت شکن‬, a destroyer of but, a
corruption of the word Buddha, as Buddhism was prevalent in much of what
became the eastern part of the Islamic world. Moreover, The Hun
ruler Mihirakula, who ruled from 515 CE in north-western region (modern
day Afghanistan, Pakistan and north India), suppressed Buddhism as well.
He did this by destroying monasteries as far away as modern
day Prayagraj. Many monasteries had become very wealthy, so much so
that they were able to employ indentured slaves and paid labourers to care
for the monks and to tend the lands they owned. Thus, after the Muslim
invaders sacked the Indian monasteries in the 12th and 13th
centuries, the Buddhist laity showed little interest in a resurgence. In fact, a
monastery like Nālandā by the seventh century CE, had about 200 villages
assigned to it and many other monasteries too, were privileged to own land and
property. Iconoclastic movements aimed at destroying religious symbols and
structures that were considered idolatrous or contrary to Islamic teachings.
Stupas, as prominent symbols of Buddhist worship, were sometimes targeted for
destruction during these periods of religious fervor. The conversion of rulers or
wealthy patrons to Islam might have led to a redirection of resources away from
Buddhist institutions and towards the support of Islamic religious activities. As a
result, funding for the maintenance and construction of Stupas would have
decreased, contributing to their decline: With the patronage of rulers and elites
shifting towards Islamic institutions and projects, there would have been fewer
resources available for the upkeep of Buddhist Stupas.