Bones of Contention: Buddhist Relics, Nationalism and the Politics of Archaeology

Abstract

Relics of Sāriputta and Moggallāna, two of the Buddha's closest disciples, were discovered by Fred. C. Maisey and Alexander Cunningham in a stūpa at Sānchī in 1851 and were re-enshrined at the same place in November 1952. Th e exact whereabouts of the relics between these two dates has been uncertain, partly because both Buddhists and scholars have assumed, incorrectly, that the relics that were brought back to India had been in the possession of Mr Cunningham. Th e purpose of this article is to give a detailed account ot the relics of Sāriputta and Moggallāna found at Sānchī. Th e account is based on correspondence and notes about the relics found in archives of the Victoria & Albert Museum, London, and on relevant sources published by the Maha Bodhi Society. I argue that the quarrel over the relics was an important part of the revival of Buddhism from the end of the nineteenth century. I also discuss how the relics of the two saints were used by the government of India as nationalist symbols.

Patrimonializing human remains gestures and knowledge in catholic cloistered life

“…The caption describes plans to take the relics around the country in procession, "wishing peace to Sri Lanka," culminating in their permanent enshrinement at "Divaguha Temple." Associating relic enshrinement with the consolidation of political authority in the midst of civil war resonates powerfully with ancient lineage-story accounts of Sri Lankan kings who expanded and consolidated their political hegemony through the construction and embellishment of stu ¯pas (on the political uses of Buddhist relics in the context of Indian nationalism, see Brekke 2007). The enthusiasm displayed by some contemporary Sri Lankan politicians for advancing the status of Buddhist pilgrimage sites points to the changing historical fortunes of particular relic centers, a dynamic effectively illuminated in Jerome Bertram's account of the Oxford Oratory (this issue).…”

“…This highly condensed account of the history of the Cave of the Midday Rest and its modern appropriations suggests some of the ways that historical narratives about Buddhist relics and particular embodied practices performed in relation to their physical instantiations have served to integrate a diversity of cultural and social factors in the lives of contemporary Sri Lankan Buddhists. But relic practices are not necessarily integrative; they can also easily give rise to competing claims for access and control (see Brekke 2007), as evidenced by Sri Lankan media reports from December 10, 2012 (Asian Mirror 2012; Kuruluwansa 2012), just before the commencement of the annual Sri Pada pilgrimage season, announcing that the Ven. Bengamuwe Dhammadinana Thera, chief incumbent of the Sri Pada temple, had identified a different cave, one near the summit of Sri Pada, as the authentic site of the Cave of the Midday Rest.…”

The buddha's “cave of the midday rest” and buddhist relic practices in sri lanka

“…The caption describes plans to take the relics around the country in procession, "wishing peace to Sri Lanka," culminating in their permanent enshrinement at "Divaguha Temple." Associating relic enshrinement with the consolidation of political authority in the midst of civil war resonates powerfully with ancient lineage-story accounts of Sri Lankan kings who expanded and consolidated their political hegemony through the construction and embellishment of stū pas (on the political uses of Buddhist relics in the context of Indian nationalism, see Brekke 2007). The enthusiasm displayed by some contemporary Sri Lankan politicians for advancing the status of Buddhist pilgrimage sites points to the changing historical fortunes of particular relic centers, a dynamic effectively illuminated in Jerome Bertram's account of the Oxford Oratory (this issue).…”

“…But relic practices are not necessarily integrative; they can also easily give rise to competing claims for access and control (see Brekke 2007), as evidenced by Sri Lankan media reports from December 10, 2012 (Asian Mirror 2012; Kuruluwansa 2012), just before the commencement of the annual Sri Pada pilgrimage season, announcing that the Ven. Bengamuwe Dhammadinana Thera, chief incumbent of the Sri Pada temple, had identified a different cave, one near the summit of Sri Pada, as the authentic site of the Cave of the Midday Rest.…”