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The largest concentration of Buddhist stupas in India is found in which state?
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Answer: Option B — Madhya Pradesh
Detailed Solution
Madhya Pradesh has the largest concentration of Buddhist stupas in India, especially around Sanchi and Vidisha in the Raisen and Vidisha districts.
About the stupas of Madhya Pradesh:
- The hills around Sanchi and Vidisha have many groups of stupas, sometimes called the "Bhilsa Topes" (Bhilsa is the old name of Vidisha, and "tope" is an old word for stupa).
- The main sites include Sanchi, Satdhara, Sonari, Andher, Bhojpur (near Pipariya) and Murelkhurd.
- Ancient Vidisha was a wealthy trading city, and its merchants and bankers donated generously to Buddhist monasteries.
About Sanchi:
The Great Stupa (Stupa No. 1) at Sanchi was originally built in brick by the Mauryan emperor Ashoka in the 3rd century BCE. Ashoka's wife Devi was from Vidisha.
In the 2nd century BCE, during the Shunga period, it was enlarged and covered with stone.
Four beautifully carved stone gateways (toranas) were added in the 1st century BCE, during the Satavahana period. An inscription on the southern gateway records that the ivory carvers of Vidisha made some of the carvings.
The gateways show Jataka tales and scenes from the Buddha's life, using symbols rather than images of the Buddha.
Stupa No. 3 contained relics of Sariputra and Mahamoggallana, two chief disciples of the Buddha.
Sanchi also has an Ashokan pillar with a lion capital.
It was rediscovered in 1818 by the British officer General Henry Taylor. Later, it was restored by Sir John Marshall, the Director-General of the ASI, from 1912 to 1919.
The "Buddhist Monuments at Sanchi" were declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1989.
The image of the Sanchi Stupa appears on the reverse of the 200-rupee note issued in 2017.
Other stupas of Madhya Pradesh:
Bharhut Stupa (Satna district): famous for its carved railings.
Other major Buddhist stupa sites in India:
- Bihar: Kesariya, Vaishali, Bodh Gaya.
- Uttar Pradesh: Dhamek Stupa (Sarnath), Piprahwa, Kushinagar.
- Andhra Pradesh: Amaravati, Nagarjunakonda.
Why not the other options?
- ✗Bihar has Kesariya, one of the largest stupas, but not the largest concentration.
- ✗Uttar Pradesh has the Dhamek Stupa at Sarnath.
- ✗Andhra Pradesh has the Amaravati Stupa.
Quick tip
Remember: largest concentration of stupas = Madhya Pradesh (Sanchi-Vidisha "Bhilsa Topes"; Great Stupa by Ashoka; toranas carved by Vidisha ivory carvers; UNESCO 1989; on the 200-rupee note).
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Monuments & Religious Places — Preparation
This question tests your understanding of Monuments & Religious Places, a key topic in the General Knowledge section. The detailed solution above uses a step-by-step approach to show the reasoning, and where available, a shortcut that helps you solve similar questions in under 90 seconds during the actual exam.
This topic covers India's important monuments, temples, mosques, churches, gurudwaras and pilgrimage sites, who built them and when, their architectural styles, and India's UNESCO World Heritage Sites. Questions ask who built a monument, where it is located, or which dynasty or style it belongs to. For example, the Qutub Minar was begun by Qutbuddin Aibak, and the Sun Temple at Konark was built by the Eastern Ganga king Narasimhadeva I. Revise the UNESCO World Heritage Sites as a list, noting the most recent additions. Practise the monuments and religious places questions below, written in the style of the general awareness sections of exams such as SSC, banking, railways, CUET GAT, MAH CET and CLAT. Each question comes with a detailed explanation that adds related facts, so every question helps you revise more than one point.