Patna, July 7: Today’s attack at Bodhgaya is a strike at the heart of Buddhism.

Bodhgaya, 130km south of Patna, is the most sacred of Buddhist pilgrimage places, the Vatican of the Buddhist world.

Gautam Buddha not only attained enlightenment here, he had meditated for six years before sitting underneath the Bodhi tree. The Bodhi tree that exists today is not the exact one under which the Buddha achieved enlightenment, but a descendant of it.

In the 3rd century BC, Emperor Asoka’s daughter Sanghamitra took a branch of the tree to Sri Lanka and planted it in Anuradhapura. Most Buddhist records suggest the original tree was destroyed in the 7th century and replanted using the shoot from the Sri Lankan tree.

The spot where Buddha, or Prince Sidhhartha Gautam, as he was called then, attained enlightenment during the 6th century BC is where the Mahabodhi temple stands today. In the 3rd century BC, Emperor Asoka set up a Vajrasana (diamond throne) of polished sandstone at the very spot. The temple’s original structure was completed in the 7th century AD during the Gupta reign.

Not surprising then that the Mahabodhi temple is one of the most sought-after destinations among foreign tourists — mostly from Buddhist countries such as Japan, Sri Lanka and Thailand etc. Buddhists from the world over take leaves and seeds of the Bodhi tree back to their monasteries and homes.

The Gaya international airport has regular flights to Thailand, Japan, Sri Lanka and Bhutan.

Bihar, in 2012, boasted of over one million foreign tourists, most of them come to offer pilgrimage at Bodhgaya and visit the Buddhist circuit of Bodhgaya-Rajgir-Vaishali. According to the Bodhgaya Temple Management Committee, over one lakh foreign tourists visited the Mahabodhi temple last year. The committee received over Rs 3.5 crore in the form of donation in 2012.

Several Buddhist temples and monasteries — 52 to be precise — have been built at Bodhgaya by the faithful from China, Japan, Bhutan, Myanmar, South Korea, Sri Lanka, Taiwan, Thailand, Nepal and many other countries. People from many of these countries come and live for months at the monasteries built by their country to be able to meditate at the Mahabodhi temple. The spiritual head of the Buddhists, the Dalai Lama, called it his second home in India. He used to be a regular at Bodhgaya every year to perform the Kalchakra prayers. His health has made his visits less frequent now.

Whenever he comes, heads of states and diplomats and prominent citizens, among them Hollywood star Richard Gere, turn up to seek his blessings. It’s hardly surprising that the serial blasts have rattled the Buddhist world. Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa has expressed shock and dismay over the serial blasts.

The Gaya district magistrate is the ex-officio chairman of the Mahabodhi temple’s management committee, which consists of four members each from the Buddhist and Hindu communities. A Maharashtrian outfit, the All India Mahabodhi Vihar Mukti Andolan, led by Japan-born Buddhist Monk Bhante Anand, has been agitating for over two decades seeking that the temple management be handed over to the Buddhists. “However, it is unlikely that this outfit might have anything to do with the terrorist attack,” a Gaya police officer said.