80 CHAPTER THREEown purposes. For example, in the myth of the Buddha, Queen Maya gave
birth to her son under a tree; the Buddha gained Awakening under the Bodhi
Tree (a large type of fig, Ficus religiosa; pippala or asvattha in Sanskrit) and later
entered total nirvaJ:.la while resting with his head to the north between twin
sala trees. These patterns provided a link with the veneration of trees dating
from Indus Valley fertility cults and perhaps earlier. Characteristically, every
village had a sacred tree; Buddhists transferred the patterns of worship that had
developed around these trees to the cult of the Bodhi Tree. At the base of the
sacred tree was an altar, usually surrounded by a fence or railing of wood and
stone. These accoutrements were soon set up around the original Bodhi Tree.
Saplings from the original tree were planted in various places (trees still stand-
ing in Sravasti in India and Anuradhapura in Sri Lanka are claimed to be "chil-
dren" of the original tree) and were treated with the same veneration. Asoka,
tradition claims, paid such inordinate attention to the tree at Bodhgaya that
his jealous queen tried to have it destroyed, but without success. By virtue of
Asoka's devotion, Bodhgaya was improved physically and became a major
Buddhist shrine. Instead of an altar in front of the tree, he had built a carved
stone seat-the vajriisana (diamond seat, so called because here Gautama
achieved stability)-which, though empty, symbolizes the Buddha's presence.
This seat, together with stone railings carved during Asoka's time, still survive.
Nagas (serpents) had a long association with fertility cults in pre-Buddhist
Indian culture, and although Buddhists did not regard them as objects of wor-
ship, they came to treat thern with respect as protectors of the religion, similar
to the respect that Hindu devotees accorded the mounts of their gods. An ac-
count in the Vinaya states that, during the third week after his Awakening, the
new Buddha was sitting absorbed in the bliss of emancipation when a great
storm came up. Mucali~da, the Naga king, came out of his abode, coiled him-
self around the Buddha, and protected him with his great hood against the
wind and rain for seven days. An early Sutra (D.20) depicts the Buddha as ar-
ranging a truce to protect the nagas from their archenemies, the half-human,
half-bird garuqas. These stories became the basis for an alliance between Bud-
dhism and protective elements from earlier spirit cults that has lasted through
the centuries, as evidenced by art and texts from all areas to which Buddhism
has spread.
The two most important sacred Buddhist monuments were the stupa and
the cave temple. Stu pas were erected in the open air over the ashes of holies,
as in the case of the Buddha; over relics or personal objects belonging to holies;
or to commemorate a miracle, mark a sacred-spot, or gain merit from spon-
soring the construction. The stupa's dome rests on a square or circular base.
From its top rises a stone umbrella, symbol of the Buddha's spiritual royalty
and, in a stylized fashion, of the Bodhi Tree. Unfortunately, the iron pillar
supporting the umbrella has served as an unintentional lightning rod, resulting
in the destruction of many of these monuments. The symbolism of the stupa
is complex; its abstract form has lent itself to a variety of interpretations. In
the largest sense, it represents simultaneously the presence of the Buddha (in
his relics) and his absence (as a memorial of his passing away). As a symbol of