Site Management plan for Ancient Buddhist Site Sahet -Mahet at Shravasti U.P.

Abstract

Shravasti is one of the ancient cities celebrated in the annals of Buddhism which is now represented by a group of archeological remains known as SahetMahet together with adjacent sites of Orajhar, Panahiajhar, kharahuwanjhar, Purvaram Maha vihara, baba baninath and other potential sites in form of mounds that are rich with expansive archaeological evidence, both surfaced and sub-surfaced. Sahet-Mahet at Shravasti is an ancient Buddhist site having a group of archeological remains encompassing distinct building typologies that were identified as a sacred Buddhist monastery of - one of the eight holy places of Buddhism. Situated in present- tehsil of Shravasti district which comes under Devipatan Mandal of Uttar Pradesh. Unlike most of the Buddhist pilgrimage site in Gangetic plains of India, Shravasti is among one of the ignored and insufficiently explored Buddhist sites of India, even though it is equally significant in all aspects of Buddhism and also has significant contribution in development of early Buddhist architecture. In this thesis, an attempt has been made to provide a comprehensive study of the ancient city of Shravasti in terms of historical background, geographical setting of the region, architecture, Mythologies, existing cultural resource on-site and its documentation thus identifying the current management issues and challenges along with upcoming threats that the site might face. The studies also recognized that the existing boundaries of the monuments were confined to scattered monuments and excludes many historic archaeological features which, contribute overall value and significance. The thesis envisions to comprehend the overall value and significance of the site and proposes a comprehensive site management plan for the ancient Buddhist site Sahet-Mahet at Shravasti, Uttar Pradesh. It also rationalizes the site boundary ensuring the integrity of the Ancient City of Shravasti Site Management Plan for Ancient Buddhist site Sahet Mahet at Shravasti, U.P. 1 Table of Con