History
Vidisha was the capital city of the ancient Malwa kingdom. Over the years, many Buddhist monuments were constructed within a 20 kilometre radius of Vidisha.
The emperor Asoka married a woman from Vidisha. He built for her the Caityagiri Vihara at Sanchi. Their son the arahant Mahinda set out from this place to convert Sri Lanka. Their daughter Sanghamitta set off from here with a sapling of the sacred Bo-tree from Bodhgaya, which was planted in Anuradhapura: the Sri Mahabodhi which is the oldest recorded tree in the world.
The Sanchi stupas date from the third century BC and are some of the best preserved historical monuments in India. There is no direct connection between Sanchi and the Buddha. The seventh century Chinese traveler Huen Tsang, who journeyed across India and wrote in detail about Buddhist monuments in India does not even mention Sanchi in his travelogues.
Yet, Sanchi is a must-see on every Buddhist's pilgrimage of Buddhist holy sites.
