The site where Sākyamuni attained Buddhahood has been known as the Place of Enlightenment or Buddhagayā ever since. The Pippala tree there, as well as that kind of tree in general later became known as Bodhi tree. Bodhi means enlightenment. Buddhagayā is situated in the southern suburbs of Gayā City in Bihar Pradesh of India today. In the course of more than twenty centuries, the Bodhi tree was twice chopped down and once blown over, but always sprouted again. The present Bodhi tree is a great grandson of the original one. At the plot where the Buddha sat under the tree is a stone-carved diamond pedestal (Vajrāsana). To the east of the tree is a majestic thūpa (S. stūpa) temple known as Mahābodhi ārāma with a history of over 18 centuries, and nearby are a number of traces of the Buddha and ancient carved stones and constructions. In 1956, the government of Bihar Pradesh appointed an international advisory committee to supervise the construction and administration of the Holy Land. At its invitation the Buddhist Association of China, sent two delegates to that committee.
釋迦牟尼成佛處,自古稱為菩提場或菩提伽耶(Buddhagay?。?,那里的畢缽羅樹,因為佛坐在樹下成道的緣故,得到了菩提樹之名。從此,所有畢缽羅樹都叫做菩提樹。“菩提”就是“覺”的意思。菩提伽耶在今天印度比哈爾省伽耶城(Gay?。┑哪辖肌D强闷刑針湓诙?shù)百年中曾兩次遭到斫伐,一次遭風拔,但都重生了新芽,現(xiàn)在的菩提樹是原來那棵樹的曾孫。樹下釋迦牟尼坐處有石刻的金剛座。樹的東面有一座宏偉莊嚴的塔寺,名叫大菩提寺,至今約有一千八百多年的歷史,附近還有許多佛的遺跡和古代石刻與建筑。1956年印度比哈爾省政府為了這個圣地的建設(shè)和管理, 設(shè)立了一個國際性的咨詢委員會。中國佛教協(xié)會接受了邀請,指派了兩名代表參加該會。