The presence of two monasteries — Mugalayikaviharika and Yajñapindikamahavihara have been confirmed from recent excavations at Moghalmari.
Moghalmari is a Buddhist monastic site of the early medieval period in West Bengal’s Paschim Medinipur district.
Facts
- The two monasteries were confirmed in a recent study of inscriptions on clay tablets recovered.
- The study was published in the PratnaSamiskha- a leading peer-reviewed journal from Bengal on Indian Archaeology.
- The monasteries at Moghalmari date from 6th century CE and were functional till the 12th century CE.
- During excavations six tiny fragments of inscribed seals were found. Each of them contained a set of letters accompanied by the deer-dharmachakra symbols.
- The inscriptions are in Sanskrit and the script is a transitional phase between later north Indian Brahmi and early Siddhamatrika.
- The first name Yajñapindikamahavihara, implying etymologically ‘a place of sacrificial offering’ is of special significance. The second name on the seals, Mugalayikaviharika, bears a phonetic resemblance to the modern name of the site, Moghalmari.
- Chinese traveller Xuanzang-widely identified as Huen Tsang referred to the existence of ‘ten monasteries’ within the limits of Tamralipta .
