Hyderabad: A Buddha Parinirvana sculpture was discovered in Telangana’s Adilabad district by a History lecturer, Roddavaru Prithviraj, member of Kotha Telangana Charitra Brundam.
Translating to “New History Group of Telangana,” KTCR is a prominent, grassroots-level collective of amateur historians, archaeologists, and heritage enthusiasts dedicated to uncovering and preserving the forgotten history of Telangana.
Prithviraj noticed a Buddha Parinirvana sculpture carved on one side of a stone pillar with half-reliefs on all four sides in Bhimsari village.
Convenor of the history team, Sriramoju Haragopal, examined the sculpture pillar and confirmed it as a Buddha Parinirvana sculpture. “The reclining Buddha is lying turned to his right side, with his right hand placed under his head. This is exactly the Buddha Parinirvana sculpture as described in the ‘Parinibbana Sutta’,” he said.
Dr Shivanagireddy, CEO of Pleach India Foundation and a fellow historian, also saw the sculpture, asserting it was an accurate spotting. He explained that Buddha Parinirvana sculptures have previously been found in Telangana, one on the adhisthana (base) of the Bhimeshwara Temple in the Vemulawada town in Rajanna Sircilla district.
On the remaining three sides of the pillar are half-reliefs of Vishnu Sayana Murti (reclining Vishnu), a heroic warrior figure in royal attire holding a sword, and Uma Lingana Murti (Shiva embracing Uma/Parvati). According to the KTCR group, it is rare to find such diverse religious sculptures carved on a single stone pillar. This is the first time such a sculpture pillar has been discovered in Telangana, the organisation said.
