In the PBS series, Secrets of the Dead, historian Charles Allen investigates what remains of the Buddha’s body in an episode named Bones of the Buddha.
This very interesting story was encased in controversy since the discovery of a stupa in Piprahwa, Northern India. This happens to be located in the ancient land of the Shakya clan where the Prince Siddhartha Gautama, the Buddha was born.
Since their discovery in 1897 by a British amateur archeologist, William Claxton Peppe until recently, the relics found in the stupa at Piprahwa were thought to be fake.
After the Buddha entered his final nirvana at the age of 80 after teaching for 35 years, his remains were supposedly divided into eight parts. One of the parts went to the Shakya clan and perhaps they were buried in Piprahwa.
I think you’ll find this video very enchanting and worth your time. The surprising result of Professor Allen’s investigation is monumental.
So, what remains of the Buddha’s body?
