Lord Buddha Goes By The Name Of Teliya Baba In This Bihar Temple

 

 

Nalanda : A statue of Lord Buddha that is popularly known as 'Teliya Baba' in Nalanda district of Bihar draws visitors from countries where Buddhism is followed by a large number of people. People from South East Asian countries queue up at this temple of 'Black' Buddha located in Badgaon village, which is just 15 km from the district headquarters of Bihar Sharif.

 

There is a popular belief about this statue according to which, wishes of devotees offering mustard oil, coconut oil and ghee are fulfilled. Temple priest, Shaligram Pandey, disclosed, "This statue of Lord Buddha was found during the excavation of the area. This is essentially a statue of Gautam Buddha dating back to the time when Nalanda was the biggest centre of learning in the entire world."

 

He said that thousands studied here, and since sculpture as a discipline of learning started at Nalanda, students used to showcase their skills. This is a specimen of that art. Pandey went on to claim that the Black Buddha was seated atop seven lotuses. He said that the invader Bakhtiyar Khilji attempted to take this statue away, and when he was unable to do so, he damaged it.

 

It is said that Khilji set fire to the Nalanda University library, burning the books. It is claimed that the library was so vast that the fire continued for months. At that time, he wanted to take the Black Buddha with him. Due to a lack of transportation facilities, an attempt was made to transport the statue with the help of elephants and horses.

The invader was unable to transport the statue made in black stone because of its excessive weight. In the process, five lotus flowers on which the Buddha sat got buried. The frustrated invader damaged the statue.

The statue's fingers, toes, nose and eyes were destroyed, and it was covered with soil on which farming was done. It was during the ploughing that the plough got stuck in the statue's matted hair.

 

During the excavation that followed, the statue resurfaced, and people began worshipping it. There is a story that the parents of a malnourished child prayed for their child to become healthy like Buddha, and their wish was fulfilled. From then onwards, people recognised the statue as ‘Kaal Bhairav’ alias Teliya Baba.

Although visitors from India and abroad visit the temple in large numbers, the flow of devotees is low this year due to the devastating floods in Thailand. Around 10 families make a living at the site by selling black statues of Lord Buddha and other worship paraphernalia.