Wender·Vista
Mahabodhi Temple
shown on ceramic, 12-inch tileIndia
at Bodh Gaya, on the plain of Bihar

Mahabodhi Temple

— — the place where a man sat under a tree.

— Where it lives

Not only on a wall.

A small tile on the nightstand catching the morning. A larger one above the fire. Yours, wherever you spend the slow hours.
— On the nightstand, a 6-inch on a walnut stand
— Among the books, a 6-inch leaning into the spines
— Beside the kettle, a 12-inch propped
— Down a quiet hall, an 18-inch floating off the wall
— Above the fire, the 24-inch in a walnut surround
— a note from the studio

“Bodh Gaya, on the Bihar plain about a hundred kilometres south of Patna. The brick tower has stood here since roughly the sixth century, raised on the site Ashoka first marked in the third century BCE. The Bodhi tree behind it is a direct descendant of the tree the Buddha sat under. Monks from a dozen countries keep monasteries within walking distance of the gate.

from the studio
Mahabodhi Temple
— bring it home

Mahabodhi Temple, on ceramic.

Each tile is finished by hand in our Knoxville studio. Artwork is slowly infused into the ceramic surface under high heat and pressure, and rests beneath a thin glossy finish. The colour lives in the surface, not on top of it.

What kind of piece?
One tile — square or rectangle.
How big?
the popular one — counter, shelf, nightstand
6 × 6 in · 15 cm · 1.6 lb
Surface finish
A clear glossy finish — the artwork reads as if under resin. Ideal for show-pieces and framed wall art.
How it sits
A hidden cleat — sits ¼″ proud of the wall.
$58
Hand-finished and shipped from our studio at the foot of the Smokies. On your wall in about ten days.
— size
6 × 6 in
15 cm
— weighs
1.6 lb
solid in the hand
— surface
ceramic, hand-finished
art rests beneath a thin glossy finish
— from
Knoxville, TN
our family studio, at the foot of the Smokies
— start a Coaster Set

Pick any four 4-inch tiles — National Parks you've been to, a Smokies set, the four seasons of one place. $ for a set of , cork-backed, ready to live on the table.

— about Mahabodhi Temple

The place, in three passes.

A little of what's known, in case you fall down the rabbit hole — or want to go see it yourself.
— the place

The Mahabodhi Temple stands in Bodh Gaya, in Bihar's Gaya district, about 96 km south of Patna and 12 km from the city of Gaya. The present brick structure dates to the late Gupta period, between the fifth and sixth centuries CE, raised on the site of an earlier shrine built by the Emperor Ashoka in the third century BCE. The central tower rises about 55 metres above the temple platform. UNESCO inscribed the complex on the World Heritage List in 2002.

— informed by UNESCO World Heritage
— the stone

The temple is built of brick rather than stone — exceptional for a structure of this scale and age on the Indian subcontinent. The exterior carries niches of stucco Buddha figures and the distinctive curvilinear sikhara profile that shaped Burmese and Thai temple architecture for centuries. The Vajrasana, or Diamond Throne, sits behind the temple between the building and the Bodhi tree — a polished sandstone slab installed by Ashoka in the third century BCE, marking the spot of the Buddha's enlightenment.

— the visit

The complex is open to visitors from dawn until well after dark, with no entry fee for the main temple. The cool season from November through February is the pilgrimage high season, when His Holiness the Dalai Lama has historically led teachings in early January. Photography is permitted in the outer compound but not inside the inner sanctum. The Bodhi tree itself is roped off; pilgrims circle the platform on a paved circumambulation path and tie thread to the railing of the Vajrasana.

— where
India · Bodh Gaya, Bihar
— position
24.6961° N · 84.9912° E
— the neighborhood

What's nearby.

A handful of named places within an hour's walk or short drive. Some we've already painted; some we will.
at the lake
Bodhi Tree
sacred tree
1 km S
Great Buddha Statue
25 m sandstone Buddha
1 km E
Niranjana River
seasonal river
1 km S
Thai Monastery Bodh Gaya
Thai temple complex
12 km N
Gaya
regional city
N
Mahabodhi Temple
Bodhi Tree
Great Buddha Statue
Niranjana River
Thai Monastery Bodh Gaya
Gaya
— common questions

What people ask.

A few questions we get about Mahabodhi Temple — and about bringing the piece home.
— about the place

The Buddhist temple that marks the spot where the Buddha attained enlightenment, in Bodh Gaya, Bihar. The current brick structure dates to the fifth or sixth century CE, raised on the site of an earlier shrine built by the Emperor Ashoka.

The present building is roughly 1,500 years old, raised in the late Gupta period between the fifth and sixth centuries CE. The site itself has been venerated since the third century BCE, when Ashoka built the first shrine and the Vajrasana throne.

It is a direct descendant. The current tree was grown from a cutting of a sapling taken to Sri Lanka by Sanghamitta in the third century BCE — itself a cutting of the original. The same lineage has been replanted at Bodh Gaya across centuries.

UNESCO inscribed the Mahabodhi Temple Complex on the World Heritage List in 2002, as one of the four holy sites associated with the life of the Buddha. The other three are Lumbini, Sarnath, and Kushinagar.

The main sikhara rises about 55 metres above the temple platform. Its curvilinear profile is one of the earliest surviving examples of its kind in Indian architecture and influenced Buddhist temple design across Southeast Asia.

The nearest railway station is Gaya Junction, about 12 km north of the temple, on the main Howrah-Delhi line. Gaya Airport, 8 km from Bodh Gaya, operates seasonal international flights from Bangkok, Yangon, and Colombo during pilgrimage season.

— about the piece in your home

It has carried well for our customers who keep a meditation practice or who have made the pilgrimage to Bodh Gaya. The temple is the geographic centre of Buddhist devotion. A Small or Keepsake for a shrine or meditation corner sits naturally.

The piece sits well with Japandi, warm minimalist, and meditation-room interiors. The amber and stone palette pairs naturally with oak, raw linen, paper lanterns, and unfinished plaster.

Yes. Japandi has steadily expanded to include South and Southeast Asian sources — temples, sandstone, lotus motifs. The Mahabodhi piece sits inside that broader devotional-minimal direction.

A single Large above a console or altar; a 4-tile Mural above a sofa; a 9-tile Mural above a king bed or long entryway wall. Step up one size if the ceiling rises above nine feet.

Yes, with the Dura Satin or Matte finish. Both are scratch-resistant and humidity-stable, intended for backsplashes, showers, and other vertical installations in wet rooms.

A soft microfibre cloth and clean water. No solvents, no abrasive pads. The colour lives in the ceramic surface, not on top of it, so it cleans like a tile.

Yes. Every WenderVista piece is original to our studio in Knoxville, Tennessee. There is no licensing and no third-party catalogue; Reid curates, the studio finishes each piece by hand.

— if this one stayed with you

A few you might also love.

Hand-picked by the eye that found Sorapis. Same air, same kind of quiet.