Is it the same tree?
The short answer is that the tree standing at Bodh Gaya today is not generally regarded as the exact plant under which the Buddha sat, but it is honoured as part of an unbroken line, in the sense that tradition gives it. The species is the sacred fig, Ficus religiosa, known as the pipal or bodhi tree. A single such tree can live for a very long time, but the history of this particular tree is one of damage, loss and replacement. Different sources give different accounts, and the record is partly legend and partly documented.
This article is about that lineage. The wider tree symbolism in Buddhist art is a separate subject; the following focuses on the history of the tree at Bodh Gaya.
What the sources say
Early texts and later accounts say that the tree was honoured soon after the awakening. Buddhist tradition says Emperor Ashoka held it in great reverence, and stories describe jealous rivals, injuries to the tree and its renewal. A well-known tradition says a hostile ruler named Shashanka cut it down or burned it in the early seventh century, and that a Buddhist king named Purnavarman restored it, in a story recorded by the Chinese traveller Xuanzang. Historians treat the details as part of tradition, but the idea that the tree was destroyed and replaced more than once is widely accepted.
Over the centuries the tree suffered from age, weather and neglect. Nineteenth-century observers described a tree in poor condition. Alexander Cunningham, writing in the 1870s and 1880s, reported that an old tree had fallen in a storm in 1876 and that the stump and a replacement were in place, and that a new plant had been established nearby later. The tree visited by pilgrims now is usually described as having grown from that replacement, though details vary by source.
The Anuradhapura connection
A much older tradition links the Bodh Gaya tree to Sri Lanka. According to the Sri Lankan chronicles, in the third century BCE, Sanghamitta, a nun traditionally described as Ashoka’s daughter, carried a branch or sapling of the Bodhi tree to the island, where it was planted at Anuradhapura. The tree there, known today as the Sri Maha Bodhi, is honoured as one of the oldest continuously tended trees with a recorded planting date, though that date rests on tradition and chronicle rather than independent proof.
Because of this tradition, Sri Lankan Buddhists have long regarded their tree as a living link. The same line of reasoning is why reports of cuttings from Anuradhapura being sent to Bodh Gaya in the nineteenth century carry meaning for Buddhists: the tree is thought to have returned to its place of origin. Accounts of exactly when and how this happened vary, and you should read claims about specific planting dates cautiously.
Many other Bodhi trees across Asia are said to descend from either tree, including trees at temples in Thailand, Myanmar, Japan and elsewhere. These claims of descent are traditional, and very few can be checked.
Living with a sacred tree
At Bodh Gaya the tree stands inside the temple compound, behind a protective railing, beside the stone seat. Leaves that fall are sometimes gathered by pilgrims. Visitors should not pick leaves or branches from the tree, and should follow the guidance of staff. Rules about touching the tree, tying threads or placing offerings differ and can change.
Buddhist communities hold special ceremonies at the tree. Offerings of water, known as a Bodhi Puja in some Sri Lankan and other communities, honour the tree with water, flowers and chanting. Customs differ by country and community.
Caring for an old tree
A sacred tree that draws large numbers of visitors faces practical problems, such as pressure on the ground around its roots, pollution and pests. Care of the tree is the responsibility of the temple’s managers, and the measures taken change over time, so rely on current official information if you want specifics.
What the lineage means
Perhaps the most helpful way to approach the tree is as a living continuity rather than a relic. The idea that it is both new and old, replaced and the same, speaks to ideas of impermanence and continuity in Buddhist thought. Visitors of any belief can appreciate the quiet of the place, and the care people take over a tree that has been lost and found again many times.