In 236 BC, the Buddhist nun Sangamitta Maha Theri, a daughter of Indian Ashoka,[1][2][3][4] brought the tree cutting to Sri Lanka during the reign of Sinhalese King Devanampiya Tissa.

About 2,600 years ago, Lord Gautama Buddha sat with his back against an Esathu (Aśvattha) tree on the banks of the Neranjana River in Bodhgaya, India.

Statues, water canals, golden fences, and walls have been built around the tree over the centuries, and many vows and offerings have been made by Buddhists at the foot of the sacred fig.

Every year, pilgrims from remote areas travel to the city of Anuradhapura to pay their respects to the Sri Maha Bodhi, a site of immense spiritual significance.

This practice is rooted in the belief that such offerings help ensure a successful harvest, reducing the impact of challenges like drought, pest infestations, and even damage from wildlife, such as elephants.

In 288 BC[8][9][10][11] it was planted by King Devanampiya Tissa on a high terrace about 6.5 m (21.3 ft) above the ground in the Mahamevnāwa Park in Anuradhapura and surrounded by railings.

[12] The present wall was constructed by Ilupandeniye Athtadassi Thero during the reign of King Kirti Sri Rajasinha (r. 1747-1782), to protect it from wild elephants which might have damaged the tree.

[citation needed] The first golden fence around the sacred tree was constructed by some Buddhist followers in Anuradhapura under the guidance of Yatirawana Narada Thero in 1969.

The largest – and also in other aspects the most spectacular – stone image of a seated Buddha in Sri Lanka is located since about the sixth century on the premises of the Śrī Mahā Bodhi Shrine at the Mahāvihāra complex at Anurādhapura.

The statue is carved out of a single slab of dolomite marble, measures 3.3 metres in height and is since 1911 installed in the image-house located east of the sacred Bodhi-tree.

The gesture of touching the earth (bhūmisparśa-mudrā) symbolizes Buddha Siddhartha's defeat of Māra (māravijaya) and subsequent enlightenment under the Bodhi-tree at Bodhgayā (Gayā district, Bihar, N.-E. India).

This Buddha was commissioned to be installed in the Śrī Mahā Bodhi Shrine and likely copied after an early North-Eastern Indian Pāla style image.

[citation needed] According to the ancient chronicles in Sri Lanka, some walls and terraces had been built surrounding the sacred tree at some time in the past.