Who were Chaityas?
The word ‘Chaitya’ has been derived from the word ‘Chita’. The Hindi word ‘Chita’ meant a funeral pyre and by extension a funerary mound. In the Buddhist literature, Chaityas were those sacred places that were associated with the life of Buddha. For example, the Buddhists consider Lumbini, Bodh Gaya, Sarnath, and Kushinagar as the Chaityas.
