The Stupa & Stela (Comparison)

 

Stupa 3, 1st c., Sanchi, India (photo: Nagarjun Kandukuru, CC: BY 2.0)

    The Stupa represents a monument that is intended to be a place or relic for burial in Buddhism. This stupa that is pictured above is a structure that was formed as a dirt mound and then covered in stone for a better representation. This is a form of memorial to remember the person buried inside whether it be through ashes or certain religious objects. Buddhists come to these stupas in order to achieve enlightenment by fully understanding the Four Noble Truths (Life is suffering, the cause of suffering is desire, the cause of desire must be overcome, when desire is overcome there is no more suffering.) It is also believed that paying ones respects can insure karmic benefits. 

The Monument of Stelae of Aksum (3rd-4th Century)

    These tall structures are known as Stelae's which stand as monuments for the deceased and usually are positioned near the tombs. There are several variations to which these monuments come in and that all depends on the wealth and social status of a person. According to the Department of the Arts of Africa, Oceania, and the Americas,  "The stelae were carved mainly from solid blocks of nepheline syenite, a weather-resistant rock similar in appearance to granite, and are believed to have come from the quarries of Wuchate Golo several miles to the west of Aksum."(2000) Each monument comes with its own design that representations the architecture of the time. 

Each of the two monuments pictured above similarly represent the same objectives and that is to be a memorial to those that are deceased. The stupa is more of a representation of a place where Buddhists can come for religious reasons to find their own enlightenment. As far as it goes for the Stelae, although these memorials were made in correlation to wealth and social status the adoption of Christianity took place as these monuments rose up. They both are great memorials that each signify the power behind their specific religion or belief systems associated with life & death. 

https://smarthistory.org/the-stupa/

https://www.metmuseum.org/toah/hd/aksu_2/hd_aksu_2.htm