ASIAN ART UNIT 2

Lunging Colossal Buddha

10 mi. west of Datong, cave sculptures were commissioned by Northern Wei. Became pilgrimage site. Cave XX - a colossal seated Buddha was accompanied by a standing Bodhisattva to the left, and another one to the right (destroyed), and many small seated Buddhas on the background. It was inspired by the colossal Buddha at Bamiyan. This seated Vairochana Buddha also has a mask-like face, straight nose, Roman style robe. It is more geometrical and simplified in the hair and drapery folds. They are flat, strap-like folds, probably copied from a Indian prototype by the Chinese artisans who did not properly understand the technique. Its large earlobes, recall the noble background of the historical Buddha, for as a prince, wearing earrings made the earlobes elongated. The figure is geometrical, symmetrical, regularized, ideal in shape, perfect in form (shoulders and chest are massive), finely proportioned.

The Silk Route

2nd century BCE, a trade route was formed through the Middle East and Central Asia extending all the way from China to Rome. Spread Buddhism throughout. During the Kushan period, Buddhist art accompanied the commerce along the trade route into central Asia and China, and from China to Korea to Japan. In order to receive bliss from Buddha for a safe journey, merchants and caravan masters were generous patrons for stupas, viharas (Buddhist monasteries), and Buddhist cave temples in the oasis centers along the trade route.

Northern Wei Dynasty

386-535 AD Northern China. Established capital at Datong. Adopted Buddhism as the state religion, became patrons of monasteries and cave temples. In the capital, there were more than one hundred Buddhist temples, more than two thousand monks and nuns. Local temples numbered over 6,478, with over 77,258 monks and nuns.

Brama

A Hindu God, the creator.

Shiva

A Hindu God, the destroyer, who has the power of destruction and recreation. He is the Lord of Dance and the Lord of Animals.

Vishnu

A Hindu God, the preserver, represents the aspect of sustaining life. He has 10 incarnations.

Brahman

A Hindu concept, the only real existence, the universal spirit, or undifferentiated eternal principle of existence of Hinduism.

Mahayana Buddhism

"The Greater Vehicle," a school of Buddhism different from Theravada Buddhism, Buddha is believed to be divine and can intervene in human salvation.

Buddha

(Gautama, Shakyamuni) - 562-483 BCE Queen Maya - Buddha's mother

Colossal Buddha at Bamiyan

At Bamiyan, an oasis in the desert in Afghanistan, hundreds of Buddhist cave temples were carved into the face of cliffs from the 4th to 5th century CE. Became pilgrimage site. Rich merchants became patrons for temples. The largest one was a standing Buddha which is about 175 feet high. It is close in style to the Gupta Mathura Buddhas wearing body-revealing Greco-Roman robe with rigid regular folds. It was first carved into living rock, then holes were drilled on the surface, pegs were inserted, ropes were attached to form the folds of the robe, then a thick layer of stucco plaster was added, and finally the statute covered with gold leaf. Its enormous size dwarfed the worshipers in front of it. Its gold shining surface made it illuminated and spiritual. Images of Buddha are equivalent to the relics of Buddha (stupa) and remind a worshiper of the presence of Buddha. This image of Budha was a Vairochana Buddha, the Body of Essence, one of the three bodies of the Buddha of Mahayana Buddhism. It is meant to be eternal, universal, and supernatural.

Prince Shotoku Taishi (572-622 CE)

Buddhism endorsed by this Japanese leader. Buddhism reached Japan in the middle of the 6th century from Korea after centuries of development in China. The introduction of Buddhism exerted a far-reaching effect on many aspects of Japanese life. Cause disputes between buddhism and shintoism. Prince Shotoku attempted to centralize power and to unify the clan-chiefs whose rivalries had previously dominated Japanese life. He used as a model the Chinese court and thereby played a leading role in the absorption of Chinese aristocratic culture into Japan. Shotoku built his palace at Ikaruga and next to it a Buddhist temple over a Korean model. By 614, or 50 years after the presentation of the first Buddhist statue to Japan, there were 46 temples and 1385 ordained monks and nuns.

Horyu-ji

Buddhist temple complex near Nara, Japan (607 CE) A Japanese Buddhist temple built in the early 7th century CE, in the Asuka period, near Nara, Japan. It is the oldest extant wood construction in the world. It was modeled after Chinese Buddhist temples and built in the style of Chinese palaces. It was founded in 607 CE and is a treasure house of immense value as an example of this early phase of architecture. One enters the temple-monastery complex through the chumon, the gate on the south face of the encircling cloister, and finds to the left (west) a pagoda and to the right (east) the Golden Hall (kondo). Instead of proceeding into the depths of the compound through a succession of buildings as was the custom in China, the pilgrim makes a lateral turn.

Gandhara Buddha from N.W. Pakistan, Gray Schist, Mahayana Buddhism, Kushan Period, 2nd century CE

Gandhara was another center of Indian Buddhist art of the Kushan period. It was a style strongly influenced by Roman sculptures because of the occupation by Alexander the Great late in the 4th century BCE. Gandhara Buddhas were made of a kind of grayish schist, different from the red sandstone of which Mathura Buddhist sculptures were made. Gandhara Buddhist figures have oval faces, long straight noses, high-arched eyebrows, cupid's-bow lips, hard and geometrical drapery. Their heavy robes concealed their bodies.

Mudra

Hand gesture of Buddha with different meanings ex. Hand out forward - "fear not"

Yakshi (F), yaksha (M)

Hindu nature deities - Imagery found on the toranas of the great stupa.

Sakyamuni

Historic buddha

The Chaitya-hall at Karli, with vihara

In addition to the stupa, the other two important Buddhist architectural forms are chaitya-hall (sacred places for Buddhists) and vihara (a dwelling place for monks). Karli is an example of the chaitya-hall, which was cut out of living rock (see plan, elevation and view of interior, below). Many chaitya-hall had viharas attached to them. The two together served as a monastery setting for early Buddhist devotees.

Devaraja

It is a newly designed cult of Hinduism in Cambodia. Deva means god; raja means ruler. So, devaraja means god-kings. It refers to the Khmer rulers who had both the religious and political power.

Karma

Law of return

Gupta period

This dynasty succeeded the Kushan dynasty, 320-600CE This period was the zenith of Buddhist art. It had an enormous influence on Buddhist art of later periods in India and beyond. Mathura and Sarnath are the two regional schools of Buddhist art of this period. Mathura style vs. Sarnath style in the Gupta period. Buddha images of these two styles have much larger halos with elaborate floral designs. They have broad shoulders and narrow waists. Their elongated graceful bodies are in unrealistically perfect forms, which are slenderer than Kushan figures. The eyes are downcast or half-closed. Their robes are so thin that their bodies are revealed. Their facial expression is self-contained and in deep meditation, which shows inner peace and contemplation. The differences between the two styles in the Gupta period are mainly in their drapery.

Lingam

Phallus-shaped representation of Shiva, usually worshiped in a sanctuary of a Hindu temple dedicated to Shiva.

Mandala

a diagram of the cosmos

Nirvana

an enlightened state

Shiva Nataraja (the Lord of Dance)

cast bronze, dated to the 11th or 12th century, in the Chola dynasty, from south India. The big ring represents flame and fire, symbolizing Shiva's great power of destruction and creation. Shiva is also the Lord of Dance. His lifted foot represents the refuge of the soul, and a universal dance, the destruction and creation of the universe. His vehicle is the bull called Nandi. He has a third eye on the forehead and four or more arms carrying a trident, a drum, a small deer. Dressed in the skin of animals, he is wearing a snake scarf, and trampling a dwarf (the evil of ignorance). The drum held in one of his hands is a hunter's drum because he is a hunter God, the Lord of Animals. On the whole, this image of Shiva is dynamic, engaging, and supernatural. It demonstrates the close relationship between a Hindu practitioner and a God. The Gods are personal Gods, and are approachable by individuals through private devotions.

Tamamushi Shrine

enclosed a sacred image

Chumon

entry gate

Shaka Triad

gilded-bronze group of Buddhist statues by Tori Busshi in kondo at Horyu-ji (623 CE)

Kondo

golden hall - The main function of the temple hall is to enclose them, forming a shrine rather than an assembly hall for a community. A special hall on the north end outside the cloister was set aside for sermons and disputations. In the kondo are the images of the main cult statue of Buddha in a triad. This group is the spiritual center of a temple complex and is therefore most lavishly embellished: the pillars and beams are painted and gilded, the ceiling, in the form of a canopy, represents paradise or heaven.

Ellura

great site for Hindu art in Central India; Kailasanatha Temple, begun 760 CE), southern, or Dravidian style By 600 the caves were a center for Buddhist worship, with Buddhist images carved both in the shrines of pillared halls and in the apsidal chaitya worship hall, where the Buddha is carved on the front of a monolithic stupa. Later (675- 720), three storied Buddhist caves focused worship on multiple Buddhas and other deities.

Vihara

monk's cells

Pagoda

multi-storied towers used as relic halls in China and Japan, function as a stupa does in India

Shinto

native Japanese nature religion

Jataka Tales

stories about the previous lives of Buddha

Aniconic

symbolic representations of Buddha's presence without description of him in human form.

"Descent of the Ganges"

An open air relief carved onto a living rock, a Hindu pilgrimage site, located at Mamallapuram, India, created in 7th century CE, commissioned by local king, representing the power of creation.

Churning of The Sea Of Milk

Angkor Wat, Khmer period, first half of the 12th century, stone. More than sixteen hundred apsaras (celestial nymphs) in different moods and expressions occur at every corner and along the walls of the temple, for example. Of those scenes dedicated specifically to Vishnu, "The Churning of the Sea of Milk" is one of the most celebrated. There Vishnu, the great Hindu deity known as the Preserver who saves the universe from catastrophe, appears in his avatar (a saving manifestation) as a tortoise. Hoping to obtain the Dew of Immortality, the gods and demons (asuras) made a truce so they could churn the Sea of Milk using a serpent wound around the World Mountain. When the Mountain began to sink into the Sea, Vishnu, in the guise of a tortoise, sat beneath it to support it. The Sea gave forth delights, including the Dew, which Vishnu obtained for the gods alone by assuming the form of a desirable woman, Mohini, who seduced the asuras into abandoning the elixirs. The gods defeated the demons and Vishnu was credited with reconstituting the balance of good and evil. Carved in a style which is formal and heiratic, the silhouetted and repeated forms resemble the rhythmic and measured ritual dances performed by the court dancers of ancient Cambodia.

Boh (or bodhi) tree

Buddha attained enlightenment while sitting under this type of tree

Probhutaratna

Buddha of the past

Amitabha

Buddha of the west

Kailasanatha

A Hindu pilgrimage site located at Ellura, carved out of a stone cliff, 8th to 9th century CE, commissioned by a local king, local king—Krishna I. The main temple represents the residence of Shiva and his wife, the World Mountain, with a lingam enshrined in it. "magic mountain" in living rock where the theme of the sacred mountain abode (Mount Kailasa) of Shiva and his consort Parvati is repeated several times. massive stone cutting and oriented the structure to correspond to the four cardinal directions, the world compass. buried a box containing a "wealth of the earth, stones, gems, herbs, roots, metals and soils, tying the temple to ancient fertility beliefs and emphasizing the vitality of the religion. This complex is an achievement of sculpture rather than architecture. The temple is composed of a court 276 feet long and 154 feet wide and a central tower reaching a height of 96 feet. The sheer physical problem of carving this tremendous temple from the living rock is awesome. The beginning of the carving was even higher than the finished tower, so the depth of the cut was actually about 120 feet. Upon entering this massive complex, the contrast of the strong sunlight and deep blue shadows cast by the surrounding mountainside dramatize the movement of space along the pathways and across the sculptural relief. The sculptural representations move and gesture wildly and enhance an overall sense of exaltation for the believer. The boldness of conception and the great skill exhibited in its execution suggest centuries of tradition in which carving techniques and an understanding of the rock medium were developed, enabling craft workers to push this southern Indian type of rock-cut temple to its limits. For instance, several of the shrines at the Kailasanatha Temple do not have an inside sanctuary at all (Nandi Shrine and the main shrine are open only on the second level). Even when they are entered, the interior space is very small, requiring an individual approach to the sacred images. Hinduism is a religion with a personal approach to the gods, accommodated by including thousands of deities to choose from in the pantheon

Kushan Period

A dynasty of ancient India (50-320CE), ruled by the Kushans, a nomadic group of people who came from Central Asia. In this period, the first images of Buddha appeared. Two schools of Buddhist art are known as the Mathura and the Gandhra. Mathura style in central India vs. Gandhara style in northwestern India in the Kushan period.

Bodhisattva

A new idea of Mahayana Buddhism, "being of wisdom," beings whose essence is intelligence and who had achieved enlightenment and could enter Nirvana but choose to stay in this world to help other beings to do so.

Mathura

A place in central India, the center of Buddhist art in the Kushan and Gupta periods. Gupta - Fluid stringy drapery over the body. Round face, full lips, broad nose. Kushan -

Gandhara

A place in northwestern India, the center of Buddhist art in the Kushan period. The Gandharan style is strongly influenced by Roman art. Oval faces. Long straight noses. High arched brows. Cupid's bow lips. hard geometric drapery with many folds.

Guanyin

Bodhisattva of compassion and mercy

Mandorla

Body halo

Ankor wat

Cambodia (Kampuchea), Hindu Temple and mausoleum at capital, Khmer Period, first half of the 12th century, stone commissioned by Surya Varman II. The plan of the temple is simple and approximates the World Mountain (Mt. Meru) and embodies the ancient Khmer concept of the axis of the universe. There are three concentric, consecutive galleries which rise toward the center and are separated by paved courtyards. The highest gallery is at the center and is capped by a large central tower. All together there are nine towers. The area covered by the temple is 5,000 feet by 4,000 feet and is surrounded by moats which are 623 feet wide. The causeway over the moat is paved in hard sandstone and leads directly to the central portico. The inner wall of the temple measures 3,363 feet by 2,625 feet while the entrance building is 1148 feet long. Angkor Wat stands out as a masterpiece of Khmer art, both in massiveness and ornamental detail. Creation of a perfect step pyramid. The rise of the terraces is so well calculated that they all appear to be of equal height, without obscuring the view of the other terraces. A perfect harmony of proportion is also displayed in the balance between vertical and horizontal planes. Chiseled with a variety of decorations, of which the bas-reliefs of Vaishaivite Indian myths and epics as well as historical triumphs and dancing figures are the best known.

Theravada (or Hinayana) Buddhism (Lesser Vehicle) vs Mahayana Buddhism

Primitive school of Buddhism, based on a moral code. Theravada Buddhism regarded Buddha as a historical figure and a great teacher, and each person had to work out his or her own salvation by strictly following the footsteps of Buddha such as meditation and concentration. Mahayana Buddhism believed that Buddha was a supernatural and divine being so that he could save the followers from the endless wheel of rebirths and suffering just through their faith. Theravada Buddhism was limited to a small group of people; while, Mahayana Buddhism could accommodate a greater number of people.

Stele

Stone monument or tablet sculpted in relief

Buddha represented - Shaka Triad

The Buddha is represented with a serene and remote aspect, larger than life. He wears a monk's robe and is seated in the position of meditation. His elongated ears, the mark on his forehead and his hair all recall his noble birth. His attendants, the smaller bodhisattvas, are dressed in worldly costumes with crowns and jewels recalling their dedication to earthly affairs of the suffering. Buddha's frontal, seated pose, his dress, and hand gestures (mudras) are all prescribed by tradition. This manner of presentation, so similar to prototypes from Korea, China and even India, speaks of an ecumenical tradition fueled both by the assimilative nature of Mahayana Buddhism and the economic and political aspirations of the leaders who embraced the religion.

The Great Stupa at Sanchi

The Great Stupa at Sanchi was commissioned by the son of Emperor Ashoka in the Maurya dynasty in the 3rd century BCE and reconstructed in later periods until 1st century CE The stupa was a burial mound. Part of the remains of the historical Buddha was buried in it. A stupa also acts as a symbol to commemorate sacred places such as sites where important events took place in Buddha's mortal life. The stupa played a crucial role in Buddhist beliefs for it is the very symbol of nirvana, or final redemption, the goal of every Buddhist. The stupa was constructed with rubble and brick faced with stone, covered with white stucco partly gilded and surmounted by a three (or more) part umbrella symbolizing the three most basic aspects of Buddhism -- the Buddha himself, Buddha's Law and the Monastic Order. The rail around the umbrella shaft is thought to reflect the ancient concept of marking off a precinct around a sacred tree, symbolic of vitality and fertility. The paths are for pilgrims to circumambulate clockwise symbolic of walking the Path of Life around the World Mountain. The path is enclosed within a tall stone railing which isolates this sanctuary from the outside world. The four monumental gateways are set at the cardinal directions. The uprights and crossbars are lavishly carved with stories from the life of Buddha, or Jataka tales. No images of Buddha are shown, but there are symbols of the presence of Buddha such as footprints, stupa, Boh tree, etc. This aniconic-iconic tradition reflects the Theravada school of Buddhism which regarded Buddha as a historical figure.

The Lion Capital

The crowning, decorative capital of a 40 foot cosmic pillar erected by King Asoka to symbolize his rule, and the kingdom's new Buddhist state religion. King Asoka defined the boundaries newly expanded territory of the Maurya Dynasty with huge pillars erected at key points across the land. He topped the columns with decorative capitals that featured heraldic images of the lion, a symbol of royalty borrowed from the Persian empire. The lion capitals were at once a symbol of the king and also the Prince of Buddhism, Siddhartha Gautama. Lions in cardinal directions. Sees everything.

Siddartha Gautama

The historic buddha. Born 560 BCE in the foothills of the Himalayas. He gave up his princely life of fine robes and jewels in order to seek out the cause of suffering, disease and misery which he saw all around him. At age thirty-five he sat under a large pipal tree in the town of Gaya and resolved not to leave his seat until the riddle of suffering was solved. After hosts of temptations, he sank deeper and deeper into meditation and at dawn on the 49th day he knew the truth, the secret of sorrow, and knew what to do to overcome it - release the mortal soul from the cycle of rebirth. He had reached nirvana. Nirvana marked an end to the cycle of rebirth and was thought of as a state of enduring, permanent bliss -- called the Supreme Truth or Reality. Died at 80.

3 major gods of hinduism

They are Brahma, Vishnu, and Shiva. Brahma is the creator, who has four heads. Vishnu is the preserver, representing the aspect of sustaining life. He has ten incarnations including fish, tortoise, boar, man-lion, Krishna—child-god, young cowherd playing the flute together with his young lover, Kalkin riding a horse, God of the universe, and Buddha. His vehicle is an eagle or a snake called sesa. He wears a high crown and has four or more arms carrying a variety of weapons a conch shell (the eternal espace and heavenly atmosphere) and a wheel-like discus (eternal time and the power to destroy all things). Shiva is the destroyer, who usually carries a trident, a half-skull begging bowl, and a noose. He has a terrifying nature and the connection with death. He has another representation, the lingam-phallus, which represents his procreative energy, and fertility. On the other hand, he is the Lord of Dance and the Lord of Animals. So, he is usually depicted as dancing and surrounded by animals.

Seated Buddha with attendants from Mathura, Kushan Period, 2nd century CE, Indian Buddhism (Mahayana Buddhism), red sandstone

The iconography of this Buddha statue and the symbolic meaning of each part are significant. The Buddha is larger and central, seated on a Lion Throne and accompanied by two standing attendants on his sides and two apsaras (celestial beings) on the top of the stele. The two royal attendants, each carrying a fly-whisk and a lotus branch, and the lions on the throne imply the royal character of the Buddha. The two flying apsaras are coming to worship and welcome Buddha. The Boh tree branches on the background symbolize the enlightenment of Buddha. The large halo with scalloped edges representing flame or light also indicates his divine character. His posture with crossed legs and soles upward is a yoga pose for meditation. This posture can be traced back to the Shiva seal of the Indus Valley civilizations thousands of years before. The wheels on his soles symbolize the Wheel of Law set into motion by Buddha in his first sermon at the deer park at Sarnath. His raised right hand is a mudra (hand gesture) meaning "fear not." The elongated earlobes remind us of his royal birth. The robe worn on his left shoulder remind us of the High Priest statue from Mohenjo-daro. The Mathura style is shown from his round face, full lips, and broad nose, which are organic and reflects the native Indian style. The body-revealing robe looks as though it were made of thin and transparent fabric, which is another characteristic of the Mathura style.

Avatar

The incarnation of a Hindu deity. Vishnu has ten avatars.

Tori Busshi

The main image in the kondo at Horyu-ji bears the date 623 and is the work of an artisan named Tori Busshi, a caster of statues and a descendent of Chinese immigrants. It is an icon expressing the Mahayana Buddhist school of thought. The Mahayana Buddhists believed that there are an infinite number of Buddhas, all of them manifestations of the One Absolute Buddha. He was thought to be beyond the limits of human vision, but practitioners began to believe that one manifestation was revealed to the living and could therefore be represented.

Sarnath

The place where Buddha preached the first sermon in north India, a center of Buddhist art in the Gupta period. Smooth drapery with limited folds.

Mount Meru

The residence of the god Vishnu, also called the World Mountain.

King Ashoka

The third leader of the first great Indian Empire called the Mauryan Dynasty (322-183 BCE) was named Ashoka (269-232 BCE). He expanded Mauryan political influence over much of the subcontinent. According to tradition, Ashoka was moved to remorse and pity by the horrors of war and came to the conclusion that true power was realized through religion, not force. Thus he became an active patron of Buddhism and supported the communities of monks. The political might of the Mauryans, as well as their patronage, brought the full institutionalization of Buddhism.