Column, Lauriya Nandangargh

-high gleam to be seen

-inscriptions diff languages

-lion

-Ashoka period, India, 3bce

Capital from a column

-sandstone, 3bce

-Sarnath, India (sight of 1st teaching)

-wheel- symbol of rule/act of teaching was above lions

-"lion of the Shakya clan"=B

-also royalty

-lion/elephant/bull/horse= extent of empire, Ashoka's desire to spread dharma to world

-stylized manes/grins= foreign artists? (Iran/Greece)

use of stone= foreign artists or awareness of foriegn styles

Yaksha & Yakshi

-purple sandstone, India, 2bce

-Shunga Period

-Stupa at Bharhut in Madhya Pradesh, N India

-yakshas + female yakshis= local dieties (Indian) later evolved to be protectors of the earth/treasures

-influence fertility, wealth, health

Kubera (man)-jewelry/turban=wealthy or aristocat

-soft skin is super diff than flat clothes

Chanda (w)- Indian belief- women can bring tree to bloom with fertile touch

-very adorned/volumptuous

-british eager to uncover buddhist past of India

Great Stupa, at Sanchi in Madhya Pradesh, N India

-by several trading routes

-stuff from Ashoka's reign present

-many jatakas

Siddhartha's Life as the Elephant Chaddanta

-Great stupa, Sanchi, 1bce-1c

-B= 6 tusked white elephant

-1 day unknowling made blossoms fall on his older wife, younger wife= jealous and prays revenge

-she was reborn as a queen, had husband go hunt Chaddanta and take his tusks for ivory

-killed him but couldn't remove tusks

-queen suddenly remembers past life and dies from greif

Siddhartha's defeat of Mara's Army

-at Sanchi

-Sid's defeat right before enlight

-Mara/army= delusions, ignorance...

-left woman= Sujata who offered milk/food

-empty throne in front of tree = Sidd

Scenes from the Life ofShakyamuni

-stupa at Amaravati, Andhra Pradesh, India, 2c

-conception/birth of Sidd

-jewelry/clothes= similar to northern but...

-plasticity/sense of movement= Amaravati region

-tiny footprints on cloth=Sidd

Buddha, probably Shakyamuni

-from Takht-i-Bahi

- 3c Pakistan Ghandahara, Schist stone

-large rectangular shawl/undergarment worn by Shak

-marks of spiritual superiority (urna, ushnisha, halo, elongated earlobes)

-Ghandaharan style- open eyes create a sense of immediacy with viewer

-organic drapery= Greco-Roman

Takht-i-Bahi

-Ghandahara (Pakistan)

-major center in Peshewar Basin

-courtyards, stupas, shrines, kitchens, halls, etc...

Bodhisattva probs Shak

-Ganharan 3-4c, schist stone

-turban w/ Garuda (semidivine bird god of India) = usually Sidd

-begging bowl on base=Sidd also

-dramatic ribbons on turban= iranian style

Siddhartha as Ascetic

-Gandhara 3-4c

-right before he chose to meditate and find another way

-but there are also marks of Bhood- earlobes, urna, halo

-practices shown simeoltaneously with effect (enightenment)

a buddha field- pure land

-4c Pakistan

-expansion of B through world

-lotus= purity/transcendance

-pure land= a heaven created by a B

-Shak never really associated with a pure land but if the main B is Shak (cuz of teaching pose) then rest of imagery= rep of him as a generative figure creating a cosmos filled with B's/other dieties/humans

B probs Shak

-city of Sarnath, India (Gupta period 319-500)

 -use of shawl to cover both shoulders/depiction of its folds as faint raised lines interspersed w/ flat areas of drapery= early Kushan traditions

-eyes give it sense of serenity/introspection not found in earlier ones with wide open eyes

-wheel/2 deer/6 donors+teaching gesture= first sermon

-realism + abstraction

Ajanta

-Gupta period

-India late 5c

-Cave 19

-common theme- Avalokiteshvara= sabiour from perils

Siddhartha's life as king janaka

 -Cave 1 Ajanta

-Sidd (when he was a king) was leaving, Sivali followed him to forest to try and disuade him again, he snapped blade of grass and gave her pieces, each must live alone

-typical of ajanta- sensous rounded elegance to bodies (style developed in Sarnath)

Bod Avalokiteshvara holding a lotus

-Ajanta Cave 1

-Padmapami- holder of the lotus

-simple gesture like offering a flower can produce religous merit

-thick sash of beads= priestly caste of India

-not worn by king cuz its too worldly

Bamiyan Buddha

-by cave temple complex- Bamiyan, Afghanistan 6-7c

-thin folds/flat areas of cloth= Sarnath style

-face probably had precious metals/jewels

interior Mogao Cave 254 Dunhuang, China, N Wei, late 5c

-Dunhuang= important stop between China/central asia

-large square pillar 

-B on pillar facing entry way

-posture generally associated with Maitreya= cave sanctuary might supposed to be like Tushita Heaven

-angel-like things above, demon like things below

-long square shawl- a piece of it covers right shoulder in impossible fashion and hems are unconvincing too behind feet

-highly stylized folds of drapery + clear distintions between folds and other parts of clothing= similar to Maitreya in Kizil

Siddhartha’s Life as King Sibi

-cave 254 Mogao, N Wei, late 5c, Dunhuang China

-Sibi saw a dove fleeing eagle, he intervened, eagle said he was starving and Sibi had to give him his flesh instead, Sibi did it. minister is cutting flesh while dove hovers. as eagle eats flesh gods appear in sky, some wept, praised, or prayed to B, king calm, earth started shaking, colorful flowers fell from the heavens, eagle/dove dissappeared and flesh whole again, eagle/dove were gods testing him.

-use of white to add dimension= ajanta/India

-3 attendant bods, several standing bods, 2 figures in armor, a monk, etc...

-halo- reference to advanced spiritual state

Yungang Buddha

Buddha with Attendants

-Cave 140 (middle Bingyang cave) Longmen, China, N Wei, 6c

- organized groups of figures surround B

-B left hand- have no fear, right- beneficence (common combo to chinese)

-thin torso, narrow shoulders, thick clothing- B imagery from Luoyang

-thick clothing that obscures body rather than thin d that reveals it= start of chinese stylem not Indic or central Asian

Buddha Maitreya

-6c, China, N Wei

-Luoyang style- attenuated physique, heavy drapery

-long narrow angular face

-M + entourage

-4 donors with offerings wear Tuoba Xianbei clothing not Chinese

-standing posture, combo gestures, celestial entourage- M desending from T heaven (symbolized by figures in pensive pose) to help devotees on earth

-devotion to M and desire for rebirth in T heaven- importnat to Chinese Bism of 5-6c cuz life was uncertain (political/natural disasters)

Buddha Amitabha

-A took 48 vows to create pureland

-attainting A's pureland emphasized during this time

-commisioned by 8 mothers to ensure rebirth of kids/ancestors into pureland

-7 small B's in trees, and a Phoenix (chinese 4 rebirth)

-bedazzled

-2 bods, 2 monks, 2 donors + 1 B

-center of the flower- small figure, soul to be reborn

Buddha Vairocana

-Longmen, Tang D, China, 7c, Empress wu/husband

-full shoulders/chest- covered w/ thin shawl of large graceful arcs

-string face plump cheekbones, downcast eyes- typial of 7-8c chinese art= renewed ties w/India + C Asia at the time

Guardian Figures

-Cave 1280 Longmen, Tang D, China, 7c

-protecting B cosmos within

-jeweled and delicatley adorned Bods and dramatic armor of guardians= late 6c chinese imagery

-heavenly kings

-their inclusion in entourage surrounding B= defines space as a cosmos peopled by dieties (bods) humans (monks) and demigods (guardians)

Pensive Bodhisattva

-Korea, Silla period, 7c

-thin clinging drapery= 6c Chinese art

-dramatic cascade of lower garments= Korean

-presumably M

-like in Northern Qi period- Korean figures maybe used as imperial images to rep just rule of kings

Buddha in Seokguram Temple

-Korea, United Silla Period, 8c

-Full face, broad shoulders, indented waist, clinging drapery= Tang style

- earth touching gesture suggests Shak but...

-7-8c belief that Shak= transitory manifestation of B Vairocana who is ID'd by earth toughing gesture

Horyu-ji Temple

-Nara, Japan, Asuka Period, 7c

- destroyed in fire 670

-oldest wooden buildings in the world

-timber frame construction method= east asia

-5 storied pagoda- with centtral column

Buddha Shakyamuni-

- Horyu-ji Temple, Nara, Japan, 7c, Asuka period

- Shak + 2 attendant Bods principle icon in main hall

-stylistic tradition from 6c China also found in Korea + Japan =>

-thin sloping shoulders, attentuated physique with thick garments and cascading folds

- right hand- have no fear

- left- variaton on beneficence gesture

-surrounded by flames and 7 small B's

-Bods- squat/indian garments

-long narrow scarves crossing beneath knees and over shoulders falling over upper arms= 6c china

- created for Prince Shotoku (associated w/ Bods in pensive pose), regent/nephew of Empress Suiko

-he became national icon for intro of B in Japan, did a ton of stuff

-commissioned once he was ill in hopes of curing him or ensuring rebirth into pureland

Tamamushi Shrine

-Horyu-ji temple, Nara, Japan, 7c, Asoka period

-narrow physiques/revealing drapery based on Chinese stylle

-cypress wood + camphor + Tamamushi beetles

-irredesent wings

-paintings made of laquer 

-Bods + 4 heavenly Kings + jatakas

- Shak reborn as young prince met starving tigress and cubs, offered his body to them, they were too weak to kill him, jumped off cliff to lure them with blood

-Shak shown 3 times, similar to Indian narrative

Sutra of the Kings of the Golden Light 

-Japan, Nara period 8c

-Emp. Shomu of Nara period said state mon. + nunnery be constructed in every province + copy of this sutra installed in pagoda of each temple

-b/c it has ability to protect nation

-clerical formal script

Jianzhen (Ganjin) 

Toshodai-ji, Japan, Nara period, 8c

brought new artistic traditions and medical info to Japan

- delicate tones/sensitive modeling of face means they captured appearance of this monk who was blind by the time he reached Japan after 6 attempts

-portraits of monks important early as Tang D

-monastic portraiture (influenced by Chinese Dao beliefs) an incoruptable human form= result of spiritual attainment.

-In tang- ashes used in clay, bodies laquered

-2nd century BCE

-leader of Mauryan Dynasty (India)

-felt bad about bloodshed from his conquest

-politically endorses Buddhism & governs accordingly

-wanted to rule with generosity, patience, vigor according to dharma

-14 edicts related to dharma carved on public rocks throughout empire (1 in greek/aramaic)

-7 more on towering pillars some in important shakya locations

-Late 1c BCE to 3c CE

-responsible for many sculptures of B in India, Pak, Af

-Pakistan (Gandhara) + northern India

- Ashoka, then Alex,

- Indian/Greco-Roman/Iranian and other stuff during Kushan empire

-ofetn can recognize figural reps + symbolic reps of B together

Budha Shakyamuni

-late 2nd to 3rd c

-Amaravati region, Andhra Pradesh, India

-later period of Amaravati- B= human figure

-long lower garments w/ heavy shawls draped over left shoulder/over right, fall in distinct heavy swags= typical of Armaravati

-B of the future, Bod in our time, lives in T where Shak lived before here

-Gandharan reps him with long wavy hair that reps matted locks of an ascetic 

-Bods with ankles crossed= M in T heaven

-right foot over the opposit knee common in China as M or other Bod in Tushita Heaven awaiting final birth

-M associated w/ Tushita

-Kushan empire down, realm divided in smaller states

-1st part of 4c lots of N India under rule of Gupta Dynasty

-Gupta rulers hindus but B establishments benefitted too

- partialy closed eyes, elaborate decoration (like on halo), dense swirled hair that reps B or enlightend being

-sculptures of encapsuated scenes from final lifetime of Shak as opposed to specific narrative moments

-reps of many diff Bods

-high eyebrows

-1c

-attainting awakened mind of a B is main goal

-enlightened beings should stay in world and help others

-says Avalokiteshvara can save the faithful (especially travelers) from perils/disasters

A Buddha and other figures

-China, Eastern Han Dynasty, 2-3c

-cliffs at Mount Kongwang

-B cuz of monastic shawl

-thing on head= ushnisha

-2 seated B's

-meant to be apotropaic figures, like native traditions

-established literate culture of China + Indic Bism

-parallels between B and native Chinese beliefs= distinctive B tradition

-spread from there to Korea/Japan/Vietnam

-commitment to written history (unlike Indic) = bios of monks/patrons + inscriptions on works

-B spreaad by Silkroad/Maritime trade

China (386-534)

-lots of cave temples

-China was previously broken open, reunited under control of the Tuoba Xianbei (foreigners)

-452 Bism reinstated as state religion

-move of capital 494- Yungang to Luoyang= greater appreciation of native Chinese style.

-made distinctive chinese B style that passed to Korea/Japan

-little pointed hats + tunics = N wei culture

- 690-705

-usurped throne of husband Emp. Gaozong

- Tang dynasty

-Devotion to B Vairocana very important during reign

-parallels tween ruler of eternal celestial realm and temporal just empress used to legitimize her control of China

-as a grl, couldn't rely on Confucian themes to justify throne, used sutra that cited rule of women after B

-Buddha Vairocana

-B transmitted to K (which was spereated) in 384 by a monk

- korean kingdoms (tuff political times) accepted B a lot b/c they wanted to make relationships with powerful Chinese states

-rounded forms

-grouping of courtiers and a B is Korean

-pensive figures

-with help of Tang, Sil defeated other states and Korea= United Silla Dynasty (668-935)

-B official religion

Bod Avalokiteshvara w/ 11 heads

-Seokguram Temple, Korea, United Silla period, 8c

-behind central B

-11 headed A founded in China in 7c to protect Tang D against some enemies

-B brought from Korea 538 by monk

-rulers skeptical so Soga clan chosen to practice it to test it

-soon after plaque came due to anger of native gods (KAMI).

-caused negative acceptance of B in Japan

-587 Shoga clan won control and B enstated

-ASOKA PERIOD Empress Suiko (r592-628) established B as state religion stressing magical powers

-beginning of imperial patronage of monastaries and icons for use in B practices

iconic- figure looks right at you, creates relationship

aniconic- ideas/symbols to suggest figure/diety

-references

effective in B becasue B's absence is more important than presence