End Term Paper Name: Ajanta Das, Rgst. No.: 10832 Batch: MA Semester II Subject: SAA 401; The History of Indian Art and Architecture from Protohistory to the Eighteenth century. Title: The shift from the ‘Aniconic’ to the ‘Iconic’ depiction of the Buddha in Early Indian art The shift from the ‘Aniconic’ to the ‘Iconic’ depiction of the Buddha in Early Indian art ‘Aniconic’ depiction of Buddha refers to those Buddhist images where various symbols related to Buddha’s life event were used to make his presence without making an anthropomorphic image of him. This definition is derived from the theory of ‘aniconism’ introduced by French scholar Alfred Foucher in the late nineteen century. The theory of aniconism refers to practice of early Buddhist art where symbols related to Buddha’s …show more content…
She presents a different view on aniconism. Though she did not dismiss Huntington’s theory of relics depicting sacred site, she added that there can also be additional meaning. She says that there can be multiple meanings in the symbols used in the sculptures, a relief may depict the site and at the same time also can depict the event. She used the term ‘emblem’ referring the various symbols used. She defined emblem as a picture that represent something different from itself. According to her an emblem like the stupa or the tree may contain more than one meaning. She agrees that all images identified as aniconic may not be aniconic but the existence of an aniconic phase cannot be denied. A relief may refer a holy site but it also can refer to the particular event of Buddha’s life. However Vidya Dahejia also agrees that Hinyana and Mahayana school coexisted. She added one more layer by saying that both these schools were interested in Buddha’s images, and it will be incorrect to associate one school to ‘aniconism’ and other to
The statue that will be the focus of this paper portrays the figure “Amida, the Buddha of Infinite Light.” Like many other statues of the Buddha, this Amida Buddha was portrayed to be deep in meditation, sitting cross-legged. A viewer could observe that the Amida Buddha is making a hand gesture while in deep meditation. These gestures, also known as “mudras,” are symbolic in the Buddhist religion, and they are used to convey certain ideas (O’Riley 70). In this case, the Amida Buddha is making the mudra of appeasement (“Amida”). More physical observations could be made by pointing out the “balanced form, divine features, and flowing drapery” (“Amida”) of the Amida Buddha. Those qualities represent the nature of the Buddha, revealing him as “transcendent, graceful, and compassionate” (“Amida”). Features common to other Buddha sculptures show up on this Amida Buddha, like the elongated earlobes, the mole on his forehead, and patterned hair. At first glance, the Am...
Rathnasambhava, the Transcendent Buddha of the South and Madonna Enthroned are very similar images that were produced by very different cultures. Both images were produced during the 13th Century. The image of Rathnasambhava, the Transcendent Buddha of the South was produced in Tibet during an interesting period of the country’s religious history. The branch of Tibetan Buddhism is led by a religious and sometimes political leader called the Dalai Lama. It was during the 13th Century during the reign of Kublai Khan, around the time of the production of this painting, that Tibet experienced the first incarnation of the Dalai Lama. One has to wonder if this painting is somehow related to that occurrence. According to one source, the reincarnation system for the Living Buddhas is the main point distinguishing Tibetan Buddhism from other forms of Buddhism.
Yu, Han. “Memorial on Buddhism”. Making of the Modern World 12: Classical & Medieval Tradition. Trans. Richard F. Burton. Ed. Janet Smarr. La Jolla: University Readers, 2012. 111-112. Print.
disciplines were send to India to retrieve the holy sculptures, and help them become Buddha
Christ the Savior of Souls and Buddha seated holds many similarities. These two icons portrays two leaders of a spiritual realm or religion; Christ the head of Christianity and Buddha the head of Buddhism. Christ, the center piece of the painting is portrayed in a divine state, His garment is in vibrant colors and its folds are strictly Byzantine with its schematizing look. Christ holding the bible in one hand while blessing the faithful with the right hand gesture, similar to the Buddha, who’s seated in the ordained yogic pose, also flashing the no fear hand gesture and the wheel of law situated in the palm and on the sole of his feet. This s...
Perterson, L.K., & Cullen, Cheryl. 2000. “Hindu symbolism and colour meanings dominate Indian culture and society,” in Global Graphics: Gloucester, Massachusetts:Rockpoint Publishers, pp.175-176.
Yakushi the healing Buddha is a central image. It was sometime during this period that he
...social values of rich stones resembled their higher standards of living in those days. Also, two different types of art based on Indian culture and society such as “Shiva Nataraja” and “Adios, Mahatma” depicted great religious and social perspective of Hinduism and free spirit of will, respectively. Also, “Heheya Kachina” and “The Light Inside” presented two unique forms of art which is so rare or so common in the modern society that we sometime forget to notice if these types of art exist.
To begin, Ashoka brought about the ideology of Buddhism to India when he became emperor 268 BCE. To spread the word of Ashoka’s rule as well as his belief in Buddhism, Ashoka erected rocks and pillars throughout India to maintain his power in the region that are now known as the Edicts of Ashoka. These pillars and rocks formed the laws, respect, kindness, and good deeds, which the public should abide by. In the countryside, people may have not known
I will be concentrating this art paper on monasteries, particularly Buddhist monasteries. Monasteries are beautiful, often very complex, buildings that comprise the domestic quarters and workplaces of monastics. Monasteries generally include a place reserved for prayer such as a chapel, church, or temple. And even more particularly, I will concentrate on more of a temple rather than a monastery but one that could be considered both: the Borobudur. The Borobudur is located on the Indonesian island of Java. The Borobudur is the largest, most famous Buddhist temple in the world. This gorgeous, intricate temple was build over a time period of 75 years, and was abandoned sometime in the 14th century but now is one of Indias most popular tourist attractions.
The image is based, in this manner, on the rule of complementation. The image question, picture, sign, word, and motion require the relationship of certain cognizant thoughts with a specific end goal to completely express what is implied by them. To this degree, it has both a recondite and an exoteric, or a veiling and a noteworthy, work. The revelation of its significance surmises a specific measure of dynamic collaboration. When in doubt, it depends on the tradition of a gathering that concurs upon its importance. All religious articulation is imagery; since we can portray just what we see, and the genuine objects of religion are THE seen. The most punctual instruments of instruction were images, and they and all different religious structures
From the book “The World’s Religions,” the excerpt “Buddhism” by Huston Smith gives us an informative, yet summarized look, into the life of a man named Siddhartha Gautama. Born of a king into a life of luxury, in what is now Nepal around 563 B.C., Gautama was prophesized to be the “world redeemer”(par. 9), the one who would see the truth of existence and eventually lead people from Brahmanism and the vagaries of life. This story has been told by many authors countless times, there is no real unique quality in Huston’s telling, but this version of the narrative, with it’s clarity and straightforwardness, makes it a perfect selection to use for the telling of the Buddha’s past.
However, an imitation can only represent so much meaning, especially since the Roman culture was taken from another source. However, the Chinese didn’t copy Hinduism. They converted it into their own philosophy. This shows creativity, especially since the Chinese created their own story about Buddha, and his depiction isn’t anything like Hindu gods such as Shiva. The Chinese had their own style in mind and stuck to it. In addition to that, the Chinese created a statue that focused less on the beauty of the figure and more on the beauty of his power. That’s something that really sets this work apart from others and shows different cultural values. Buddha’s appearance wasn’t supposed to be grand or fantastically attractive, unlike Greek and Roman ideals. He was supposed to humble, but able to perform miracles. The extravagance of flames and what Buddha can draw towards him is amazing, showing more meaning than a muscled sculpture of Hercules. Buddha shows more than just a figure, it shows great spiritual, social, and artistic
Throughout history, technological development has increased society’s need to observe one’s self within both media, and a real life setting. Nam June Paik’s “TV Buddha”, pictured below, (1974) is an example of how technology garners the attention of an individual to their self, facilitated through many forms of media, in this scenario, television. This work translates the artists intended reaction into the audience’s incidental reaction, as well as the way in which the artwork transmits its message. Contextually, the work was created in a time where new and emerging technologies were beginning, and the installation depicts a statue of Buddha, set before a camera that is designed to project his own image onto a TV screen in front of it. This gives the impression that he is silently contemplating his own image, as it infinitely appears on the TV screen, due to the presence of the camera (The Solomon R. Guggenheim Foundation, http://www.guggenheim.org/new-york/collections/collection-online/artists/bios/422/Nam%20June%20Paik). In a cultural aspect, the Buddha is revered as a being who “embodies flawless purity and selflessness” (Bogoda, R, http://www.accesstoinsight.org/lib/authors/bogoda/bl139.html), a direct
In the following essay, I will be comparing and contrasting to architectural pieces by the Indians. The first is the Taj Mahal, a building constructed from white marble that took seventeen years to build in honor of Shah Jahan’s wife, Mumtaz Mahal (Z. Haq). This piece of architectural beauty belonged to the Mughal’s, the Muslim emperors in India (Z. Haq). The second is the Great Stupa at Sanchi, a holy, dome shaped structure that covers the body of the Buddha in honor of him and his contributions to Buddhism (Fischer, Julia). Furthermore, this structure was made of ruins, rocks, mud, and covered in bricks (Fischer, Julia). Both pieces of architecture are significant to the Indians, however they do contrast in some ways.