Buddha

651 Words2 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: Sculptures and buddhism

Buddha

There are many Buddha’s in the world. The story by Ashvaghosha called The Life of Buddha talks about the original Buddha, and how he came to be. Sculptures and pictures of Buddha always have the same features. From the Art Institute in Chicago comes a sculpture of Buddha from China. These two things have a lot in common. The parts of the body in the sculptures depict certain things about a Buddha’s life and the way Buddhism spread though Asia influenced the arts depicting Buddha.

Most works of art involving Buddha have features that are almost always there. Whenever a person sees Buddha, he always has most of the ten qualities or powers of a Buddha, described in Story of the Life of Buddha Shakyamuni. However there are thirty-two major characteristics and eight minor, among them is the eight-spoked lines on the soles and palms. The spot between Buddha’s eyebrows, sometimes calls the third eye or wisdom bump, is a mark of wisdom. The nose has a specific length like the ears have their own characteristics. The enlightenment-elevation on the top of the head, describe by old texts as emerging from the head of a saint, symbolize Buddha’s enlightenment and is a visible symbol of the “spiritual generative power that strives toward heaven and passes into the immaterial sphere.” (Buddhist Art: Perfect Proportions of a Buddha, Para. 3). The Yoga position stemming from the pre-Buddhist tradition in India hides the lower half of Buddha’s body, but show the divine meditating with the utmost concentration, soles visible. The image of Buddha expresses serenity and proportional beauty. These Measurements are laid out in the canon of Buddhist art, which corresponds to ideal physical proportions; each span has a twelve-finger breadth and has 9 breadths. If there is a background behind Buddha it usually depicts a halo around his head. For example, the Buddha in Buddhism: a Brief Introduction on page thirty-eight exhibits a fiery halo. The Buddha statue from the Art Institute is sitting in the lotus position, have the wisdom bump, and the hair is knotted on the top of the head. Also the Buddha would have had long ear lobes if they were not broken off. The long ear lobes seem to be a symbol of his wealth and that the fact that they are now longer filled shows that he renounced wealth. At the end of the story the Prince did just the he renounced his wealth and became Buddha.

Show More
Related

  • Guanyin Analysis

    1671 Words  | 4 Pages

    The Guanyin sculpture depicts a male, interpretable by his male chest, seating in a royal-ease pose. He has a crown, which has a person in the meditative position carved on it. That person could be Buddha. Underneath the crown, the hair looks as though it is nicely braided along the edges of the crown. The eyes are partially closed. There are two pieces of objects, perhaps used to depict jewelry, attached to

    Read More

  • From Aphrodite Of Knidos To The Old Market Woman

    704 Words  | 2 Pages

    To conclude, both sculptures do not have much in common, but it is obvious that the artists had knowledge in human anatomy and was able to sculpt them spectacularly. It is also obvious the break from somewhat idealistic to realistic human nature. The change is so drastic that one might not believe that both sculptures come from the same Greece because it is so well-known for its astonishing artworks found in temples, building, etc.

    Read More

  • Compare And Contrast Research Paper

    343 Words  | 1 Pages

    Both sculptures represent Mary holding the dead body of Jesus. According to our textbook, “This figure group represented a challenge for sculptors, because the body of the adult Christ had to be positioned across his mother’s lap,” (139). Both of the sculptures were created through carving. This is a “subtractive process in which a block of material is cut away to reveal the desired form,” (Carving).

    Read More

  • The Amida Buddha in Context

    744 Words  | 2 Pages

    The Buddha was and is an important figure in several different cultures, and his influence has spread over large areas. Across these different cultures, many forms of art portrayed him in different ways. In Japan, one of the Buddha’s titles stood out as the “Amida Buddha.” The statue that this paper will be detailing portrays “Amida, the Buddha of Infinite Light” (“Amida”). The statue is located in the Dayton Art Institute’s Japanese Art Gallery 105 with the acquisition number 1935.1. Created in the thirteenth century during the Kamakura period, this statue stands out in the Dayton Art Institute as a prominent Buddha figure. It is made of wood with lacquer and gilt, and it was built to be approximately the size of a normal person.

    Read More

  • Art And Symbolism In Siddhartha

    902 Words  | 2 Pages

    The lotus flowers surround Buddha and he also is sitting on a giant one. They are symbols that the Buddha is awakened almost as a sign of rebirth. The lotus flowers meaning in Buddhism means rising above everything and achieve enlightenment. There are lotus flowers that are not yet open representing that not all are yet enlightened and the lotuses that are fully bloomed representing full-enlightenment and self-awareness. Buddha sits in front of the Bodhi tree which literally means awakening or enlightenment. Behind the tree is a full moon and in Buddhism has a great significance. The Buddha was born on a full moon day and his enlightenment was also during a full moon. The Buddha also has earth touching mudra. Mudra is the religious hand gestures and earth touching is “calling the earth to witness”. These concepts go back to the Four Noble Truths. They are the truth of suffering, the truth of the cause of suffering, the truth of the end of suffering, and the truth of the path that leads to the end of suffering. The fist noble truth is represented by the temptresses and the flaming arrows sent from Mara. After the temptresses did not seduce Buddha Mara sent flaming arrows from all directions towards the Buddha representing that all of life’s sufferings. This artwork shows the second noble truth by Buddha avoiding the temptresses that Mara sent and in this way Buddha avoided having cravings or desires. By not submitting to those desires and cravings Buddha realized that this is the ending all suffering is to remove all desire, ill will and ignorance therefore completing the third noble truth. The fourth noble truth is represented by the weight of the Buddha in the artwork showing Buddha not overweight and not starving but in the middle showing him living The Middle Path. When artists get to work responding and expressing, whether or not also to urge a point,

    Read More

  • Art Analysis

    965 Words  | 2 Pages

    Both of these pieces of art have much in common. Their functions are almost identical. Both were used to mark burial sites and to honor the deceased buried there. The body language of both the pieces’ figures are similar, with one seated and several others standing around them. Neither has color, but unlike the grave stele, the funerary banquet does show some degree of emotion. The figures in the banquet scene have slight smiles. These pieces played an important role in their times, honoring those who had passed on to the afterlife. For both of these people, it was important to memorialize them very similar to our practices today.

    Read More

  • Analysis Of Barbara O Brien's Feeding The Buddha

    2377 Words  | 5 Pages

    The earliest sacred space was the stupa. When the Buddha was cremated, his ashes were placed under a mound at a crossroads and when it was removed, it was divided among a variety of Buddhist groups. Hardy states that different sources, say different numbers. Some say 8, some say 11, and others say it was 12 Buddhist groups. Each group is said to have enshrined their part of the Buddhas cremated body in a stupa. Legend says that king Ashoka divided the Buddha’s divided cremated body and distributed it to 84,000 stupas throughout his realm. Monuments were built to mark the Buddhas important moments. Some of the examples of the important moments of the Buddha are where the Buddha was born or where he gave his first sermon. Ashoka than started the ritual of making pilgrimage to these places. As time passed, large temples were built around the stupas. After some time, stupas were also being built to house the cremated or mummified body of a famous monk who died during deep meditation. What was built around the stupas are stone railings with carvings. The carvings tell the life of the Buddha and the Jataka Tales. When people walk around the railings, they are recreating the experiences of the events and make them feel like they are actually there. The Buddha is kept alive through these carvings and sacred places. Hardy also states that another form of sacred space is the mountain. She writes that there are legendary

    Read More

  • Buddhist Art of The Wei Dynasty

    1903 Words  | 4 Pages

    During the Wei most of the art produced had a connection to Buddhism, and the emperors spent a great amount of resources to have the Buddhist art pieces produced (Clunas 92-97). According to the, biography Buddha written by Karen Armstrong, B... ... middle of paper ... ... rt Bulletin 23.9, Part 1 (1965): 301-24.

    Read More

  • The Seated Buddha Symbolism

    1666 Words  | 4 Pages

    People admired the overall concept of the religion and how it brought peace and enlightenment not only into their life, but the people that they are surrounded by. Many different artist began to create what they thought Buddha and how he, being the face of the religion, demonstrates how one can find these qualities in their life. Author of the book History of Chinese Philosophy, Bo Mou states that “....an affectionate concern for the well-being of one 's fellows in the community, society, or a state governed by a wise and virtuous ruler”, when referring to Buddha. In Seated Buddha, it can be mistaken that this sculpture does not posses a lot of great detail, but upon further inspection, it is obvious that it holds very detailed designs. This sculpture has a halo-type structure around the head of the Buddha and he is seated on an elevated surface. I believe that by placing the Buddha on this surface it then emphasizes his holiness and his importance to and in the community. One main feature that the Seated Buddha holds is the fact that he is seated in the lotus position, which ultimately was done to support the concept of peacefulness and calmness. The man has his right-hand open resting on his knee with his palm facing up. By doing this, I believe that the artist is showing the concept of openness and the idea of the Buddha figure being welcoming to others. The Seated Buddha is depicted with his eyes shut and a smile on his face. To me, this is showing that one can be happy regardless of what they can and cannot see and that you do not have to observe something in order to be happy. This can also mean that even if there is bad happening in the world, you can not look at the bad and just help others through their pain, which can then boost the amount of happiness that you

    Read More

  • Buddhism : Buddhism And Buddhism

    1715 Words  | 4 Pages

    Siddhartha Gautama is famously known as Gautama Buddha and was the founder of the idea of Buddhism. The Buddha was known to possess supernatural powers and abilities. He was born in the holy land of Nepal and his journey began in India when he decided to travel and teach himself about life. In the midst of his journey, he discovered Buddhism after he experienced a profound realization of the nature of life, death and existence. Buddhism became a religion based on the teachings of Siddhartha Gautama and since then Buddhism has been popular throughout many civilizations. Buddhism is now one of the most ancient religions in the world, where people follow Buddha, which stand for “awakened one,” and Buddhism which has gained popularity because of the teachings of the Buddha.

    Read More

  • Buddhism

    1056 Words  | 3 Pages

    Buddhism, like most other religions, originated in a particular place at a particular time, and its roots are in forms and ideas that were part of the environment in which it developed. The most important of these areas at the time of the Buddha was the valley of the Ganges river which flows from west to east across most of northern India. It was here that the great religions of India first arose and flourished. Only later did they spread to the south. In the time of the Buddha, about 500 B.C.E., this area was undergoing a period of vigorous religious development.

    Read More

  • Comparing Sabu And Seated Statue Of Gudea

    842 Words  | 2 Pages

    Comparison between the Sculpture of Memi and Sabu and Seated Statue of Gudea Introduction According to Oxford Advances Learners Dictionary (2010), a sculpture is defined as a work of art that are solid figure or object made by carving or shaping wood, stone, clay, metal etc. and it further defined it as the art of making sculpture. Sculpture was one way of expressing people’s thought and practices in a non-literate way as they could not have written books or other written forms available at the time.

    Read More

  • Dogon Couple Essay

    1106 Words  | 3 Pages

    By using bilateral symmetry, the audience can see that they look almost identical except for the distinct features that identify them as man or woman. “The artist distills man and woman to a perfectly integrated and harmonious union”. The artist portrays man and woman as if they are one being. The way the man and woman in the sculpture are display and from the size of both sculptures, it can portray the idea of how they are representations of each other. The physical features of both their faces, from their eyes, nose, and even their bodies and legs are identical.

    Read More

  • Gandhara Art: The Greco-Buddhist Art

    1002 Words  | 3 Pages

    Gandhara had absorbed Indian and Mediterranean influence in its art as well as its culture. This fusion of civilizations had taken place during the 6th and 5th century B.C, it was during this time period that the rhythm of civilizations was maintained. It was noted for the distinctive Gandhara style of Buddhist art, which developed out of a merger of Greek, Syrian, Persian, and Indian artistic influence. As mentioned earlier the Gandhara artists were said to have hand of a Greek but the head and heart of an Indian . During this period the devotees had dedicated themselves to the novel task of carving stone images of Buddha and Bodhisattvas. In their version of the Buddhist legends, the Gandhara artists, heavily favored the use of classical Roman art with bounteous of Greek mythology such as the angels that had garlands, Centaurs with human heads, arms and the body, spiral and flowing lines, Tritons with the fish tails and horse’s forefoot, scrolls and stuccos. The carving of the drapery showed the Hellenic influence on Gandhara art, for example the bright disc around the head of the Buddha or the half human being with the head of trunk of a women and tail of a fish. Similarly the wavy treatment of the hair, balance and distribution of weight considering the frame of human parts certain motifs and patterns all indicated a full close knowledge of

    Read More

  • Mahayana Buddhism

    1382 Words  | 3 Pages

    History proves that as Buddhism spread throughout the Asian world in the early 1st century, it was occasionally altered to fit the specific needs and beliefs of people it touched. Mahayana Buddhism is one such example of this gradual evolution. It was primarily a movement started and kept alive by monks that slowly gained popularity amongst lay people but was in no way a unified movement. Mahayana Buddhism still adheres to the basic fundamental beliefs presented in the Pali Canons, however, it Sutras often expand upon these basic ideas and traditions in order to answer the questions of a later generation. After closer study of the Mahayana texts the “A Sutra for Long Life” and “The World Universe as a Sutra”, it seems evident that, although Mahayana Buddhism is based on the teachings of the traditional Pali Canon, it places a larger emphasis on philosophical inquires; and ultimately creates a more accessible version of enlightenment, and the Buddhist faith in general, for all.

    Read More

More about Buddha

Open Document