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Buddhist Art
Buddhist art is visual art produced in the context of Buddhism. It includes Buddha in art, depictions of Gautama Buddha and other Buddhas and bodhisattvas in art, Buddhas and bodhisattvas, notable Buddhist figures both historical and mythical, narrative scenes from their lives, mandalas, and physical objects associated with Buddhist practice, such as vajras, bells, stupas and Buddhist architecture, Buddhist temple architecture. Buddhist art originated in the north of the Indian subcontinent, in modern India, Pakistan and Afghanistan, with the earliest survivals dating from a few centuries after the historical life of Gautama Buddha, Siddhartha Gautama from the 6th to 5th century BCE. As Buddhism spread and evolved in each new host country, Buddhist art followed in its footsteps. It developed to the north through Central Asia and into Eastern Asia to form the Northern branch of Buddhist art, and to the east as far as Southeast Asia to form the Southern branch of Buddhist art. In ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Greco-Buddhist Art
The Greco-Buddhist art or Gandhara art is the artistic manifestation of Greco-Buddhism, a cultural syncretism between Ancient Greek art and Buddhism. It had mainly evolved in the ancient region of Gandhara, located in the northwestern fringe of the Indian subcontinent. The series of interactions leading to Gandhara art occurred over time, beginning with Alexander the Great's brief incursion into the area, followed by the Maurya Empire, Mauryan Emperor Ashoka converting the region to Buddhism. Buddhism became the prominent religion in the Indo-Greek Kingdoms. However, Greco-Buddhist art truly flowered and spread under the Kushan Empire, when the first surviving devotional images of the Buddha were created during the 1st-3rd centuries CE. Gandhara art reached its zenith from the 3rd-5th century CE, when most surviving motifs and artworks were produced. Gandhara art is characterized by Buddhist subject matter, sometimes adapting Greco-Roman elements, rendered in a style and forms th ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Eastern Asia
East Asia is a geocultural region of Asia. It includes China, Japan, Mongolia, North Korea, South Korea, and Taiwan, plus two special administrative regions of China, Hong Kong and Macau. The economies of China, Japan, South Korea, and Taiwan are among the world's largest and most prosperous. East Asia borders North Asia to the north, Southeast Asia to the south, South Asia to the southwest, and Central Asia to the west. To its east is the Pacific Ocean. East Asia, especially History of China, Chinese civilization, is regarded as one of the earliest Cradle of civilization#China, cradles of civilization. Other ancient civilizations in East Asia that still exist as independent countries in the present day include the History of Japan, Japanese, History of Korea, Korean, and History of Mongolia, Mongolian civilizations. Various other civilizations existed as independent polities in East Asia in the past but have since been absorbed into neighbouring civilizations in the present da ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sigiriya
Sigiriya or Sinhagiri (''Lion Rock'' , , pronounced SEE-gi-ri-yə) is an ancient rock fortress located in the northern Matale District near the town of Dambulla in the Central Province, Sri Lanka. It is a site of historical and archaeological significance that is dominated by a massive column of granite approximately high. According to the ancient Sri Lankan chronicle the '' Cūḷavaṃsa'', this area was a large forest, then after storms and landslides it became a hill and was selected by King Kashyapa (CE 477–495) for his new capital. He built his palace on top of this rock and decorated its sides with colourful frescoes. On a small plateau about halfway up the side of this rock he built a gateway in the form of an enormous lion. The name of this place is derived from this structure; ''Sinhagiri'', the Lion Rock. The capital and the royal palace were abandoned after the king's death. It was used as a Buddhist monastery until the 14th century. Sigiriya today is a UNE ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Mahabodhi Temple
The Mahabodhi Temple (literally: "Great Awakening Temple") or the Mahābodhi Mahāvihāra, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, is an ancient, but restored Buddhist temple in Bodh Gaya, Bihar, India, marking the location where the Buddha is said to have attained enlightenment. Bodh Gaya is from Gaya and is about from Patna. The site contains a tree believed to be a descendant of the Bodhi Tree under which the Buddha gained enlightenment and has been a major pilgrimage destination of Buddhists for over two thousand years. The Mahabodhi Temple at Bodh Gaya is the holiest and most revered pilgrimage site for Buddhists worldwide. Some of the site's elements date to the period of Ashoka (died ). What is now visible on the ground dates from the 6th century CE, or possibly earlier, as well as several major restorations since the 19th century. The structure, however, also potentially incorporates large parts of earlier work, possibly from the 2nd or 3rd-century CE.Harle, 201; Michell, 22 ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Mara (demon)
Mara,, '; ; or ; ; also マーラ, ''Māra'' or 天魔, ''Tenma''; ; ; Tibetan Wylie: ''bdud''; ; ; ; in Buddhism, is a malignant celestial Asura king who tried to stop The Buddha, Prince Siddhartha from Awakening by trying to seduce him with his celestial Army and a vision of beautiful women who, in various legends, are often said to be Mara's daughters. In Buddhist cosmology, Mara is associated with death, rebirth and desire. Nyanaponika Thera has described Mara as "the personification of the forces antagonistic to enlightenment." He is Yama's fearsome persona and all beings associated with him, darkness and death, become forces of Mara. These forces consist of Asuras, Rakshasa, Pishacha, Pisacas, Aratis and animals. Origin His name is first mentioned in the ''Atharvaveda, Atharva Veda'' (1200 BCE–1000 BCE) as Mrtyu and Agha Mara, the evil slayer. He is called the "evil one who kills" and "Papiyan", denoting a being which is not only morally bad but intertwined wit ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Amaravathi Village, Guntur District
Amaravathi is a village located on the banks of the Krishna River in the Palnadu district of Andhra Pradesh, India. It serves as the administrative centre of Amaravathi mandal and lies within the Andhra Pradesh Capital Region. Known for its cultural heritage, Amaravathi lends its name to the state's newly planned capital, Amaravati, located 35 kilometres to the east in Guntur district. Amaravathi is notable for its prominent place in both Hinduism, Hindu and Buddhism, Buddhist traditions. The place is named after the Amararama, Amareswara Temple, one of the Pancharama Kshetras, significant Hindu temples dedicated to Shiva, Lord Siva. It is also home to the ancient Amaravati Stupa, a Buddhist monument from the 2nd century BCE to the 3rd century CE. This stupa, now under the protection of the Archaeological Survey of India, exemplifies the Amaravati art, Amaravati School of Art, a style that had a lasting influence on Buddhist art throughout South Asia, South and Southeast Asia. ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Aniconism In Buddhism
__NOTOC__ Since the beginning of the serious study of the history of Buddhist art in the 1890s, the earliest phase, lasting until the 1st century CE, has been described as aniconic; the Buddha was only represented through symbols such as an empty throne, Bodhi tree, a riderless horse with a parasol floating above an empty space (at Sanchi), Buddha's footprints, and the dharma wheel. This aniconism in relation to the image of the Buddha could be in conformity with an ancient Buddhist prohibition against showing the Buddha himself in human form, known from the '' Sarvastivada vinaya'' (rules of the early Buddhist school of the Sarvastivada):"Since it is not permitted to make an image of the Buddha's body, I pray that the Buddha will grant that I can make an image of the attendant Bodhisattva. Is that acceptable?" The Buddha answered: "You may make an image of the Bodhisattava".Although there is still some debate, the first anthropomorphic representations of the Buddha himse ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Buddhist Symbolism
Buddhist symbolism is the use of symbols (Sanskrit: ''pratīka'') to represent certain aspects of the Buddha's Dharma (teaching). Early Buddhist symbols which remain important today include the Dharma wheel, the Indian lotus, the three jewels and the Bodhi Tree.Coomaraswamy (1998), pp. 1–5. Buddhism symbolism is intended to represent the key values of the Buddhist faith. The popularity of certain symbols has grown and changed over time as a result of progression in the followers ideologies. Research has shown that the aesthetic perception of the Buddhist gesture symbol positively influenced perceived happiness and life satisfaction. Anthropomorphic symbolism depicting the Buddha (as well as other figures) became very popular around the first century CE with the arts of Mathura and the Greco-Buddhist art of Gandhara. New symbols continued to develop into the medieval period, with Vajrayana Buddhism adopting further symbols such as the stylized double vajra. In the modern era, ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Frieze
In classical architecture, the frieze is the wide central section of an entablature and may be plain in the Ionic order, Ionic or Corinthian order, Corinthian orders, or decorated with bas-reliefs. Patera (architecture), Paterae are also usually used to decorate friezes. Even when neither column (architecture), columns nor pilasters are expressed, on an astylar wall it lies upon the architrave ("main beam") and is capped by the molding (decorative), moldings of the cornice (architecture), cornice. A frieze can be found on many Greek and Roman buildings, the Parthenon Frieze being the most famous, and perhaps the most elaborate. In interiors, the frieze of a room is the section of wall above the picture rail and under the crown moldings or cornice. By extension, a frieze is a long stretch of painting, painted, sculpture, sculpted or even calligraphy, calligraphic decoration in such a position, normally above eye-level. Frieze decorations may depict scenes in a sequence of ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Bodhisattva
In Buddhism, a bodhisattva is a person who has attained, or is striving towards, '' bodhi'' ('awakening', 'enlightenment') or Buddhahood. Often, the term specifically refers to a person who forgoes or delays personal nirvana or ''bodhi'' in order to compassionately help other individuals reach Buddhahood. In the Early Buddhist schools, as well as modern Theravāda Buddhism, bodhisattva (or bodhisatta) refers to someone who has made a resolution to become a Buddha and has also received a confirmation or prediction from a living Buddha that this will come to pass. In Theravāda Buddhism, the bodhisattva is mainly seen as an exceptional and rare individual. Only a few select individuals are ultimately able to become bodhisattvas, such as Maitreya. In Mahāyāna Buddhism, a bodhisattva refers to anyone who has generated '' bodhicitta'', a spontaneous wish and compassionate mind to attain Buddhahood for the benefit of all sentient beings. Mahayana bodhisattvas are spiritua ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Life Of Buddha In Art
Narrative images of episodes from the life of Gautama Buddha in art have been intermittently an important part of Buddhist art, often grouped into cycles, sometimes rather large ones. However, at many times and places, images of the Buddha in art have been very largely single devotional images without narrative content from his life on Earth. The literary accounts of the life of Gautama Buddha vary considerably in details but are mostly consistent in describing the main events. One of the largest surviving bodies of artistic depictions is the rather small stone reliefs of Gandharan art, beginning in the 1st century BC and continuing for several centuries. These reliefs probably reflected subjects in paintings, both murals and illustrating manuscripts, none of which survive. Their range of about 50 subjects is large, and very rarely exceeded in later art, except in the 120 large reliefs at Borobudor in Java, Indonesia, (but 27 of these are of subjects before his birth); in East Asia ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
