Buddhist Iconography Research Articles

Reinterpreting Buddhist Iconography: A Study of Craft Meanings and Uses in Everyday Living Architectures through ‘Iconic Interactionism’

Reinterpreting Buddhist Iconography: A Study of Craft Meanings and Uses in Everyday Living Architectures through ‘Iconic Interactionism’

Cultural Tradition or Kitsch? Buddhist Iconography in the Art of Contemporary East Asian Women Artists

Cultural Tradition or Kitsch? Buddhist Iconography in the Art of Contemporary East Asian Women Artists

Toward a Methodology for the Study of Buddhist Fine Art: (using an example of Zanabazar’s works)

The article provides a comparative analysis of different approaches to the study of Buddhist iconography and objects of religious art: scientific academic and traditional Buddhist. Their main goals and objectives, understanding of the fine art style in art history and the Buddhist tradition are considered. The possibility and necessity of using diverse sources of research, or rather, the complex and multidisciplinary principle of working with cult images of Buddhas, bodhisattvas and deities for the most profound and adequate understanding of them, as well as exhibiting them in a museum or other exhibition space, is argued. The ideal model for the development of such a research methodology, in the author's opinion, is the work of the greatest Buddhist master Gombodorjiin Zanabazar (1635–1723), who combined the qualities of both an artist, a highly educated Buddhist adept, spiritual mentor, and a ruler of the state. The types of written and other verbal sources, as well as the types of objects or visual sources that should be used to reveal the theme of Buddhist artistic creativity are considered. It was also made an attempt to formulate the most urgent tasks and promising directions for researchers of Tibeto-Mongolian Buddhists fine arts.

A Study of the History of the Development of Buddhist Iconography

Nowadays Buddhism is one of the world's major religions, and its means of transmission and artistic approach are diverse. As one of these means of communication, Buddhist statuary has also been passed on to the present day as an excellent form of art. The art of statuary is very rich, with different periods of statuary having different characteristics, which have been handed down from one generation to the next. The art of Buddhist statuary also varies from region to region. They have their own history of development, but they are not independent, learning from each other and from other regions and times. There is no clear lineage of the specific development of Buddha's statues and the specific history of their development in different regions and at different times. The aim of this paper is to trace the history of the development of Buddhist iconography, to sort out its development from Hellenism to its arrival in India and its subsequent introduction to China, and to clarify the influence of Greek sculpture on Indian Buddhist iconography and subsequently on Chinese Buddhist iconography.

Iconography of Buddhism: The Tradition of Depicting the Old White Man

The Old White Man is a local deity revered by Buddhists in Russia. His image, based on textual traditions and Buddhist iconography, prompted the name — the Old White Man, now widely accepted. In the written sources he is also known as the “Conqueror and subduer of the [master spirits] of earth and water”. The early images appeared in Mongolia under the influence of the Chinese traditional pictures of Tú Dì, ancient deities associated with localities, while later they were influenced by traditional images of Shòuxing, the deity of longevity. At an early stage of the iconographic tradition, the Old White Man is depicted as a priest or a high official; his functions are rendered via the characters of his companions, the host spirits of mountains (sabdaks) that have the features of man and animal or animals, such as a pair of deer, chained leopard (wolf), as well as ritual objects, including a carved staff or a dragon head staff. At a later stage, there may be symbols associated with the giver of longevity and fertility (bald phallic head, cave, and peach). The text of the “Sutra of the Old White Man” includes the description of his appearance (a white-bearded, bare-headed old man in a white robe), attributes (a dragon head staff) and an allegorical landscape of a mountain and fruit trees. Neither early nor recent Mongolian and Buryat pictures fully correspond to the description. Much closer to it is the Kalmyk iconographic tradition. The Old White Man’s image of the Kalmyk nomads goes back to the ancient mythological idea of the deity as the keeper of domestic animals. Due to transformations in the religious sphere, the keeper of domestic animals becomes the Old White Man, the lord of all living beings and all earthly space. Traditionally, he is presented as a standing old man, bare-headed and his long gray hair gathered in the form of a triratna. He is dressed in a belted robe, with another swinging robe thrown on it. In his right hand, he holds a staff with a dragon’s head and a rosary in his left. There are no companions or animals. The symbolic landscape serves to enhance the grandiose figure of the old man. The details of the attire and the landscape refer to the former Chinese influence.

Picturing Political Power: Eighteenth-Century Korean Portraits in San Francisco's Asian Art Museum

Picturing Political Power: Eighteenth-Century Korean Portraits in San Francisco's Asian Art Museum

Semantics of Attributes of Japanese Buddhist Sculpture

The article is devoted to the description and analysis of some iconographic elements inherent in Buddhist cult sculpture, which made communication between a person and a deity possible. The set being analyzed in this article, which is distinguished by its diversity, is limited to attributes that the deities hold in their hands, as well as crowns crowning the heads of deities, since they occupy a particularly important place in the structure of Buddhist iconography. The various identification marks endowed with Buddhist deities, in general, remain unchanged. As symbols, since images of deities are perceived by the adherents of the faith, they contribute to the birth of the corresponding associations. Embodied in Buddhist sculpture with their characteristic semantics, the attributes help to understand the essence of Buddha's teaching. Some objects are an information sign exclusively for a certain deity, others may belong to the subject environment of different deities. In the visual arts of Japan, the attributes of Buddhist sculpture have become a conventional image, contributing to the message of the versatility of Buddhist teaching, revealing its spiritual essence. Religious and aesthetic merged into one in the works of outstanding masters, who paid special attention to iconographic details, giving them artistic expressiveness. Buddhist sculpture uses symbols with well-established traditional meanings – religious values that have become common culture. The semantic structure of the symbol appeals to the experience and knowledge of a parishioner in a temple or a visitor in a museum, deepening and expanding his spiritual and mental space. This is facilitated by the canonized system of pictorial language that has developed over the centuries.

Crowned Buddha images of Lanna kingdom and "contamination by Mahayana" paradigm

The study is a continuation of a series of articles that provide a critical analysis of the dominant paradigm in Buddhist Studies, which links the emergence of the crowned Buddha image with the relatively late ideas of the Mahayana. The existence of the image in the Theravada world is explained from this point of view by the "contamination” from the Great Vehicle. The article shows the difficulties faced by this concept, which is forced to explain the transition from the "early” image in the guise of a monk by referring to the custom of decorating existing statues with real jewelry. In this regard, the author explores the features of the demonstration of monastic robe in combination with royal regalia in Buddhist iconography, from Indian samples of the Pala to the Khmer type of image. It is shown that, contrary to the widespread point of view, the traditional arrangement of jewelry is not on top of the monastic vestments, but under it, which cannot be explained in principle on the basis of said custom. Since the monk's clothing is thought of as an obstacle that prevents one from seeing the features of the supernatural anatomy of the Buddha and the signs that distinguish him as a Great Man, it is depicted as an almost invisible transparent cover, which ultimately "disappears" in images with a "naked" torso, where only barely noticeable lines on the body indicate the invisible presence of monastic robe. The practice of making crowned Buddha images in the Lanna kingdom, following this tradition, turns a reception with decorations partially hidden by a monk’s clothes into a kind of "manifestation” that the symbolism of the image is much deeper than the simple transformation of a temporary addition into a permanent attribute. An analysis of the adornments allows us to conclude that they have no obvious Indian prototypes and a conscious choice of a special type of regalia of the highest royal power, referring to the narrative about the relationship between the Buddha and the Cakkavatti. In connection with this narrative, the crowned image appears, on the one hand, as a symbol of the subordination of secular power to the goals proclaimed by the Buddhist teaching, on the other hand, as an monographic embodiment of the model of power, which allows reconciling the imperial ambitions of the rulers with the ideals of Buddhism. The article also formulates a hypothesis about the "re-Indianized” style of the Lanna crowned Buddha images, that is, the formation of this style as a result of reconstruction based on texts devoted to Indian iconography, as well as available samples, presumably originating from Srivijaya, which reveal traces of influence from both north-east and south of India. Based on the analysis of one of the provincial types of the crowned Buddha, it is shown how the image acquires local ethnic features, absorbing traditional cults and becoming a symbol of national self-identification, protection of the path of ancestors.

Листвяной рожок готокаку в иконографии японских мандал периодов Муромати и Эдо

The subject of this article is the imagery of gotokaku leaf horn, a rare musical instrument found on Japanese mandalas depicting Pure Land of Muromachi (1336-1573) and Edo (1603-1868) periods. It looks like a green tree leaf, folded in half and intertwined with a silk ribbon. Specialized studies on him in domestic and foreign literature have not been found. Artistic images of gotokaku are quite rare; associated with the “celestial music” motif, they usually placed in peripheral space of mandala. Bearing in mind that each composition element of Buddhist mandala is related to various aspects of practice, it seems very interesting to explore symbolic significance of this musical instrument within the context of some provisions of Amidism. The origin of the Pure Land school in China dates back to the Vth century. The imagery of paradise, the Pure Land of Buddha Amitabha, is crucial in Pure Land doctrine. It can be assumed that the symbolism of the musical instrument was associated with ideas about the melodious sound of “jewel-trees”, which, according to canonical texts, are grow in Amitabha's land. Ideas of Amidism were known in Japan in the Nara period (710-794), and during the Kamakura period (1185-1333) they became widespread. Traditional and the most complete form of the artistic representation of Amitabha's Pure Land in Japan has become Taima-mandala. The composition of Taima-mandala has a clear chain, and a large part of it is given to the sky motif. Over there, among the other instruments of the “celestial orchestra”, we can find an image of unusual musical instrument made from a leaf. Referring to Japanese compendiums on Buddhist iconography from the XVII-XVIII centuries, it was identified as gotokaku (梧桐角, Ch. wutong jiao) leaf horn. All the founded images were accompanied with a brief description in Chinese. The earliest Chinese text that mentions wutong jiao (梧桐角, Jap. gotokaku) is Wang Zhen's Nong Shu (Book of Agriculture, 1303); a schematic drawing of the instrument is given there, but it’s only remotely resembling gotokaku images on Japanese mandalas. Thus, it is not yet completely clear when and where the image of gotokaku appeared for the first time in the form which we find it on mandalas and in Japanese iconographic guidelines of the XVIIth-XVIIIth centuries. It is clear that the instrument had Chinese origin; Chinese literature sources refers to it as “ancient”. During the medieval times it was known as wutong jiao. There is a chance that different instruments with different methods of production and sound extraction were known under the same name in both countries.

The Research of the Symbolism of Phra That Phanom and Indigenous Ethnoecology Synopsis

Southeast Asian Stupas contains Buddhist iconography having rich symbolism. The symbolism of Buddhist stupa (or chedi) is a kind of arts illustration of Buddha’s intelligence, and it also contains the intricate man-land relationship locally. Localization occurred on the architecture of stupas thereby the indigenous knowledge influenced the symbolism of the traditions of stupas that originated from India. Hence, this paper is dedicated to exploring the relationship between the symbolism of Phra That Phanom and the local ethnoecology. By combining the years of fieldwork experience and the related ethnoecological theories, the symbolism of Phra That Phanom and the regional man-land relationship could be interpreted in an innovative perspective. In the end, a comprehensive analysis about Mahabhuta symbolism of Phra That Phanom will be conducted to test the paper’s demonstration.

Buddhist Iconography and Religious Symbolism in different Buddhist Statues

Religion relies on the construction and transmission of religious messages and morals in the followers. For a successful construction and transmission of religion, it depends heavily on archetypes, arts, artworks, events, connection with natural phenomena, and so on. These all are collectively known as symbols. Religion is interpreted by the texts, rituals, and works of art as symbols. Symbols and their construction help in creating myths and expressing moral values of the religious society. It helps in the spread of teachings of the religion and builds a bond of worship amongst the believers or the followers. Buddhism is the religion of the followers of Gautama Buddha (Sakyamuni). It is a branch of Hinduism with numerous varieties in practices and conviction. Like Hinduism, Buddhism is one of the significant religions of the world with presumably more than 3.5 million disciples. Ongoing themes of Buddhism incorporate the three precepts or gems (Buddha, Dharma, and Sangha), and the objective of Nirvana. This paper discusses various iconography and religious symbolism in different Buddhist statues across the world.

Crowned Buddha of Amaravati and the Cakkavatti canonical concept

The article represents a kind of “postscriptum” to the author’s hypothesis about fundamental sources found in Pali canon and early post-canonic literature that gave birth to formation of the crowned Buddha image. This hypothesis underlies this study of early Buddhist iconography, in particular with respect to images belonging to the Amaravati school, which illustrate the relationship between the Buddha and Cakkavatti. The author substantiates the conclusion that the image of the crowned Buddha had emerged almost simultaneously with the anthropomorphic image of the Enlightened One.

The artistic Heritage of Dzanabadzar and his School preserved in the Collections of the State Hermitage

The article deals with the heritage of the outstanding master of Mongolian art Gombodorzhiin Dzanabadzar (1635-1723) and his disciples, who formed the so-called “school of Dzanabadzar”. The actual subject to analysis are most significant works of Mongolian Buddhist art preserved in the collections of the State Hermitage / St Petersburg. These comprise bronze sculptures and scrolls (tankas), as well as fragments of Buddhist clay sculptures and some other items, which originate from the Sardag monastery, the moulds for which were designed by Dzanabadzar. To describe the holdings, the author uses comparative analysis of the Buddhist iconography and stylistics. The sculptural works of the master as well as his disciples are so diverse that it is almost impossible to ascertain two completely identical items. The same is relevant for the phenomenon of the Dzanabadzar school plastics. Only the images of the clay tathagatas where were used the moulds are completely identical. The article offers a cornucopia of material for further discussions regarding the Mongolian art preserved in the collections of the State Hermitage.

Conserving Thangka [formula omitted] A technical approach unto the preservation of Buddhist Thangka through automation

Cultural patterns have been generated from the prehistoric period and have percolated down over the ages with evolution and constant evaluation by successive generations. Such patterns are created using mechanical automation. This article is an attempt to capture such cultural patterns using iconometric analysis. In this article, first, a brief study of various technical research carried out on cultural heritage related to Buddhist iconography has been presented. And then, a computational technique has been proposed to digitize the method that is followed by the Thangka practitioners for drawing the portrait of Buddha on Thangka. The methodology can be used for preservation and learning of the patterns of special significance in this rich art form. These pattern generation techniques can be used as a learning aid in the study of subjects and can generate newer interpretations from patterns in numerous Buddha images and paintings that have been developed over the ages and by various sects within the Buddhist practice. This method, when used to churn out rich cultural heritage artefacts, can lead to the development of centralized digital archives which provide opportunities to the common people to get access to such heritage objects which otherwise may have been hard to lay eyes upon. This will also help in scientific authentication of the present repository of historical artefacts. The article discusses the automated generation of Tibetan thangka−based Buddha faces, satisfying the iconometric proportion as used by different Buddhist schools of thought. The images generated by this method can be considered as authentic Buddha Images. This paper also provides the geometry for the reconstruction of an authentic Buddha image using the key facial features of Buddha. This research can help the traditional learners of Thangka painting to use modern pattern recognition techniques for skill enhancement.

Tathagata Buddhas by the artist Zanabazar (1635-1723): Ratnasambhava, Amitabha, Amoghasiddhi, Vairochana

This is another publication in the series of articles written by S-Kh, Syrtypova on the Buddhist iconography and the meaning of Buddhist deities in Mongolian Buddhism published in the Orientalistica earlier. This time the author deals with Ratnasambhava, Amitabha, Amoghasiddhi and Vairocana, the four of the Fife Tathagata Buddhas created by Zanabazar in 1683. The article comprises the history of their veneration, the specific details with regard to the spiritual of practices among Mongolian Buddhists and the visual representation of the deities by the famous artist Zanabazar. The sculpture of Ratnasambhava is preserved in the Museum-temple of Chiojin-lama, and others are preserved in the Zanabazar’s Museum of Fine Art in Ulaanbaatar city of Mongolia.

Tibeto-Mongol Buddhist architecture and iconography on Wutaishan, seventeenth to early twentieth centuries

ABSTRACTIn the Qing and early Republican period, Wutaishan had between 25 and 30 monasteries affiliated to Tibetan Buddhism. Their monastic architecture seemed to exclusively follow the Chinese-Buddhist style, except for the Tibetan-style bottle-shaped stupa. The Wutaishan built landscape seemed relatively homogeneous, and travellers were sometimes confused about the blurred visual frontier between Chinese Buddhist and Tibeto-Mongol Buddhist monasteries.Were there buildings (other than stupas) typical of Tibetan monasteries that have not been preserved on Wutaishan? Why did the Tibeto-Mongol Buddhist communities settled in Chinese style monastic buildings? Was there local or imperial pressure to ‘keep things Chinese,’ or was it in their interest to entertain a visual confusion between the two traditions of Buddhism? And how did Tibeto-Mongol Buddhist monks, whose lifestyles and spatial practices of Buddhist architecture differ from Chinese Buddhist monks’s, adapt themselves to Chinese spatial arrangements?This article will highlight mutual borrowings between Chinese Buddhist and Tibeto-Mongol Buddhist monasteries on Wutaishan. Using various sources such as ancient picture-maps, old photographs, floor plans and travellers’ accounts, I will highlight interactions between Chinese and Tibeto-Mongol Buddhist monasteries from the point of view of architecture, iconography and material culture in the nineteenth and early twentieth century.

On the ‘Shintō’ Statues of Matsuo Shrine: Tendai Buddhist Rituals, Iconography, and Veneration in Japan and China

On the ‘Shintō’ Statues of Matsuo Shrine: Tendai Buddhist Rituals, Iconography, and Veneration in Japan and China

Самый большой аппликационный буддийский свиток из фондов Национального музея Тувы

Творчество тувинских мастеров в русле традиций буддийской иконографии ведет отсчет истории со второй половины XVIII в. Оно имеет свои локальные особенности, в отличие от методов монгольских художников. В фондах Национального музея им. Алдан-Маадыр Республики Тыва хранятся три буддистских свитка (иконографические изображения на ткани), выполненных техникой аппликации. Среди них особо выделяется аппликационное иконографическое изображение буддийского божества достаточно большого размера. Она имеет значение и как ценный источник по религиозной культуре, и как священная реликвия региона. Статья вводит в научный оборот информацию о не изученных реликвиях, и вносит вклад в исследования храмового искусства Тувы.Даны основные сведения о всех трех аппликационных свитках (время поступления, время создания, описание изображения), в том числе их фотографии. Самый большой свиток был сдан в хранилище музея в июне 1960 г. вместе с другими многочисленными предметами буддийского культа, после конфискации имущества молитвенных юрт местечка Кызыл-Чыраа Дзун-Хемчикского района. Описан оклад свитка, изображение трехликого божества белого цвета с четырьмя руками, облаченный в прекрасное одеяние. Предполагается, что это одна из ипостасей бодхисаттвы безграничного сострадания Авалокитешвары.Сделан вывод, что данная аппликация, возможно, была изготовлена на территории Тувы усилиями местных мастеров с использованием китайского материала.

Book review: Kazim Abdullaev, Buddhist Iconography of Northern Bactria

Kazim Abdullaev, Buddhist Iconography of Northern Bactria, Manohar, New Delhi, 2015, 274 pp., ₹1,295.

Trinakirana mudra in Buddhist iconography of Myanmar and Thailand

It is considered to be that the iconography of Theravada embodies the real or legendary events of the life of the Buddha Gautama (Gotama). Using the episode of the Bodhisattva (Bodhisatta) meeting with Sotthiya as an example, the article analyzes the stability of the iconographic code that reflects the life of the founder of Buddhism. The development of the episode in Buddhist iconography is traced from the art of Gandhara through the samples of Dvaravati Mons, Burmese Pagan, temple wall paintings of Burma and Siam 17-18 th centuries up to the modern iconography of Myanmar and Thailand.