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Tag: gandhara art

  • Buddhism in Indian art

    Buddhist art of Indian subcontinent (c. 150 BCE – c. 500 CE) has imbibed the art of other religions & geographical regions  due to foreign influence overtime. Sanchi, Bharhut and Amaravati are embodiments of Buddhist art forms. Buddhist stupas and sculptures were built during the reign of various dynasties who ruled the subcontinent

    Buddhism in Indian art an overview

        Indian art forms are huge in number and it encompasses painting, sculpture, pottery, and textile arts. When you mention Indian arts it includes the art forms of Indian subcontinent existed since many centuries. Geographically, the art spans a wide area encompassing the current India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Nepal, Bhutan, and at times eastern Afghanistan.

      The Indian art forms are intricately crosslinked with the religions of the subcontinent.  Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism, Sikhism and Islam have been depicted in the art marvellously. 

    Foreign influence on Indian art can be seen in various art forms of Indian subcontinent.  Central Asia, Iran, and Europe had tremendous influence in developing Indian art due to overseas trade relations with this land.

    Sanchi, Bharhut and Amaravati are embodiments of Buddhist art forms with statues and stupas. In these sites stupas are surrounded by ceremonial fences with four profusely carved toranas or ornamental gateways facing the cardinal directions. The Buddhist art monuments are built in stone, though clearly adopting forms developed in wood. Mathura was the most important centre in this development, which applied to Hindu and Jain art as well as Buddhist.

      The caves at Ajanta, Karle, Bhaja etc. contain ancient sculptures. Buddhists gave emphasis on making statues of  Buddha, influenced by Hindu and Jain religious figurative art.

    Greko-Buddhist influence

     The Greko-Buddhist influence on art was evident after the conquests of Alexander the Great. This fusion developed in the far north-west of India, especially Gandhara in modern Afghanistan and Pakistan.

    BuddhistArt during reign of Kushana empire

     The Indian Kushan Empire who reigned northern India  had built large statues that were portraits of the royal dynasty

    Kushan Empire (c. 30 CE – c. 375 CE) was a syncretic empire in central and southern Asia, From 127 to 151 CE,[ Gandhara] reached the zenith of its glory under the reign of Kanishka. In this period, Kushan art inherited the Greko-Buddhist art.

     Mahayana Buddhism flourished, and the depictions of Buddha as a human form first appeared in art wearing a monk’s robe and a long length of cloth draped over the left shoulder and around the body.

    The distinctive feature of Gandharan art is its connection to naturalism of Hellenistic art. The naturalistic features seen in Gandharan sculptures include the three-dimensional treatment of the drapery, with unregularized folds that are in realistic patterns of random shape and thickness.

    The physical form of the Buddha and his bodhisattvas are well-defined, solid, and muscular, with swelling chests, arms, and abdomens in these art works.

    Buddhist  Art during Shunga dynasty’s reign

     The Buddhist stupa from the Shunga Dynasty is The Great Stupa at Sanchi, believed to be founded by the Mauryan emperor Ashoka c. 273 BCE – 232 BCE during the Maurya Empire. The Great Stupa was enlarged to its present diameter of 120 feet, covered with a stone casing, topped with a balcony and umbrella, and encircled with a stone railing during the Shunga Dynasty c. 150 BCE – 50 BCE.

    In addition to architecture, another significant art form of the Shunga Dynasty is the elaborately moulded terracotta plaques. As seen in previous examples from the Mauryan Empire, a style in which surface detail, nudity, and sensuality is continued in the terracotta plaques of the Shunga Dynasty. The most common figural representations seen on these plaques are women, probably goddesses, who are mostly shown as bare-chested and wearing elaborate headdresses.

    Buddhist Art during Shatha vahana dynasty rule

    Satavahana dynasty (c. 1st/3rd century BCE – c. 3rd century CE) built Amaravati Stupa, the Karla Caves, and the first phase of the Ajanta Caves.

    Relief sculptures of Buddhist figures and epigraphs written in Brahmi characters are often found in divine places specific to Buddhism.

     To celebrate the divine, Satavahana people also built stone images as the decoration in Buddhist architectures.

    Furthermore, the Satavahanas coins made primarily in copper, lead and potin depicts arts of the period.

    Gupta art (c. 320 CE – c. 550 CE) of Buddhism

    The Gupta period is the golden era for north Indian art and it is found in the Ajanta Caves; the surviving works are chiefly religious sculptures. The period witnessed the emergence of the iconic carved stone deity in Hindu art, as well as the Buddha-figure and Jain tirthankara figures.

    The prominent centres of sculpture were Mathura Sarnath, and Gandhara, perhaps the last the centre of Greco-Buddhist art.

    Buddhist art in current India

    Most of the Buddhist art forms as sculptures, stupas, paintings still exist in Indian subcontinent although a few are in a dilapidated condition due to adverse climate, invasions and wars.  In current India one can find Buddhist monuments in various states.

    • Bihar: Mahabodhi Temple (Bodh Gaya), Nalanda University ruins, Rajgir, Vaishali, Kesaria Stupa.
    • Uttar Pradesh (UP): Sarnath (Dhamek Stupa), Kushinagar (Parinirvana Stupa), Sravasti, Piprahwa.
    • Maharashtra: Ajanta & Ellora Caves, Karla Caves, Deekshabhoomi (Nagpur).
    • Madhya Pradesh (MP): Sanchi Stupa, Bharhut.
    • Odisha: Lalitgiri, Ratnagiri, Udayagiri, Dhauli.
    • Ladakh: Thiksey, Hemis, Alchi Monasteries.
    • Sikkim: Rumtek, Enchey, Pemayangtse Monasteries.
    • Himachal Pradesh: Tabo, Kye Monasteries, Dharamshala.
    • Andhra Pradesh: Amaravati, Nagarjunakonda, Bhattiprolu.
    • Tamil Nadu: Nagapattinam, Kanchi.
    • Karnataka: Bylakuppe (Sera Monastery).
    • Telangana: Nelakondapalli, Phanigiri.
    • Arunachal Pradesh: Tawang Monastery.
    • West Bengal: Bharatpur Buddhist Monastery Complex.

    These monuments of art at various historical destinations may provide any art afficianados or visitors an elaborate account of the emergence and growth of Buddhism in the subcontinent and how its ideologies rooted in this land. The history Buddhism and art is inseparably merged with the geopolitical history of Indian subcontinent and visiting these destinations may enkindle the principles of Ahimsa and nonviolence in the traveller’s mind and soul along with the aesthetic and visual appeal the monumental arts can offer.

  • Sanchi Buddhist Monuments

    The stupas, temples, viharas, and stambha monuments at Sanchi in Madhyapradesh,India are among the oldest and most relevant examples of aniconic arts and free-standing architecture that comprehensively document the history of Buddhism in ancient India.

    Dr.Sanjana p Souparnika

    Sanchi Stupa is a Buddhist complex, famous for its Great Stupa, on a hilltop at Sanchi Town in Raisen District of the State of Madhya Pradesh, India. It is located 46 kilometres (29 mi) north-east of Bhopal, capital of Madhya Pradesh.

    The stupas, temples, viharas, and stambha at Sanchi in central India are among the oldest and most mature examples of aniconic arts and free-standing architecture that comprehensively document the history of Buddhism from the 3rd century BCE to the 12th century CE. It is an important monument of Indian Architecture originally commissioned by the Mauryan emperor Ashoka in the 3rd century BCE. The stupa at Sanchi built during the Mauryan period was made of bricks.

    The monuments at Sanchi now comprise a series of Buddhist monuments starting from the Mauryan Empire period (3rd century BCE), continuing with the Gupta Empire period (5th century CE), and ending around the 12th century CE. It is probably the best preserved group of Buddhist monuments in India.

    The oldest, and also the largest monument, the Great Stupa also called Stupa No. 1, initially built under the Mauryans, and adorned with one of the Pillars of Ashoka

       Sanchi is the center of a region with a number of stupas, all within a few miles of Sanchi. These include

    • Satdhara (9 km to the W of Sanchi]
    • The  Relics of Sariputra and Mahamoggallana
    • Bhojpur (also called Morel Khurd, a fortified hilltop with 60 stupas11km away)
    •  Andher (17 km SE of Sanchi)
    • Sonari (10 km SW of Sanchi)
    •  Saru Maru stupa [ 100 km away ]
    • Bharhut is 300 km to the northeast.

    During the reign of under the Shungas and the Satavahanas, the Great Stupa was enlarged and decorated with gates and railings, and smaller stupas were also built in the vicinity, especially Stupa No.2, and Stupa No.3

    Sanchi monuments were rediscovered by the British colonialists general Henry Taylor in 1818.The first excavation of this site was done under the supervision of Major Alexander Cunningham in 1851.

    The architecture of great stupa at Sanchi

    The “Great Stupa” at Sanchi is the oldest structure and was originally commissioned by the emperor Ashoka the Great of the Maurya Empire in the 3rd century BCE.

    Its nucleus was a hemispherical brick structure built over the sacred relics of the Buddha, with a raised terrace encompassing its base, and a railing and stone umbrella on the summit, the chatra, a parasol-like structure symbolizing high rank.

    The original Stupa only had about half the diameter of today’s stupa at Sanchi , which is further enhanced by the Sungas. It was covered in brick, unlike the stones that now cover it.

    During the later rule of the Shunga, the stupa was expanded with stone slabs to almost twice its original size. The dome was flattened near the top and crowned by three superimposed parasols within a square railing. With its many tiers it was a symbol of the dharma, the Wheel of the Law. The dome was set on a high circular drum meant for circumambulation, which could be accessed via a double staircase. A second stone pathway at ground level was enclosed by a stone balustrade.

    Myths & history associated with Sanchi stupa

      According to one version of the Mahavamsa, the Buddhist chronicle of Sri Lanka, The emperor Ashoka is closely linked with the region of Sanchi. It is believed that While he was heir-apparent and was journeying as Viceroy to Ujjain, he is said to have halted at Vidisha (10 kilometers from Sanchi), and there married the daughter of a local banker who was named as Devi. Sanchi was the venue of Devi and Ashoka’s wedding.

     The original construction work of this stupa was overseen by Ashoka. In the 1st century BCE, four elaborately carved toranas (ornamental gateways) and a balustrade encircling the entire structure were added.

    Inscriptions

    Sanchi, especially Stupa 1, has a large number of Brahmi inscriptions. Although most of them are small and mention donations, they are of great historical significance. James Prinsep in 1837, found that most of them ended with the same two Brahmi characters. Princep took them as “danam” (donation), which permitted the decipherment of the Brahmi script.

        An analysis of the deciphered scripts  denote that most of the donors were from Ujjain, Vidisha, Kurara, Nadinagar, Mahisati, Kurghara, Bhogavadhan and Kamdagigam. Three inscriptions are known from Yavana (Indo-Greek)donors at Sanchi,. The script denoting which reads “Setapathiyasa Yonasa danam” (“Gift of the Yona of Setapatha”), Setapatha being an uncertain city.

    The art of Sanchi

    The  art of Sanchi  developed considerably in the 1st century BCE/CE and is thought to predate the blooming of the Greco-Buddhist art of Gandhara, which went on to flourish until around the 4th century CE.

    The art of Sanchi is considered as the ancestor of the didactic forms of Buddhist art that would follow, such as the art of Gandhara. The Buddhist monuments at Sanchi contain an appreciable concentration of early Indian artistic techniques and Buddhist art, referred to as its Anionic School or Phase. Depicting Buddha through symbols, the sculpted art shows the evolution in sculpting techniques and the elaboration of icons, especially depicting Buddha.

    Ashoka pillar

    A pillar of finely polished sandstone, one of the Pillars of Ashoka, was also erected on the side of the main Torana gateway. The bottom part of the pillar still stands. The upper parts of the pillar are at the nearby Sanchi Archaeological Museum. The capital consists in four lions, which probably supported a Wheel of Law.

    The pillar has an Ashokan inscription (Schism Edict)[13] and an inscription in the ornamental Sankha Lipi from the Gupta period.[6] The Ashokan inscription is engraved in early Brahmi characters. It is unfortunately much damaged, but the commands it contains appear to be the same as those recorded in the Sarnath and Kausambi edicts, which together form the three known instances of Ashoka’s “Schism Edict”. It relates to the penalties for schism in the Buddhist sangha:

    … the path is prescribed both for the monks and for the nuns. As long as (my) sons and great-grandsons (shall reign; and) as long as the Moon and the Sun (shall endure), the monk or nun who shall cause divisions in the Sangha, shall be compelled to put on white robes and to reside apart. For what is my desire? That the Sangha may be united and may long endure.

    Now  Sanchi group of monuments are owned by the Government of India and is conserved, prot

    ected, maintained, and managed by the Archaeological Survey of India under the Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Sites and Remains (AMASR) Act (1958

    Sanchi Monument listed by UNESCO

    Currently , around fifty monuments remain on the hill of Sanchi, including three main stupas and several temples. The monuments have been listed among other famous monuments in the UNESCO World Heritage Sites since 1989.

    How to reach Sanchi?

    The nearest airport is Bhopal which is 55 km away from it. Trains are available from Bhopal and Rani Kamlapati to Sanchi railway station.

    References