COLLECTION NAME:
The AMICA Library
mediaCollectionId
AMICO~1~1
The AMICA Library
Collection
true
AMICA ID:
ASIA.1979.039
amicoid
ASIA.1979.039
AMICA ID
false
AMICA Library Year:
1999
aly
1999
AMICA Library Year
false
Object Type:
Sculpture
oty
Sculpture
Object Type
false
Creator Nationality:
Asian; Indian Sub-Continent; Indian
crc
Asian; Indian Sub-Continent; Indian
Creator Nationality
false
Creator Dates/Places:
Eastern Indian
cdt
Eastern Indian
Creator Dates/Places
false
Creator Name-CRT:
Eastern Indian
crt
Eastern Indian
Creator Name-CRT
false
Title:
Bodhisattva Avalokiteshvara in the Form of Khasarpana Lokeshvara
otn
Bodhisattva Avalokiteshvara in the Form of Khasarpana Lokeshvara
Title
false
View:
Full view
rid
Full view
View
false
Creation Date:
Pala period, late 11th-early 12th century
oct
Pala period, late 11th-early 12th century
Creation Date
false
Creation Start Date:
1067
ocs
1067
Creation Start Date
false
Creation End Date:
1133
oce
1133
Creation End Date
false
Materials and Techniques:
Phyllite
omd
Phyllite
Materials and Techniques
false
Classification Term:
Reliefs
clt
Reliefs
Classification Term
false
Creation Place:
India, Bengal
ocp
India, Bengal
Creation Place
false
Dimensions:
H. 54 3/4 in. (139.1 cm)
met
H. 54 3/4 in. (139.1 cm)
Dimensions
false
AMICA Contributor:
Asia Society
oon
Asia Society
AMICA Contributor
false
Owner Location:
New York, New York, USA
oop
New York, New York, USA
Owner Location
false
ID Number:
1979.039
ooa
1979.039
ID Number
false
Credit Line:
Asia Society: The Mr. and Mrs. John D. Rockefeller 3rd Collection
ooc
Asia Society: The Mr. and Mrs. John D. Rockefeller 3rd Collection
Credit Line
false
Rights:
orl
<a href="http://www.asiasociety.org"target="_new">http://www.asiasociety.org</a>
Rights
false
Context:
One of the longest lasting and most important Buddhist cultures of India developed and flourished in eastern India from the 8th to the 12th centuries. During this period, Bihar and Bengal--present-day West Bengal state and the nation of Bangladesh--were primarily under the control of the Pala family. However, various other families, in particular the Senas, also controlled smaller sections of this region at different times. Monks from all over Asia traveled to eastern India to study Buddhism at the famous monasteries there. As a result, the influence of Pala-style art spread throughout Asia. Pala contributions to Buddhist art include the development of a new figural type, which was loosely based on prototypes developed during the Gupta period (c. 320-c. 500) in north and north-central India, and the evolution of a more complicated iconography that illustrates contemporary changes in Buddhist thought.
This image of Avalokiteshvara, the Bodhisattva of Compassion, shows the deity in the posture of relaxation (lalitasana), often seen in Pala-period images of princely bodhisattvas, probably to symbolize their activity and accessibility. Its rich carvings, elaborate details, and pointed tops date this relief to the late 11th or early 12th century.
Avalokiteshvara is worshipped in a wide array of forms, and in this case is represented as Khasarpana Lokeshvara. The Khasarpana, or 'sky-gliding,' formis youthful, has two arms, and wears his hair in a tall matted coiffure with an image of Amitabha Buddha on his headdress. The five directional buddhas are seated on lotus pedestals at the top of the sculpture. Female deities stand to either side of the central figure: the two-armed figure to the bodhisattva's right is Tara, and the four-armed figure with a stupa in her headdress is Bhirkuti.
Esoteric Buddhism includes an astonishing number of deities in a mind-boggling array of forms; the secondaryfigures in a composition such as this relief function as symbols reinforcing the theme--here the importance of compassion--and help in identification of the main deity. The figures on the base of the relief include a preta or 'hungry ghost' named Suchimukha ('needle-nosed'), seated beneath Avalokiteshvara's outstretched right hand, which is held in the gesture of charity or offering. This composition illustrates the belief that Avalokiteshvara feeds nectar to the hungry ghosts as a symbol of his infinitecompassion for all human beings. In addition, a long inscription engraved at the bottom of the base begins with the traditional Buddhist consecratory formula and offers pious wishes for the enlightenment of all beings.
cxd
One of the longest lasting and most important Buddhist cultures of India developed and flourished in eastern India from the 8th to the 12th centuries. During this period, Bihar and Bengal--present-day West Bengal state and the nation of Bangladesh--were primarily under the control of the Pala family. However, various other families, in particular the Senas, also controlled smaller sections of this region at different times. Monks from all over Asia traveled to eastern India to study Buddhism at the famous monasteries there. As a result, the influence of Pala-style art spread throughout Asia. Pala contributions to Buddhist art include the development of a new figural type, which was loosely based on prototypes developed during the Gupta period (c. 320-c. 500) in north and north-central India, and the evolution of a more complicated iconography that illustrates contemporary changes in Buddhist thought.<P>This image of Avalokiteshvara, the Bodhisattva of Compassion, shows the deity in the posture of relaxation (<I>lalitasana</I>), often seen in Pala-period images of princely bodhisattvas, probably to symbolize their activity and accessibility. Its rich carvings, elaborate details, and pointed tops date this relief to the late 11th or early 12th century.</P><P>Avalokiteshvara is worshipped in a wide array of forms, and in this case is represented as Khasarpana Lokeshvara. The Khasarpana, or 'sky-gliding,' formis youthful, has two arms, and wears his hair in a tall matted coiffure with an image of Amitabha Buddha on his headdress. The five directional buddhas are seated on lotus pedestals at the top of the sculpture. Female deities stand to either side of the central figure: the two-armed figure to the bodhisattva's right is Tara, and the four-armed figure with a stupa in her headdress is Bhirkuti.</P><P>Esoteric Buddhism includes an astonishing number of deities in a mind-boggling array of forms; the secondaryfigures in a composition such as this relief function as symbols reinforcing the theme--here the importance of compassion--and help in identification of the main deity. The figures on the base of the relief include a preta or 'hungry ghost' named Suchimukha ('needle-nosed'), seated beneath Avalokiteshvara's outstretched right hand, which is held in the gesture of charity or offering. This composition illustrates the belief that Avalokiteshvara feeds nectar to the hungry ghosts as a symbol of his infinitecompassion for all human beings. In addition, a long inscription engraved at the bottom of the base begins with the traditional Buddhist consecratory formula and offers pious wishes for the enlightenment of all beings.</P>
Context
false
Related Document Description:
Asia Society. Handbook of the Mr. and Mrs. John D. Rockefeller 3rd Collection. New York: Asia Society, [1981], p. 21.
rdd
Asia Society. <I>Handbook of the Mr. and Mrs. John D. Rockefeller 3rd Collection</I>. New York: Asia Society, [1981], p. 21.
Related Document Description
false
Related Document Description:
Huntington, Susan L. 'Pre Pala and Pala Period Sculptures in the Rockefeller Collection.' Apollo (November 1983), pp. 373-76.
rdd
Huntington, Susan L. 'Pre Pala and Pala Period Sculptures in the Rockefeller Collection.' <I>Apollo</I> (November 1983), pp. 373-76.
Related Document Description
false
Related Document Description:
Huntington, Susan L., and John C. Huntington. Leaves from the Bodhi Tree: The Art of Pala India (8th-12th Centuries) and Its International Legacy. Dayton and Seattle: Dayton Art Institute and University of Washington Press, 1990, pp. 159-61.
rdd
Huntington, Susan L., and John C. Huntington. <I>Leaves from the Bodhi Tree: The Art of Pala India (8th-12th Centuries) and Its International Legacy.</I> Dayton and Seattle: Dayton Art Institute and University of Washington Press, 1990, pp. 159-61.
Related Document Description
false
Related Document Description:
Lee, Sherman E. Asian Art: Selections from the Collection of Mr. and Mrs. John D. Rockefeller 3rd. New York: Asia Society, 1970, pp. 16, 17, 31.
rdd
Lee, Sherman E. <i>Asian Art: Selections from the Collection of Mr. and Mrs. John D. Rockefeller 3rd</i>. New York: Asia Society, 1970, pp. 16, 17, 31.
Related Document Description
false
Related Document Description:
Newman, Richard. The Stone Sculpture of India: A Study of the Materials Used by Indian Sculptors from ca. 2nd Century B.C. to the 16th Century. Cambridge, Mass.: Harvard University Art Museums, Center for Conservation and Technical Studies, 1984, pp. 34, 68, 74, 84.
rdd
Newman, Richard. <i>The Stone Sculpture of India: A Study of the Materials Used by Indian Sculptors from ca. 2nd Century B.C. to the 16th Century.</i> Cambridge, Mass.: Harvard University Art Museums, Center for Conservation and Technical Studies, 1984, pp. 34, 68, 74, 84.
Related Document Description
false
Related Document Description:
Treasures of Asian Art: Selections from the Mr. and Mrs. John D. Rockefeller 3rd Collection, The Asia Society, New York. Hong Kong and Singapore: Hong Kong Museum of Art and National Museum Singapore, 1993, pp. 60, 61.
rdd
<i>Treasures of Asian Art: Selections from the Mr. and Mrs. John D. Rockefeller 3rd Collection, The Asia Society, New York.</i> Hong Kong and Singapore: Hong Kong Museum of Art and National Museum Singapore, 1993, pp. 60, 61.
Related Document Description
false
Related Document Description:
Treasures of Asian Art: Selections from the Mr. and Mrs. John D. Rockefeller 3rd Collection, The Asia Society, New York. Tokyo: Idemitsu Museum of Arts, 1992, pp. 47, 122.
rdd
<i>Treasures of Asian Art: Selections from the Mr. and Mrs. John D. Rockefeller 3rd Collection, The Asia Society, New York.</i> Tokyo: Idemitsu Museum of Arts, 1992, pp. 47, 122.
Related Document Description
false
Related Document Description:
Young, Mahonri Sharp. 'Treasures of the Orient: A Rockefeller Collection.' Apollo (November 1970), p. 332.
rdd
Young, Mahonri Sharp. 'Treasures of the Orient: A Rockefeller Collection.' <I>Apollo</I> (November 1970), p. 332.
Related Document Description
false
Related Image Identifier Link:
ASIA.1979.039.a.tif
ril
ASIA.1979.039.a.tif
Related Image Identifier Link
false