ancient india and indonesia: the cosmic mountains of buddhism
TRANSCRIPT
Ancient India and Indonesia:The Cosmic Mountains of Buddhism
Animistic Religion Speculative Religion
Shinto Buddhism
explains relationship between human beings and nature
explains human purpose on earth and the end for which humans
beings must strive
Hinduism: Cycles of the transmigration of the soul (reincarnation)
Goal: to become one with the World Soul once again
Buddhism evolves out of Hinduism
Buddhism: Enlightenment (nirvana) allows for early liberation from the
cycles of transmigration
Siddhartha Gautama (ca. 563-483 BC)
10 original brick stupas around Indiasheltering the Buddha’s relics
Early Buddhists were itinerant ascetics
The Buddha (“the Enlightened One”)
Stupa at Vaishali, India Stupa at Sarnath, India
1.
I. Early Buddhism’s multiplication of sacred places = multiple centers of the world A. What was the rationale for erecting 40 “Pillars of Law”?
Ashokan pillar next to one of 10 original stupasPillars erected by emperor Ashoka
Column at Besnagar in Madhya Pradesh, India, 1st cen. B.C.
cosm
ic axis
boundary
cosmicized (sacred) space
chaos (profane) space
I. B. How did the Ashokan pillars function as cosmic axes (apply Eliade’s theory)?
2.
II. Architectural monuments in a religion that renounced worldly and material comforts
Great Stupa, Sanchi, India, 2nd – 1st century BC
II. A. Contexts of politics and religion 1. Why were there not stupa-centered monasteries before the 2nd century BC?
Great Stupa in the Buddhist Monastery at Sanchi
II. A. 2. What purpose did stupas serve in the speculative religion of Buddhism?
Great Stupa
B. Eliade’s concepts of sacred and profane space (cosmos vs. chaos;
axis mundi) used to link the living essence of the Buddha (his body) to the cosmos
II. B. Eliade’s concepts of sacred and profane space used to link the living essence of the Buddha (his body) to the cosmosII. B. 1. Where does the notion of a cosmic mountain find form and expression in the Great Stupa?
II. C. Ritual and design: How is the stupa a diagram of Buddhism that is used by individual believers?
Great Stupa
II. C.
Great Stupa
II. C.
Great Stupa
II. C.
Great Stupa
II. C.
Great Stupa Great Stupa - upper vedika
II. C.
Great StupaGreat Stupa’s cube railing (harmika),
mast (yashti) and triple chattri
III. Buddhist architecture as a university to attain perfected wisdom (Bodhi) in Southeast Asia
The Borobudur temple, Java, Indonesia, 770-850
III. A. Context of politics and religion
III. B. What are the parts of the Borobudur and how do they differ from the Great Stupa at Sanchi?
Great Stupa at Sanchi The Borobudur
III. B. 1. The earthly realm: geometry, sculpture (formal quality and content)
The Borobudur: Four terraces of the earthly realm
III. B. 2. The celestial realm (ruphadhatu): geometry, stupas and sculpture (quality and content)
The Borobudur: Three terraces of the earthly realm
III. B. 3. The world of formlessness (arupadhatu): how does architecture convey the world of formlessness?
The Borobudur: the Great Stupa
III. C. Ritual and design: How is the Borobudur a diagram of Buddhism, used by individual believers to instill perfected wisdom (Bodhi)?
The Borobudur
III. C.
first square terrace second square terrace
The Borobudur: the Great Stupa
III. C.
The Borobudur: the Great Stupa
first circular terrace
III. C.
The Borobudur: the Great Stupa
circular terraces: miniature stupas with statues of the Buddha inside
III. C.
The Borobudur: the Great Stupa
the Great Stupa
III. D. Eliade’s concepts of sacred and profane space (cosmos vs. chaos) used to link Buddhist wisdom to the cosmos 1. Where is the idea of a cosmic pillar (axis mundi) present?
The Borobudur
III. D. 2. Where does the notion of a cosmic mountain find form in the Borobudur, and why is it square?
The Borobudur
III. D. 3. Where does the profane end and the sacred begin at the Borobudur?
The Borobudur