art of ancient india ch 8
TRANSCRIPT
;,: leem
- t men,
:::l into:n rhe
' :- little
T r : O P O [ -
:fonu-
1-::a, the
l\ccan:: &omi ilom
! -'furv-
::i who
:: ::-nand
:: basic
:- of the
:.-atlon-
--,i dies
-..-. lut the--. ot tlre::ce the--ukyas,
- :itnova-
: earlier.--'llout a
CHAPTER SIXTEEN
Hindu Rock-cut Architecture of the Western Deccan
Er ro na (Raslnaxule Pua s n)
Control of the Deccan was taken from theEarly Western Calukyas around 75o1 by theRaptrakugas, who in this way began a hegemonythat was to last more than two hundred years,until about 973. Although the political might ofthis farnily has been widely acknowledged, verylitde is known about the artistic developmentsthat rook place during the period oi thcirsupremacy. The principal site associated withthese rulers is lllora, where several cave ex-cavations were carried out, appalently undertheir aegis. Without a doubt, the most ambi-tious and impressive of these-indeed, perhapsin all of South Asia-is Cave 16, the Kailasanethatemple. One of the last important Hindu ex-cavations, it represents not only the most strikingcave temple of the more than thirty at the site,but also the culmination of rock architecture inSouth Asia. Its boldness suggests centuries oftradition in which carving techniques and anunderstandine of the rock medium were de-
veloped, enabling craftsmen to push the archi-tectural type to its limits. The Kailasanathaternple is more than simply a building; itis a complex with all the essential elements ofcontemporaneous free-standing southern-typetemple units, including a main building, Nandishrine, gateway, surrounding cloisters, and sub-sidiary shrines.
It is difficult to say how long it took to createthe main temple and its surrounding elementsor the precise sequence of the excavations. Mostscholars today feel that the major portion ofthe monument, including the central temple andNandi shrine, as well as perhaps the gateway, be-long to the reign ofthe Rasrakota king Krsna I,who ruled from around 757 to 773. However,it is likely that the temple was planned andbegun under his predecessor, Dantidurga, sincethe excavation next to the Kailesanatha, Cave rj(the misnamed "Dai Avrtar"). bears an inscrip-tion of the earlier monarch who reigned from
341
J42 DYNASTIES OI THE MIDDLE PETIIOD
arouncl 73J to 7J7 and the tlvo cavc monuDlents
bear unr.nistakable stylistic ties to cach other.z
General conceptual rclations betr,vccn this monu-
rncnt and the Virfipaksa tcmple at Pattadaka]
(Figs. r5.3-9), rvhich datcs from approximately
thc fourth dccade of thc cighth century, further
suggc ' t a d . r tc ne" r fhe midd le o f t l re e igh th
centr,ry for the Kailasanatha, althougl.r thc
relationships betwccn the two teDrPles havc
been vastly overemphasized. Indeed, whilc thcy.hcrc cer r . r in fearurc , bcc- ,usc rhcy r re borh
ror r thcrn- . ry lc rnonunrcn ts d r t ing f ronr .Lp-
proximatcly the samc time, the dilTerences
bets'een thcm are at least as significant as those
):ctwccn any othcr two crcatioirs in thc sPectrum
of lndic art.From the exterior, thc templc compicx is
alnost complctcly screcncd by a rock-cut rvall
rvith a eateway in the centcr (Fig. 16.r). Al-
though now rnuch dantaged duc to surfaceabrasion, the gatcway was an important feature
. .o ' !;:.'f,,'u;r*i
16.r. Kailasanaths tcrnple corlplex tiorn rvcst shorvins cltrancewr1l rnd grtcrv:r,v. Ellori], Mahart:trr, L1dia. Rtitr:rku!e Pcriocl.Mainly ca. third qu;rrtcr cighth ccnturv.
hcrc, just as it is gencrally in latcr south lndian-stylc ternples. The southcrn dcrivation for theforn.r is clearly seen in thc piiastcred nichesbearing rcprcscntations of various dcities whoscslendcr builds, ornanentatioll, pointed crowns,and facial features furthcr indicate a southernsourcc (Fig. 16.z). Most of thc deities shorvn to
thc lcft of the entrAncc are Saivite while thoseto t l rc r igh t r r< p r im, , r i l y V . r i .nar i te . . rn r r -rangcment also carried oLrt in the gallcry atthe rcar of the precinct.
After passing through the monurncntal gate-way in the ccntcr of thc stone screen wall, thevisitor enters a pit, for Jike the Paldya ternpleat Kalugun.ralai (Fig. ra.37), thc Kailasanatha isa totally free-standing ten.rplc r','ithin a larsc Pitthat was excxvatcd to cleate a spacc around theccnr r . ' l rn . ,s ' (F rg . r t , .3 ) . Howcver . in (on t rJ . l
to thc un{inished Pendya example rvith lvhichthe Kailasanatha is approximately contempor-aneous, the RastrakDta monunlent is carvecl and
HINDU ROCK-CUT ARCHTTTCTIIRE Or THE r{/XSTERN DECCAN 343
r6.2. Detail, carvinsis to lefr ofcnirrnce to Kxiltsanatha tcmplecompourld. Ellore, Maherasrrx,India. Rastraknta period. Ca. thirdquarter eishth ccntur,v.
16.3. Vicw of Kailasanathx tcD-ple from lorthwcst. El]ora,Maharastn, India. Rrstraklta pc-riod. MaiDty ca. third quartcrcighrh century.
J44 DYNASTIES OF THE MIDDIE PERIOD
o 1 o 3 0 6 0
o 5 l o 1 5 2 1 )
M i i
t:;1;llTil:l:'iil:::l$-?,iiiTff l#';'.*\lxlli'il:fiira quarter eighth century'
HINDU ROC(-CUT ARCHITICTURE OF THE WESTERN DECCAN J4J
0 r 0 3 0 6 0
0 5 l 0 t 5 2 a
J46 DYNASTITS oF THI MIDDTE PERIoD
completed both inside and out. Further, sub-sidiary shrines, chapels, and gallerres wcre ex-cavated in the surrounding rock wall, creatinga temple cor.nplex of ovcrwhelming scope andambition. Since thcse elements, as well as thctemple parts, occur on lrforc than onc level, itis best to study thc plan of the tenlple in twostagcs, the lower and upper stodes (Fig. rrS.a).
The lower srory greatly resemblcs a typicalsouth Indian ternple complcx in its rcctangularformat, yet it diflcrs frorn both the Rajasirhhc-ivara tenplc at K-iicipurxrll and the Virupaksatemple xt Pattadakal in that the surroundingwall does not contain cvenly spaced subsidi:rryshrincs. Instead, it has sevcral rather large shrincsand a gallery:ilong thrcc sicles at the rear con-taining huge sculptccl panels. The monumentalni;vo-storied gateway providing access to thetempic cor ) rpound on rhc wes( i s on ao ax iswith :r detaclrcd Nandi na4dapa and the ten.rplepropcr. The lowcr stories of both the Nandishrine and main tcmple are solid ancl cannotbe cntered. In plan, the lower story of rhcmain tcnlple seen-rs somervhat unusual, consist-ing of a rectangular form lvith projectionsat the sides and rear, but the shape is clarifiedin the upper story, for at dlat icvel, thc ten.rple,which mry be crrrered. brc.rks inro ir, corn-ponctlt parts: a. ldtrdapa rvith sixtcen pillarsarrangcd in four groups of four to create akind of cruciforn.r effect for the aislcs, a pro-jecting porch at the front (west) ancl one oneithcr side, and an antechambcr and srnallcubical slrrine cncased in in extremcly thickrvall. Thc shrine may be circumambulatcd byexiting at tlre rear of the nandapa atd snlkngalong an unroofed passagcway that has {ivesmaller shrincs "garlanding" thc centrrl sancturn.Except for the addition o[ thcse five shrincs,and thc fact that the circumar.nbulatory passageis not encloscd, the plan of thc tcmple is quitenorrllal and n-ray bc relatcd to nuncrous nrollu-ments, both in southcrn and northern Indir.On drc second icvcl, thc Nandi slrrine mayalso be entered. The excavations in the sccondstory of the surrounding wall do not reflectthose below, a {bature th:rt is fcasible in cavearchitecture when the relationship berwccn thetwo need not be stmcturrl. Ts,'o shrines occur
in the right wall of the pir .nd arorher templc,rivaling the Kailasanatha itsel{ is located at theleft. The latter excavationJ called the LankeSvaratemple, consists of a pillared nandapa entered bystairs at the wcst and a shrine with an enclosedcircumambulatory passageway. Like thc maintcmple, it is dedicatcd to Siva.
Stone bridges, carved from the living rock,connect the gateway, Nandi pavilion, and en-trance porch of the ter:rple so that separare stairsare not needed to visit the sccond story of eachentity (Fig. 16.5). The main temple has a south-e:rr-style flafld that is capped by a pyramidalsupcrstructure rising in clearly defined stagcs andcrowned by a. iikharc. 'fhe five smaller shrincssurrounding the fi:,ain dflafla arc also southernin form. Thc solid lowcr story of thc Nanditcmple and that o[ the main temple arc morethan seven mcters high and, iu the case of themain temple, has approximatcly life-size ele-phants carved around it. A pair of enornouspillars (stanbhas) flank the Nandi pavilion; anda pair of elephants (the one at the right isbadly damaged) were also rock-cut and musthave been part of the original schemc sincematrix had to be left for their crcatron.
Thc cxtcrior of the tenplc is riclJy carvedwith nichcs, pilasters, windows, and cornices aswell as imagcs of deitics, nithrnas, ar'd otherfigures. Even more elaborate than the monu-nents of thc Early Western Calukyas andPallavas, the richncss of carving suggests rapidmovement toward thc alnost totally filledsurfaces of n.rany late Indic temples. Althoughthe iconographic prograrn of the temple is not
f'lly ktto*tr, most of the depictions are ofSaivitc subjects, but a considcrable number arcVaisnavite. Interspersed with thc many reliefsand {igures of varying sizes on thc temple sur-facc are huge panels containing gigantic figuresor tableaus. Under the stone bridge between thcNandi shrinc and the ternple porch, on the eastside ofthe Nandi shrine, is a large pancl showingSiva in one of his angry aspects as destroycr ofrhe denron. Andhaka 'u ra ( f ig . r6 .6 ) . Cracc-fir l ly po'cd arrd rerr-armcd. Sivr hold. rhc skinof a slain elephant bchind him and is accon.r-penied by his consort, Pervati (at the right),whorn he fondlcs afl-ectionatcly with one hand,
IIINDU ROCK-CUT ARCHITBCTURT OF TIIB WXSTTRN DECCAN 347
: :4 f , ,
rE-::11--i.lrs
.: ::ch- - t
: .1
r- :ld
i:::=e5
:=::m'. =di-_ tre
: -re
:-e-=_ 'J5
-ad
=iJt
Eae
r6.J. Frollt cornponents of Kailasanatha ternple,fron south. Ellora, Maheristra, India. Rrsira-kala period. Mainly ca. third quarter eighchcentury.
16.6. Siva as Descroyer of Andhakasura, Kaila-sanatha temple. Ellora, Maharestra, India. Ra-strakuta period. Ca. third quarter eighth ccntury.
Ji48 DYNASTIXS OF THE MIDDLX PERIOD
and the saptumatrfrar (seven mothers), whoappear as small carvings in the round at the lowerleft. The origin of tbe saptamat/<as is tied intothe Andhakasura story as given in Puranicliterature, for when Siva attempted to slay thedernon, drops of blood from the wounds of thedemon created new demons as tlrcy fell toearth. The various gods sent their ir&tls to helpstop the blood, thus explaining the presence ofthe saptamafikas. Afurities to south Indian stylecarvings of the Pallavas and Early WestemCalukyas are seen in the elongation of Siva'storso with its typical roll of flesh beneath thehorizontal waistband. The very full hair styleis part ofthe iconographic convention, althoughthe rather rcalistic, three-dimensional treatmentof the locks of hair secms to bc a tie to stylcsof the preceding centuries of the Gupta andpost-Gupta periods.
Another important and huge relief shows themultiarmed, multiheaded demon Ravar.ra shakingthe sacred mountain abode of Siva and Pervati,Mount Kailasa (Fig. i6.7). Located under theporclr on the south side of the na4/apa of thecentral temple, this relief with its approxirnatelyhuman-size figures and three-dimensionallycarved details creates a highly dramatic effect. Itsstory, like n.rany other Hindu tales, rnay be readon two levels. The first is a sirnple account of theattempt by the dcmon Rdvana to wreak havocon Kailasa by shaking it and Siva's subsequentoverpowering of Revana through the use ofonly his great toe. On a more sublime level,the story is an expression offaith in the unlimitedpower of Siva and the reassurance that evil, nomatter how strong, cannot surpass the greatnessof rhe god. The relief shows Ravana in a cavirybeneath stylized mountain forms, Siva andParvati sit atop the central cluster of rocks andSiva's dwarves (garas), animals, and attendantsaccompany them. Parvati, leaning toward herlord, suggests the emotional drama of the storyand another female figure to Parvati's rightseems to be rundng in fright into the distance.In these figures, as in most adorning the temple,clear south Indian al{urit ies are seen in treatmentof the slender body forms, high hair styles,headdresses, and ornamentation. The subjectitself appears several times at Ellora in a number
of other Hindu caves. Possibly, the popularname KailSsanatha was given to this templebecausc of the association with Siva as lord ofKailasa in this relief.s
The dramatic efect of the tcmple, enclosedwithin the mountain inelf, is partly the result ofthe large and dynamic carvings, such as thosediscussed, at a number of key locations withinthe temple precinct. One of the nost compellinggroups is found in an excavated hall on thesecond level of dre right wall of the templeenclosure, which is dedicated to the saptamaqkasand popularly called the Hall of Sacrifice.Human-size, in thc round, deeply carved repre-sentations of the natykas, Galresa, aud otherfigures line three walls of the shrine, virtuallysurrounding the devotee who might enter. Threeof the best-preserved figures are on the westernwall, and show Durga at the right with her lionvehicle, a goddess seated upon a lotus pedestalin the center, and Kala, a male skeleton withthe bodies of two naked, dying men, one acrosshis lap and another below (Fig. 16.8). In thiscase, the robust, fullfigured forns ofthe westernDeccan that had been seen at sites like Ajanlaand Aurangabad seem to be present, and it isevident fiom other portions of the Kailasanathacomplex as well that artisans of both southernand western Deccan heritage worked on themonument, although the southern style prevails.A great degree of realism, probably exploitedfor dramatic effect, is seen in the naked iguresand especially in the depiction of Kala. Siva asdestroyer of Andhakasura, the story that ex-plains the origin of the saptumatkas, is fittinglydepictedto the left of this hall.Tlie assignment ofa separate shrine at a Siva temple to the sevenmothers is a feature that becomes increasinglycommon after this period in the Deccan andother parts of India, and is refective of thegrowing imporrance of f lemale imagery inHinduism. As in Buddhism, and seen alreadyin the rock architecture created for Buddhistestablishments in the Deccan, Hinduism of thepost-Gupta periods shows increasing use offemale symbolism, the female essentially repre-senting the jaAri that is a necessaly componentfor the achievement of release (rzo.Qsa), that is,a reintegration with the UniversrL Principle.
HINDU ROCK-CUT ARCHITECTURE OF THE WESTIRN DTCCAN J49
:.rlar. . - t ":-l of
r6.7. Ravana Shakir lg Mounr Kxi l ,sa,Kailasxnathr tc rplc. Ellore, Maha-rastre, Indi.r. Rislrakiita pcriod. Ca-third quarter eighth ccntury.
6.8. Matr[as, Kri]asan,dla tcm-
plc. Ellora, Mrhiragfra, Lldia
Ra;t rakr i t r Fcr iod. Ca. th i rd
quar!cr cigllth ceniLrry-
JJO DYNASTIES OF THE MIDDTE PERIOD
CoNct us lo l t
Although the Kailesanetha temple complex isnot the only monument of the RaggakOtadynasty, it is certainly the most impressive. Afew other caves at Ellora and some in&equentlvdiscussed structural temple, throughout rheDeccan are also ascribed to the Raptrakfta period,and all of these must be thoroughly studiedbefore the full implications of the Kailasanathatemple are understood. The motivation behind
the creation of such an extraordinary monumentis an intriguing issue, especially since a short timeafter it was made, Hindus virtually abandonedthe rock-cut technique in favor of structuralbuildings. Thus, the artistic tradition ended soonafter the production of one of its most remark-able achievements and never again was a rock-cut monument of such scope attempted.4
Elonumeff
a short timeabandoned
..i smrcturalended soon
nost remark-*as a rock-
P A R T F O U R
LATER NORTHERN SCHOOLS
1 ;
a
\,-.',l
L:i+
Ei r+
*,*,0
T
ql
Y
Y
€
a
(naF=YN
-\ Li-l r
F d - f f ( n
, S r l F L r Ji \ l n i l l $Cr-t i-t < r t
\,/ <L\ * / t \ J 7t - J - l t t t I L L t t I>-F-Zi
Detai l af 17.23.
C H A P T E R S E V E N T E E N
Kaimrr and Related Schools
Although regional cultural variations havc bccn
discerniblc since the carliest begimines of Indic
civilizatiot, they bccane incrcasingly rvell
dcfincd over the ccnturies. Aftcr thc Gupt:r
pcriod in particular, regional art schools paral-lcling linguistic, cultural, and social patternsrnay be broadly defined according to the tlncc
major geographic divisions usually uscd todescribe the South Asian subcontincnt, that is,
northern, southern, and ccntral (Deccan). Thcsccatcgories should not bc viewed as absolutc,especial)y in thc casc of the Dcccatr schools,which often sharc characteristics of both north-crn and southem art, or in the case of the coastalrcgions, where on thc cast and on thc lvestcertain artistic ties may bc sccn from north tosorth, alnost seeming to obviate thc threcdivisions. Witl.rin thc broad sphcres of thenotthern, soLrtlrcrn, aud central divisions, thcreis a grcat dcal ofvariation arising from nuineroLlsfactors itcl,-rding strong local tr:rditrons, as secn,for exarnplc, in thc casc of thc art of Kaimrr,where the Bactro-Gandhera hcritagc pcrsistccl
long after the art tradition of the northwest wasviablc. Thc stucly of thc regional styles of art,t1ren, shoulcl be b"sed upon the premise thatwitl.rin cach region thcrc is sone conrmonality,as wcll as upon the recognition that a great deal^ f - . ' i " n ,
" " i . t " - , i r h i "
The Hinralayan valley of Ka(n.rir, althoughgcographically sccluded frorl the rest of SouthAsia, has bccn :r part of thc Indic culturel spheresincc thc timc of A(oka. lts geographic situation,bounded on all sides by high nrorrntains, has ledto an insularity that contributcd to the dcvcl-opn-rcnt of its rrniquc cultural characteristics.Kainriri art is nrainly dcpcndcnt on Indicidior.ns, modifieci by inllucnces from Bactro-Gandhera, Iran, and Inner Asia. Throughthese neighboring rcgions, inlluenccs from laterwestern Asiatic Hcllcnisn-r n-ray also bc traced.Howcvcr, for all these inlluences, the Ka6rniriidiom was unique and earned the region arcprltatiorl throughout Asia for its sophisticated,elegant, and technic;r)ly supcrb schools ofart.
Thc history of Kaimir has been chronicled
353
354 LATEI< NORTHERN SCHOOIS
in an inportant and possibly unique text
relativc to Indic historiography, tlte Raja-
tarcigirl. W titten in about rr481 by Kalhana,
son of Ca4paka, a n.rinister to King Harga (ro89-
rror) of the first Lohara dynasty, it dcscribes
the history of Ka{mir uP to tlrc timc of its
writing, detailing the building of cities aud
temples, designating the Patrons, and giving
some of the undcrlying rcasoning behind thcir
actions. Howcver, Kalhana is lnainly accurate
concerning thc period of his life and the im-
mediately preceding periods, for which he sccms
to have been able to rely on contemPorary
documents. His accuracy decreascs the further
hc extends backward in tine until the chronicle
becomes a jur.nble of lcgends coupled with bits of
histodcaiinformation for the early periods. Using
this material as wcll as some collateral sources,
however, it is possiblc to providc an outline
of the history of Ka(n.rir fron.r the timc of ASoka
to rhc midd lc o I r l rc twc l f i l r ce t t r t t ry . . rg r in ' t
which the artistic dev€loPncnts may bc seen.
Iarly traditions indicatc that the Kaimlr
Valley was a part of thc Maurya empire and
that Aioka hin.rself founded the capital, Srina-
gara, at a location now lnown as Pendrerhan,zjust south of modern Srinagar. Howevcr, no
archaeological finds in Ka6rnir testify to
Maurya artistic activity in thc region. Only a
single monarch is mentioned in the Raiatndigittt
as intervening betwcen thc Maurya and thc
Kulana pcdods, but during Kusana timcs, the
history becomes more clear. Ka(miri cities
foundcd by thc Kus-a4as ar€ still known, such as
Kaniskapura (modcrn Kanispur) and Huvi5ka-
pura (modern U;kur). Of these, Uskur rcmained
an important Buddhist site for several ccnturies
,nd underucnt . r r le , rs t tuo tna jo r rcnov . ' t ions .
one in the latc fourth ccntury and anothcr in the
cighth. It is gencrally bclieved that Kaniska held
rhc fourth Buddhist council in Ka(n.rir, thereby
demonstrating its importance as a Buddhist
centcr by thc sccond century 4.o.3
P r r - K a l x o l a R x M A t N s
The earlicst sitc that has yielded important
artistic remains is Herwan (Harvan), a
Buddhist monastery a short clistance ftoln
Srinagar. It is situated halfway up the slopc of a
mountain bordcring a lateral branch of the
rnain vallcy. Founded under thc Kusenas, pcrhaps
at thc tine o[ Kaniska's cottncil, thc r-nonastery
was apparently active for a colsiderablc length
of tilDe. Constrtlction tcchniques found at
Harwan mngc fron-r carefully cxccuted "Kusdna
diaper" walls to a rather crudc pcbble and rrud
version usually assigned to thc middle or latc
Hola pcriod (mid-fiftb ccntLrry or later). Very
little has actually survivcd at Harwan, and
were it not for thc cottrtyard tilcs found in
association wrth tlte caitya irall, thc site would
have little to testify to its former inportance
Thcsc early remains, however, alrcady display
at least two strands of the an-ralgatu that is to
become thc Ka(n.riri school, as they bctray
both wcstern Asiatic and Gupta assocratrotrs.
Of the surviving lertulants at Harwan, the
caitya hall is the most intercsting. Its plan is
sinilar to that of the railya hall cavc at Kondivtc
(Fig.5.r9) cxccpt that therc is no survivrng
evidcncc of thc prescnce of thc -vr.rpa. WJrat
rcmaitrs is a low section of thc wall and original
floor of thc courtyard, which were faced with
stamped clay ti lcs (Fig. r7.r). Thc floor t i lcs
lvere arranfled to suggcst the form of an cnor-
mous open lotus, which lnay havc rcpresented
the transcenclcnt cosmic lotus, along with
borclcr and othcr motifs. The centcr of the lotus
has r lorv raiscd arca r,vith a hole in the middle
of it, as if it scrvcd as a stand or sttpport.
Ka(nir's associations widr both the northcrn
Indian art schools and thosc of western Inner
Asie lrc ,.viderrr frorn the ti lc', .rs .ccn in I
rather comnlon typc of Har*''an tilc that shorvs
thrcc seated ascetics in the ccntral band, with a
rorv of gecsc (iam-sa) bclow and a railing with
figures abovc (Fig. r7.z). The gccsc nlotif was
known in ancicnt Indic art sincc the Maurya
period (Fig. 4.ro) and thc portrayal of f igurcs
convcrsing above a railing rvas well established
by thc Kuslna pcriod at Mathrtra. Howcver,
KASMIR AND RXTATED SCHOOTS ?55
IS
3
hat dre Kaimirur,r'a empire andre capital, Stna-r as Pdudreqhan,2r. Howevet, nomir testify to' region. Only athe Rajaturaiginadaurya and theu!a[a times, the
Kaimiri cities. known, such as
) and Huviska-Uskur remainedseveral centuries
'jor renovations,LC another in therat Kaniska heldKa:imir, thereby
a Buddhist
avc at Kondivtes no survivingte -rlrpd. What'all and original;ere faced witht ire floot trles
rm of an enor-r1'e rePresented'- along withLter of the lotusr in thc middlesllPPort.h the northem\restefn Inner
. as seeI1 ln arile thac showsI band, with a: railing with
:ese motif wast rhe Mauryarval of figures.:l l establishedra. Howcver,
r 7. r . Section of tile llo or of caitya h^11, Herwan, Kaimir,India. Ca. fourth centrry. TeIIa cotta.
r7.2. Floor tile. Fron H,rwan, Ka5mir, India. Ca.fourth century. Stamped terra cotta. H: J3.4 cm. Is-tituto Italiano per il Medio ed Estremo Oriente, Romc.
the rather distinctive facial rypes of the convers-ing figures are probably derived from the morenaturalistic renderings of the Bactro-Gandhararegions of the northwest, here reduced to almostcaricaturelike renderings, and not the Mathurestyle. The ascetic type, too, might be traced tothe earlier art of the northwestem portions ofthe subcontinent. The numerals on the ti les.which may have been used to expedite rheproccss ofcorrcctly placing them in rheir originalcontexts, are in the Kharosthi scripr, which wasprevalent in tJre northwest. The use of thisscript suggests that the Kidara ("Little") Kuganas,a branch of the main family, were still in poweror had recently controllcd thc region. This wouldconfirm the usual fourth-century dadng for thctiles, a suggestion that is also supported by thetreatment of the foliate motifs in thc band otgeese, which resemblcs Cupra-period cxamplesfrom norrh and north-cenrral India.
Other important pre-Karkota-period sitesare Akhnur and Uskur, ancient Huviskapura,which was founded by rhe Kus5r.ra cnrpcrorHuviska in rhc second century ,r.o. Thc surrrivingsculpture heads from these sites,a such as thc
one illustrated (Fig. r7.3), have stimulated somedebate regarding their age, but their relationshipstylistically to materials from Hadda suggeststhat they were produccd in the late fifth orearly sixth ccntury. Slightly fuller facial featuresand a softening of the details distinguish theseworks frour Hadda examples. A few piecesshow a strong relationship to the Gupta idiomof the late fifth century, especially in thc softlyrnodcled facial fearurcs. alrhough a rangc instylcs suggcsts eidrer diffcrcnr periods of pro-duction. or. aiternatively. that artists ofseparatctraditions worked at rhe site. Thcse examplcs ofthe modeler's art may bc considercd representa-tive of a major art form in Ka6mrr during thcpre-Karkota period.
Very few. stone sculptures have been foundthat belong to the pre-Kerkota period, yet anisolatcd carving representing Karttikeya, fiomBijbchara, docuruents thc cxistencc of a maturestone sculpture idiom from that time (Fig. r7.4).Thc image is not a tentative experiment by ascr.rlptor reaching for forms half-realized in thecreative moment. On the contrary, it demon-strates a sense of sure cornpletion by a master
356 LA'IER NoRTHERN scHools
r7.4. K:rt t ikcya. Fronr Bi jbehara, Ka(mir, India. Ca.fifth or sixrh century. Grcy-black stone. H: roj.J cur.Sri Pratap Singh MuscuiD, Srinagar.
r7.3. Head. Frorn Akhnur, Ka6rnir, India. Ca. latcfrfth or early sixth century. Terra cotta. H: rr.5 cu.National Museum, Karachi.
r7.1. Brddha. Provenancc unknorvn. Frorr norrhwcstLrdia or Pakisran. Ca. mid-fifth ro nlid-sixth century.Mctal. H: 32.4 cru. Sri Prarap Sinsh Museunr, S.inaear.
. :
, India. Ca. late
ona. H: r t .5 crn.
From northwest:id-sixrh century.llus.um, Srinagar.
skilled in his craft and con-{ident of his technicaland visual solutions. Although the date of thepiece is uncertain, very late Sassano-Iranian ele-ments in the treatment of the streamers at thesides of the head and the detailing of the girdleand dagger with their pearl ornamentation sug-gest that this is a work from the H[na period,approximately fifth or sirth century, since theseelements are emphasized on Hu4a coins. Therelative\ Hellenjstic tteatment of the torso andrather muscular body, along with the deep foldsof the garment, are reminiscent of Kusa4a-periodworks from Gandhara and Bactria, revealingKa(mrr's arristic debt to that rradition. How"-ever, other Gatures demonstrate that the Kaimiristyle was also touched by the Gupta schools ofnorthern and north-central India. The huskv.stocky body build and detail ing of rhe anaromy.while ultimately based on the muscular body-type popularized in Kusana-period works, alongwith the full form of the now badly batteredface, suggest works ofthe fifth century like thoseat Udayagiri, Madhya Pradesh.
A few rnetal images are also known fiom thisperiod, including a standing Buddha displaying
KASMiR AND RETATID ScHooLS JJ7
abhaya mudra in the Sri Pratep Singh Museum(Fig. i7.5). Although its findspot and place ofmanufacture are uncertain, it was collected at atime when the museum's attention was entirelyfocused on the provinces of Ka3mir, Jarnmu,and to some degree Ladakh, and it is reasonableto assume tlat it came from one of these threeregions. The features of the face, treatment ofthe robe, and proportions of the body arerelated to forms widely found in Bactro-Gan-dhara images. Further, the compressed statureofthe figure, the heaviness ofthe drapery (wlnchobscures the forms of the body), and the largesize ofthe hands and feet all suggest the Bactro-Gandhara sryle of around the fourth century.However, there is a fullness to thc features ofthe face, especially the cheeks and lips, that ismore appropdately identified as fifth or sixthcentury, and thus a date of 45o-55o may bepostulated. Although rather strictly in theBactro-Gandhera style, the image provides in.r-portant evidence of a stylistic source for laterKadmiri sculpture and painting, whether or notit was actually made in Kaimrr.
THE KARKoTA Pruot (ca .6z5 ro 855)
While there was undoubtedly a great deal ofartistic activity during the early part of theKarkota period, it is not until the reign ofLalitaditya (ca.7z4-5o) that monuments maybe assigned to a particular patronage. Accordingb the Rajatardigiryt, Lalitadttya conquered mostof north India to the Bay of Bengal. Thesemilitary adventures were probably massiveraiding and looting expeditions rather than tmeconquests. As a result ofthem, however, lalitadi-tya carried back to Kaimir inestimable treasure,mostly in the form of gold, silver, and bronze.The vast wealth accrued by Lalitaditya musthave been a major factor in stimulating large-scale art production during the eighth centuryin Kaimir. Some authors attribute virtuallyany eighth centLlry nonument or sculpture tothe period of Lalitaditya, but two monarchsbefore him also had long and prosperous reigns.Both Durlabhavardhana (ca. 625-6r) and Prate-
pedirya II (ca. 66t-vr) could have founded thcKerkota tradition of monument building priorto the rcigrl of Lalitaditya. Further, it is possiblethat several of his successors followcd in hisfootsteps by constructing ten.rples and patroniz-ing monasteries. The fact remains, however,that the eighth century was a major period oftemplc construction, using durable materials,largely attributable to the wealth and power ofLalitaditya.
The remains at Martaqda probably date fromthe period of Lalitaditya. 'fhc
Rajaturaigitt Lsquite explicit on the subject, for in the sectionon Lalitaditya it states that "That liberal [king]built tlre wonderftrl lshrine] of Matta4da, wrthits massive walls of stone within a lofty en-closute (prasarlantar)."s 1^1 r-O rt^, however,was not the fotuder of the site, for his workthere was a reconstruction of an earlier temple,perhaps of the sixth century, that is now com-
Ji58 LATER NORTHERN SCHOOLS
r7-6. Phlr of Mata4rJa ternplc. Mertaqda,
Kr(rrrr, Indn. Krrkota period. probrbly rcign
of Lalitaditya. Ca. second cluarter eighth
r7.7. Martttda temple frorn wcst. Mtrtl4da'Kri rrrr, Indir. K,rkor.r pcr 'od. probabll rcign
of Lalinditya. Ca. second quarter eighth
ccnrury,
r7.8. North pcristylc, Mart,4da ler1rple. Mar-
t:nda, Kaalnir, India. Karkota Period, proba-
bly rcign of Lalit:ditya. Ca. second quarter
cighth ccntury.
pletcly lost. -fhe Rajataraigi1t further reveals
;hat tilc temple was dedicatcd to dre dcity of the
sun, S[rya, who is called Martanda in the tcxt 6
Thc tcnrp le i , rcc tangt t la r in p lan . cor rs i ' t tng
of a ttv4dapa and a shriue (Figs. 17.6, r7'7)'Two
double slrrincs frank the napdapa on the westcrn
cnd. It is enclosed in a vast courtyard by a
peristylc wall having eighty-four secondary
,h.io.s i.r it. The colunurs of this peristylc are
Ilutcd, and their bases and capitals are clearly
reminisccllt of Syrio-Roman typcs (Fig' t7 8)'
Thcrc is a gate to the colnPould on the west,
and major lccondary shrir-rcs in the center of
cach of the two side rvalls. Each of drc eighty-
four niches originally containcd an iurage, prob-
ably of somc forn.r ofsurya, and morc dePictions
of Surya werc placcd around thc plinth of the
temple. The iconography is Martanda/Snrya as
the Univcrsal, r'ith thc temple's ccntral image
conceivcd ofas en-ranating the secondary images.
Architcctr-rrally, thc tenPle and its successors
havc generatcd n.ruch discussion rcgarding thc
sorirce of thcir forms. Early writers, like Sir
Alexandcr Cunninghan.r, sarv the Ka(mlri style
as a nanifestation of Creek stylcs.? But such
relationships c1o not ncccssarily ir.nply new in-
fusions of influcncc. Hellcnizing elencnts arc
obviorisly present in tlle architccturAl details of
thc tenpl; such as the pcdiment motif and
tri lobate arches (Fig. r7.7), the surrounding pcri-
stylc, the var,ltcd arches, and tl.re cngagcd col-
[n-rns. The use of these fornls reflccts wcsterr
KASMIR AND RELATTD SCHOOTS JJ9
] ] :
1: -. . r , . : ' ' .
- a--:.r,' \ l r r r r r : rqr ,: : :labl,v rcign
: : . : icr e ighth
: '-,roba-
! . r : r r tcr
it-',.i:;,':... r,:. ..
: : - o f t h e, : , l f \ : . i as
i r lage
ir laqes.. - laccssors
: . : - : l t r g t hc
: , . l i k c S i r' . j r i r i stylc
l lLrt st lclr'. ncrv irt-
' - :ntnts arc
. letei ls of' :noti f and
::r, i inq peri-
: :glgecl col--. - . ts wesaern
. - a
e'..3&r.!l{ -
360 LATER NORTHERN SCHOOIS
Asiatic tastes, and especially idioms that had
been prescnt in Gandhara, Bactria, and other
regions of the northwest. The peaked roof and
pyramidal section of pediments were known in
Bactro-Gandhara art since the Parthian pcriod;
a good exar-nple of a n-ronument that bears this
motif is the Sttrpa of the Double-headed Eaglc
(Fig. 2.8). These later survivals in Ka(mir should
come as tro surprise, in light ofthe history of the
region and its association with adjacent areas.
Mertanda is one of the earliest and yer largest
of the Ka(n.riri stone tcmples known to have
cxisted. It is likely, however, that it was not
innovative in design but simply refected cstab-
lished architecturrl traditions, probably pri-
marily in wood. Sincc the Parthian-pcriod tradi-
tions at Taxila reveal sirnilar architectural orders,
it may be assumed that the basic style had bccn
present in the irnmediatc vicinity since the
first century of the Christian era and that it was
very much the local convention by thc eighth
century. Thus Martenda is an expression of the
contemporaneoLls trends in Kalintr, whilc at
the same time it clearly displays its heritage in
Bactro-Gandhara and ultimately other western
Asiatic sources.In the eighth centruy, Ka6tlrir was a ma1or
centcr of lluddhisn whose inllucnce was felt
widcly throughout north and castcrn Asia. At
the epicenter of Kaimiri Buddhism was the
site of Parihasapura, rvl-rosc nronuments, though
today barely knorvn, scrvcd as models all across
Asia from the Pat't.tir Mountains to Japan.Although n.Luch destroyed, Parihasapura still
gives thc visitor a sensc of its forrner grandcur,
for thc scele of the rcnrains is truly impressive.
Originally, there was mtlch more to the site
th:rn just the tlrrcc surviving bascmcnts of Br-rd-
dhist builclings would indicatc -ll\e Rajaturahgi,li
describes the town as "mocking the residence
of Indra" (in Treyastrirh(a paradise) and tells of
the imagcs madc by King lalitaditya for drc
various temples, including a rePresentation of
Vis4u as Ma&rake iata, one of Visnu as P,rrt-
hasakelaua (thc patron of the city), :utd a Brhad
Buddha (Great Buddha), thc thrce rnade respcc-
tively of eighty-four tholrsand rola/<as of gold
(about five tons), cighty-fottr thor-rsand polas of
silvcr (about twcnty-o11c tons) and cighty-four
thousand pras&as of copper (nearly three hundred
tons),8 the nurnber eighty-four thousand being
r convenrion used to design:rte a vtsr quantity
and not a literal mcasurement. Lavish expendi-
tures of this sort, evcn if exaggerated, can only
come when there is tremendous incomc to the
kingdom, suggcsting thc veracity of the clairns
of Lalitaditya's conquests.None of thcse imagcs survives today, but the
remains ofthe calt1'a built by Lalitaditya, which
would have housed the BThad Buddha, verify
the claims regarding the size of the Buddha
image. The plan of the structure (Fig. r7.9) is
known from thc surviving plinth, which had a
.eries ofeighr 'tairs on the east.ide giving access
to the top. A pradok5i4apatha around thc massive
block that originally supported the Buddha
would have allowed circrunambulation around
thc main figurc. The original appearancc ofthe
building may be infcrred from a Painting at
Alchi that is bclieved to depict this monunlent
(Pl. r9),e a suggestion suPPorted by the internal
evidcnce ofthe dimensions and form ofthe plan
as determincd by the foundations, the thickness
ofthe remaining wall, and textual evidence. The
height of the structure was probably between
thirty and forty meters, and in style, it may
have resen-rbled contemporaneous Ka6miri
structurcs charactedzed by a peakcd roof, like
that shown in the Alchi painting. The enormous
imagc of the Buddha, which may have stood
thirty n1eters tall, refected certain rcligious
concepts sweeping Asia during this period in
which the Universal Buddha (presumably
Vairocana) was scen as a B/ra,y' Buddha. That
the type must have been comDron in the Indic
sph"ie i, indi."ted by prcserved examples in
stucco, as at N5land5 in eastell1 India, or stone,
such as at Kanheri (Fig. rz,.z4) and Bamiyan
(F ig . lo .z5) . Howcver . tne ta l ex . rn tpLrs have
i , , * iucJ on ly oLr t : idc thc lnd ic conrex t . buc
a cornmon source in India for these traditions
can hardly be disputed sincc all of the regions
i r r uh ic l r rhc fuhad Budd l r , conrenr ion is
found wcre in contact lvith ancient India as
a source of Buddhological information. The
in.rage conn.rissioned by Lalitaditya rrrust havc
becn incrcdibly impressive-a ruetal figure,
probably gilded or of the yellowish color of
KASMiR AND RETATED ScHooTS j6I
h duee hundredthousand beinga vast quantity
[-adsh expendi-rared, can onlyl income to then- of the claims
r roday, but thehadirya, whichBuddha, veriS'd the Buddhar Fig. i7.9) isL l-hich had a
f. gro'ing ".cesni the massive
| &e Buddha:Lrion aroundp:rance ofther : lainting ath! monunentf,,r- :he internalre ofthe plan5 =e thickness| <.: ience. TheLl-,',- berweenL r-e. it mayfr:-i Kaimirile: roof, likef:. :norrnous
:il_e stoodr2.9. Plan of Lalitaditya's .aitl,a. parihesapura, Kaarnir, India. Ker_kola period, reign oflalitidirya. Ca. second quarter eighth century_
= reiigious, :eriod in::::umablya:: la. rna[
- :he Indicc=::rples in
,rr stone,
Saruyan
:-:s have
:,-:ditions
most Kaimiri metal work, larger than mostpeople had ever seen or conceived-of, resplendentas the morning sunlight refected frorr it. Onecan scarcely imagine the awe and overwhelmingsense oftf ie majesty ofthe Buddha thar a devoteemust have Glt as he srood at the feet of theBuddha and looked up ro the image "whichreached up to the sky."ro
_ Another monument at Padhasapura, the Jt pabuilt by Cairkuna, who was the Tokharian mini-ster of Lalitaditya, is also notable for its sizeand lavishness. In the Rajatffahginl it is describedas "loftier even than the mind of the kine."rlln context, rhe reference to rhe mind oitheking rnight actually beto the caitya ofLalitaditya,which would have been raised as an expressron
of Lalitaditya's understanding of Buddhism.Thus, Cafrku4a's stipa night have been bothtaller than the caitya of the king and superior toit due to Cariluna's implied understanding ofBuddhism. As in the case of Lalitaditva's caitva.little remains of the original *ootrrn"o,,
'"1-
though again, other evidence, including textualdescriptions, enables us to make inferences aboutits form. Speci{ically, a second structure depictedin the Alchi composition (Pl. r9) almost ceriainlyrepresents Cankur.ra's stipa, for tlrc f,wo monu-ments at Parihesapura must have stood as twinparagons of Kasmiri Buddhist architecture forgenerations after their creation. The stupa shownin the Alchi painring secms to rest on a complexbase suggestive of the cruciforrn p aficaratha plan
: =: have- r., ;tgure,
Fo- lL. - _-. qo
:rlor of
362 LA|ER NoRTHERN scHools
:l
, , . it! j
-i i l il
:, ' ,,, 1
revealed by thc surviving foundations (Fig'
r7. ro).A o.u't be, ofstone sculptures have been found
in association with Cankuna's srlpa, although
their original locations on thc monument arc
not knorin. Sevcral, including the one illustr:lted
herc i l ig . r7 . r t ) . r te reprc 'en t r t ion ' o f c rowncd
Brrd.'1h,ri. AlLhouglr cx:rt,rplcs of rhis srrbjcct
are known ^t le"rt f.om the sixth century, thc
crorvned Buddha had becorne a well-known
iconograpl.ric form in Buddhist art not only in
f"(rn"rr but in other parts of ancicnt India and
Asi.r bt rhc eiqhdr ccntury. I lte crorvtr' tteckl 'ce'
rnd cairings usu.rl ly fottnd otr rlte'c Ggure' do not
indicrrc .r contrldicrion of irscetici5nl or 'rn
adoption of a rnaterialistic vicw within the
reliiion. Radrer, thesc onancnts symbolize thc
hisilest achievencnt, Universality, and thcre-
foie, although thcse figurcs en.rbody the principlc
ofl.ristorical Bddclhas Qintaaakaya), they are also
,.lepictiorrs ol lnas (snt ,hognkaya) rnd es;'ccially
oI rhe Adi Brrddlr.r slri l /rali laAaya ('clf-origi-
nated). Crowned Buddha figurcs invariably
wcar the norn.ral robe of a Buddha and thus
crnnot be confuscd rvith bodhisattvas in art'
IIt-lr-,
-L"L'-:
I-r-'
r- -:'l
Stylistically, the figure betrays the Kaimiri
artist's dcbt to the ffaditions of the Bactro-
Gandhara region, which are espccially visible in
rlre toqdli le;armerrt wirh its cnrphasized folds
,,u", rl le tor'o. Thc rarhcr nturcr'thr fotms of che
body and s\ight coxtrapposto pose reveal furthcr
ties to thc traditions ofthe northwest. Howevcr,
rhc clinqing rn.rnn, r in u hich thc drapcry revcnls
rh" forir.tr of rhe body bcnearh clerrly demon-
stratcs an overlay of Gupta-period aesthetics.
Even the downcf,st eycs, albeit on a western
Inner Asian facial type, are reminiscent of GuPta
formulations. Thc crown, with its pcarl designs
and Sassanid-type strealners, suggcsts further
associations between Kaimlr and the westcrn
Asian realn-rs.Another irnportant site of thc Kerkota Pedod
is Pendrethan, where A6oka is believed to have
founded a capital, and that was often pa-
tronized by the rtling monarchs of Ka3lnir. As
at n.rany Kaimiri sites, both Buddhist and Hindu
rernains have cone to light at Pandrelhan. A
snall but nearly perfectly intact Hindu templc
at Pandrcthan was probably built in the eighth
or ninth century, although it is cornn.ronly
r7.ro. Plan of Cairkur.Ia\ ritpd.
Parihlsapura, Kainllr, I11dia.
Karkota pcriod, reign of Lalitadi-tya. Ca. second quarter eighth
r7.r r . Crowrlcd l3uddhr Fronr Prr ihasapure, Kr inr i r .India. Fron Cxnkunr 's - r / tpd. K.rkore pcr iod, rc ignof la l i tadirv; r . Ce. seco,rrd quartcr crsrru ccrmr. , .Stor lc . H r2S.2 cIr . Sr i Prrr jp SiDgh NluscLnr,Sr inagar.
KASMIII AND ltELAt H) scIIooLs t6J
r7.r2. H[ l . ]u tcnrplc, i ronl \ r ,csr . pandrcthin, Kr iDr i r ,india. Posib lv Kirkorr pcr iod. C.r . c ighth-ninth ccr l_rurv.
ascribed to rhc terlrh throlrgh trvcllth centudcs(Fis. r7.rz).1! The tcrnplc i l lLrstrarcs in rnoclcll ikesiruplicitv thc besic format of xrchirecturxlordcrs iclcnti6ablc in l(a(n.rir sincc rhe cighthcclltrlry! but th:it clerivccl fiorl I lone-stendingrvoocior lrchitccturc tradition. Thc peakccl,gablcd roof is cspccially suitablc for rhc snorvyH r r ' ; r ' ) . l r l r l c r . . W l ' i l . r / r c s p c . r l i . [ n r r . s . , r r .rnoclificcl over tinrc in fcaturcs such as thc u,idthof the ccntnl ercir or slopc of rhc roof. it is thisroof typc that is espccially charactcristic of rheKa(niri style. Thc tcnrplc rcsts on a ptlnttlbuilt in thc ceDtcr of a tarrk; rhc u.all of thctenk parallcls thc shapc of the plinth r.ith itsoFsct sidcs. In contrast to n-ran1. other tcrrplctraclit ions of thc posr,Gupra p",in.1,,. r1r" ,.uip-tural dccorlt ion of thc nonunrcrrt is sinpL.A rorv of c:Lrvcd elephants at thc basc of thccctrtral shrine anclthe clccoration ofthe doorrvay,pilastcrs, anrl a fcl. lceturcs ofrhc roofcoruprisethe nrejor c'nrbcll ishr.ncnt of thc strucrure. Tilcfigurc oiLakulria ebovc the l intel olithe Joorrviryinclicatcs tlut tl-rc rnonurucnt r,vas probebly aSive tcmple crectccl for the lralupata sect. Thcitrterior of the tcmplc is also sinLplc e-riccpt for
r . i . rnr 's r / , lPd.. : r : r , t r rc l ia.
: : : : o i Lal i radi-. : . l r rcr e ighrh
: :ir t!:lslnll' :.:. B:rctro-: r ' isible in
: : r-. izecl folds: :ms of the
: .'.r I further.:. Hort'evcr,r . -'j I lcve:lls
: i_ alenloD-
: -',cstl1ctics.
:: , \l'CSIeIn
, ::: of (ir.rpta
:- - .,. 11 clcsigns- - - .:. iilrthcr
:, \,cstern
- :,: -.ra Pc.riocl'-'-: to lt:rve
':tatr Pa-
i-rntir. As: ::r. l HindiL:::rhel. A
: :: :,: rcruple:: rr. cightlr
. r:runonly
J64 LA'tEk NORTITERN scHooLS
T --
r7.r3. Ceii lng parcl, Hindu te rPle. P.ndr€!hen,Krinlir, India. Possibl,v Karkola pciod. Ca. eighth
a beautifully carved ceiling panel (Fig. r7'r3)'
Clearly bascd on wooden Prototypesr -and ulti--
mately dcrived fron the "lantern-roof" type of
westcrn It.ro". Asia, this type of cciling becomes
a stlndard feature in n-rany northern Indian tellr-
plc sclrools. In tlris cxample, t'idyadhara couples
i."- to r".,r. as atlantids, supPorting the archi-
tectural bcams of thc recessed squares The
uitlyadharas stlPporting the ccntral square arc
r'r',.,.h smaller in scale than those at the four
exterior corncrs of the cciling ancl those around
the central lotus panel are still smaller' Thus,
the efcct of distance, or ratircr in.rplied heieht,
is providecl for the configuration. The uidya-
/laras in particular seerr.t to snPPort an eighth to
ninth ccnttrry date for thc ternple' for the softly
modeled, feshy bodics, simple jewelry, and
elaborate, curly coifrurcs suggest the imagcry of
thh period throughout northem ancl north-
central lndia.A numbcr of isolated stollc sculPturcs recov-
ered f.on-r Pindrctl-nn also scctu to datc fron
this period, around thc latc eishdr or early ninth-
cintlry. An imagc of lnclrlni, the consort of
r7-r4. Indr,ni. Fronl Pandre{han, Kaarnir, India. Prob-ably Kirkotx pcriod. Ce. iatc cighrh-carly ninth ceD-rury. Beigc stone. F{: ca. r5o cln. Sr1 Pratap SinghMuscuIn, Srinagar.
Indra, rcveals thc still visible amalgamatory
nature of tl.re Ka(n1iri style complex (Ftg' t7't4)'
The goddess is recognized by the njru tbat
,he holds in her lcft hand and by thc elcphant,
Indr:r's uahana, that aPPea$ behind hcr' Hcr
sharply dclineated anatomical structure suggests
stylistic associations with tl.re Bactro-Gandhara
idiom, as does the heavy treatment of the lolds
of drapery across her legs. The costumc, esPe-
cially ^the
tunic, is Iranian in type and the
animated posture is relatcd to north-central In-
dian post--Gupta modcs. In Particular, the figure
rr.r"v i" .on.rp^..d to other stylistic idioms that
.,,mbine thc Hellenizcd northwcstem and Indian
no.1es, srtch as those of the Post-GuPta Periodin Rajasthan (Fig. rr.r3). Yct, l ike them, it is
nlorc thxn thc sur-n of these associations and is
representative of a distinctive local idion'
KASMIR AND RELATED SCHOOTS ,65
Trrr Urrera Dvwlsrv (ce. 855 ro 939)
Avantivarman (r. ca. 855-83), founder of theUtpala d1'nasry, revived the moment of pros-perity that Lalitaditya had brought to Kaimir.While still heir apparent, he founded Avantipura(modem Vantipur), and built theie the templeof Avantisvamin. Later, as monarch, he builtthe Avantiivara ternole. The earlier of the twotemples, the Avantisvamin, dedicated to Vipr-ru,
was modeled after the Martanda temple, al-though it is on a smaller scale (Fig. r7.r5). Themore ruined condition of the Avantisvarnintemple makes close comparison difficult, but it iscertain that the later temple was more elaborate indetailing. Its iconographic principles are identicalto those of Martanda, except that the centralshrine contained an image of Viq4u, there called
;mrr, India. Prob--<arlv ninth cen-St Pratap Singh
amalgamatorylex (Fig. r7.r4).
th.e vajro that,r the elephant,:hind her. Her:ucture suggestsactro-Gandhdraent of the foldscostume, esPe-npe and the
)fth{entral In-rrlar, the figurestic idioms that$em and Indiann-Gupta periodlilie them, it isociations and iscal idiom.
r7. r5. Plan ofAvantisvamin tem-ple. Avantipura, Kaimir, India.Utpala period, reign of Avan-tivannan. Ca. 8JJ-83.
366 Lt'-tER NoRTHERN scHoors
r?.r6. Sculpturc to left of stairs to shrine' Avantisvtnin
,J-pi.. ,qtar"ipt*, Kailnir, lndia Urpala period'
reigir of Avantivarrnan. Ca. 8J5-83'
Avantisvami, instead of Martanda / Sfrya' Each
of th" ,h.ir.t", around the peristyle presur.rably
corrtaio.cl an imagc of Visnu in jdentical form
to,h" ""or."1
figite,.ath considercd to be an
cmanatioll and J reflection of the central deity'
N.i,i". -or. nor less than him but identical
io hi-, they represented in graphic form his
UniversalitY.The orieinal richness of ornamentatlon may
bc seen in"some of the surviving sculptures at
ih. ,ir". p"n.l, on the balustrades fanking the
stairs to the shrine demonstratc the exuberance
oi-,tr. ..,, tp,oru t 'ryle. Thc fronr face of the left
Urt,,.,r"a. ,t 'olv, .t frgtrre of Vi'ntr anended by
t-o f"*"1" .o.rro.t,,- p'"'o"-t"bly Laksmi and
Srrrrvarr (Fig. t 7.1o). wli le the imer face of the
,rnt. t,on. "rho*, r royal f igure or possibly
lndra, occomprnied by artendrnts Thc opposite
frl,o,r"d", toth" , ighi ofrhe stair"'berr" a similar
r7.r7. Villru Catrrnhrti. FroDr Avantipura' Ka3mtr'
India. Utpala period, posibly rcign o,f Avantivannan
C". sss 8':. Bi"ck .to"". H: 47 crn Sri Pradp Singh
M.,seu,,t, Srinrgar'
schcme. Abovc the blocLs rr trh figurrtive carving
is a cornice of geomctrized l1ower designs sup-
oorted bv in.itition brackets ornarnented with
iion, h""i, end intcrspersed witli bird and plant
designs. Each figural con.rposition is cornpletely
frllci by the figures, giving a crowded appear-
"nc. to ihc paoels. An overall flatness is suggested
by the arrangement of Iigures and the satneness
oi th" depth'of.rrving ai'ott thc entrrc surfacc'
Stylisticaily. th" l igurc' are fullcr in ltoln rh.rn
""ili", "*"-pl.r, h-ave shorter proportions, and
,.,r""1 "
o.ni stiffncss, denonstrating that the
Ka(mrri idiom, like many othcr Indic styles
of the ninth century, had abandoned the soft
modeling of the Gupta and post-GuPta hcritage'
Th" ttt"i" frg.,.", io parti;lar have fattened'
broad torsos with a taut, muscular aPPearance'
still reminiscent of thc Hellenized heritage of
the region.
r7.r8. BrahrDa. Fronr Avarlt ipura, K:rlurir, lrrdia.Urpaia pcriod, posibly reign of Aventivaruran Ca8j5-83. Blick sronc. H: Jr cm. Srr Pntnp SinghMLtscum, Srlnrgrr.
Sculpturcs from Avantipure exhibit both avaricty in iconosraphic types and a reiativelyr,ide rangc of stylistic corlvclltio[s. A rcprc-scntation of Visnu in a four-herded forur,rvhich may be callecl Caturnrhrti, shows hin1as a conpositc of four aspects (Fia- r7.r7).t iThe flont (cast) f:rce of thc deity is hunran,those on the propcr left ancl right sides (northancl south) are heacls of r boar and Jion rcspec-c ivc ly . rv lL i l c t l r . r t o r t l t c Ie , r ( rn , . r ) r ' t l ' . r r ' ' f . rdemon. Thc l ion lnd boar l laccs do not rcfer tothc Nrsirhha and Varaha auafirs of Visnu butrad:'cr to t)yihds (cn.Lanations) dcscribcd in thcPailcar-tra Vaisnavitc doctrine. The hunanface thus represents Vasudcva, lrom whorrern . r r ' . r r ( lhe t l r r , c ry r / i , rs r r . r r i rk . r r r . rn . . l r ,Pre-sented by the lion), Pradyurura (rcprcsentccl byrhc bo . r r ) .
"n , l An i r r rdd l r " ( repre .qnrq l b1 thq
derlon). Each lprla has tr,vo activitics, a creativc
KASMiR AND RELATED scHooLS ji67
and an ethical one, and each ofthcsc is.ssociatcdrvith one gri;ra (quality). Thus, Sarirkarsenebegins thc proccss of cre:rtion witl.r bola (porvcr) IPradyumna continucs it, at rvhich tinre theduality ofpralrri and p11flta appcar through thcusc of rrl-irarla (sovcrcignty); and Animddhacrcatcs iranifcst rratter u'ith Jalrl (crcativecnergy). The cthical activities inclLrdc the tcach-ing of uronotheistic thcory by Sarhkarsana,the trrnslrt ion of this theory into practicc byPradyumna, :rncl the l iberation achicvcd throughthe practice by Anirr-rcldha, with the rcspectivegunas of jiana (rvisdorr), r,ir7o (hcroism), ancltrjas (spiritual porvcr). In Keimrr, wherc thcPtiicar-ara doctrinc rvas poptlar, images of
\ ' . . . . . . . . . . . - i - i . . . l l l t ) t o n . l h t ,
exar.npic, finely carvccl :rncl polished, dcrnon-stratcs lDost clearly the sculptural styie in uscat Avxntipura, with thc fecial forms associatedwith lvcstcrn Imrcr Asian types end the torsostill rcvcaling tics lvith thc stylcs of the north-west regions.
Anothcr figurc fiom Avantipura r-nly alsohave been a proclnct of Avantivarn.ran's buildingactivity at thc sitc (Fig. r7.r8). Thc imagc, { c 1 i c r . r l r . g ' C R r . ' 1 ' r ' . r d r . . ' , 1 . ' ' . r r : r . c t i c .lvcaring a sin-rplc germeirt, an anirt al skin onhis lcft shouldcr, but no Je$'elry. Thc fullncssofthc torso, rounclcr l lcc, and less :rcce[triatedposture arc part ol a disccrniblc trcrrrl inKa(rutri scuipturc of rhc period, and againsnggcst afiinitics to wcstcrn Inncr Asian art. Aslcckness aud refinerucrrt of thc surfece of thcstorc pcrv:rc1es the rvork, charactcrizing thc clc-gancc oftcn associetecl rvith thc arr of t lrc l(aintirregion.
Thc Mtrttnda and Avantisv-min tctrrples xrei t r t p o r t . n r l , \ t . . l r r ( r r r s r o t l r ( p o \ \ ( _ . r n , l v i - . r l r t yof thc I{arkota :urd Utpala periods rcspcctivcly.l l t c i r r , . r r r ro rg r l e u r l i r r r \ to t ) r l cnLp 'cs
surviving in Kainir, yct they are arnongt r . l . ' 13 . . t cvcr b r r i l r i r ) f l ) . r r rc j ion . I l re l .ecnr
to havc bnrst uliprcccclcntcd on tlle scene atthe uromcnt in I{air-nir's lristory rvhen itsrulcrs rc:rchecl the summit of thcir powcr.'Whilc
nreny l:Ltcr Klinrri temples arc trrchsrt eller in scale and less grendiosc in conccptioll,they arc oftcn vcry linc cxamples of the archi-tectural traclit ion.
,
b,"F
I
I: Ki r i r r r i r ,
r :e Of
. iv lng
l : : S L I P -
. lvrth
: pl.rnt- -'rcly'r f cir-
- -'.\ted
:::atless
-:: l icc.
:: than
: . . and
- - L r t he
!tYles
: t : soft
. : : t age .- . : : ined,
j68 LATER NORTHERN sCHooIs
Tur Two Lonana DyNASTIES AND THE Lasr HrNnu Kr l rcs(Truru ro F o un . r r rNrs Crurunr rs )
In both architecture and sculpture, the art ofKaimir after the tenth century is primarily atradition of rather limited variation. Smalltemples similar to the example at Pandrethanwere built, some of which had compound wallswith nutrerous small cells, like those of thetemplcs at Martel.lda and Avantipura. Many ofthe sculptural fonns seen from the cighth cen-tury were codified into unvaryilg types, and,in general, the images became incrcasingly stiflshowing litdc of thc former vitality of thcKaSmrri tradition.
This is clearly seen in a number of sculpturesfrom Verinaga. Onc exanple, probably of thetwelfth century, shows Viqru Caturmurti (Fig.r7.r9) and thus can be appropriately conparedto the Visnu Caturnfrti from Avantipura(Fig. I7.r7). In the later example, the enphasison musculature lessens, the posture is straighter,the {igure is nlore colunnar, and thc face ismuch broadcr, with clongated eyes. A thick-legged, husky form and an overall stiffness ofthe figure characterize this latcr phase ofKa6nliriart. In tbis cxamplc, all four arms of the deityare preserved, providing a complete example ofthc iconographic type. The trvo upper handshold tlre lotus (padna\ and conch (3an,L/ra) whilethc two lower hands rest on tllc heads of rwovyudhapuru5as. the female personification of thcmace, gadadeuT (to Visnf s right), ancl thc malepersonification of the rvheel (tabaputusa) to htsleft. The dhott worn by Visnu, rvhich is shorter
r7.r9. Vignu Caturnlrti. Fronl Verintga, Kairnir,India. Ca. tweifth cerrtury'. Crcy stonc. H:67.5 cu.Sri Pratap Singh Museurn, SriDxgar.
on onc leg than on the othcr, is a fcature seenin a number of othcr in-rages from Verinagaand secms to have becn a local peculiarity.
K a S v i t r r I v o n r r s . t N n M r r a r l , n a c E s
Ahhough divorccd frorr definitivc associationwi rh any rno l l lu l ienr . s i rc . o r the rc ign o f aparticular monarch, the stylistic ancl iconographicdevelopments of ivories and metal images fronrKainir n.ray be seen to follow much the samepattens as those in stonc. The survival of thcseobjccts in sorne cascs has probably been dueto their having been exportcd fron Ka(rmrto thc ncighboring regions of rvestern Tibet,where they werc kcpt in monasteries r-rntil the
recent political disturbanccs, during which theywere brought out by refugees.
One splendid composition consists of acentral ivory dcpicting a seated Buddha indhyara nudra surrounded by a host of otherfigurcs, including bodhisattvas and emaciatedascetics (Pl. i3). Flanking the central group andsct into adjacent nichcs in thc wooden archi-tcctural fiamework are two standing Buddhas,carved out of separatc pieces of ivory. A slight
KASMIR AND RELATED SCIIOOI-S
I :
L
r
K:lin1ir,6 7 . 5 c n r .
,rh they
: : O f l
_: i1a ln
: other::.:ciated:: ') xnd
' -r.rcnl-
--Jhas,i lLgl l r
r7.2o. Indrr (left) and Brahnre.From Ka(rrrir resion. Ca. cighthcentury. Ivory, wirh painr. H:10.6 cnl ( lcft) ; ro cn (r ighr). Pre-scnt whereabosts unknown,
bcvel to the edge of the wooden frame andthc existencc of a second similar compositionlasuggests that this examplc was part of a sct ofBuddhist scencs that adorned thc drum of avotive stupa. The deiicacy and intricacy of drecarving, both ofthe ivory picccs and tbe woodcnframe, docun-rcnt the once rich carving traclitionthat 1tlust have existcd in fragile materialsalongside the Dlorc nonumcntal arts. Thcarchitectural orders of the woodcn fiamc, r,vhilcclearly reflecting those used in Ka6urir in theeighth century, also deruonstrate sorrrc othcrwiseunknown fcatures, for the stcpped arches anclpentafoil may rellect actuai architcctural types.
Two or i rc r i vory f igurc ' o [ rhe . "me appror i -n-utc period rcpresent Indra arrrl Bralrra asthey v'ould have appeared in attendance of accntral f igurc ofthe Buddha (Fig. r7.zo). hrdrais drcssed in thc manncr of an lndic monarchwhilc Brahna r.ears a robe very much likethat of a Buddha. Both arc attended by figurcswho turn thcir attention to thcm as opposed tothe location of whar rvould havc been the
central figure. Tire beardcd Brahma is rcn.rinis-cent of the Bactro-Gandhara artistic traditionof thc Kusata pcriod, visiblc especi:rl ly in thetreatrncnt of his drapcry and body. Indra'sdistinctive crown miy bc traccd to a Sassaniansource.
Thc metal imagcs of rhc Karkora, Urpala,and Lohara pcriods form a contillrurn ofs t v l i . r i c t rcn , r . ,L , rJ rconognph ic innor . r r io . r .that has yct to bc sttdied in clepth. It is gLriteevident that thc sruvivirlg metal pieccs arc onlythe slightcst tracc of a massivc, compJcx tradi-tion. In ternrs of qLrll i ty, it is casy to sce fromextant cxamplcs tlut Dtxny irnagcs rank an-rougthe bcst n.rctalwork produced in any cultureand that thcre vu'as an casc ud facility offabrica-tion that suggcsts a vast ancl activc produc-tion. Incleed, sincc thc technology to cast thcBrlal Buddha of Lalitaditya hacl alrcady becnachicvcd, therc can bc little doubt as to the tech-nical abil ity of thc artists. Thc particular alloy ofziuc ancl coppcr popular in Ka(r.r.riri nctalrvorkcrcatcs a yellorvish color and gives the imagcs,
: . :Jte seen
: : : \ ' .
370 LA-]ER NORTHERN SCHOOLS
r?.2r. Surya. Frorn Kainrr region Ca_ seventh cen_
ioru. B."ri. H: 48.6 cm. Clevciand Museum of Art'
Clweland (Gifi of Katherine Holdcn Thayer)'
r t . : : . Budd l r r ' f r o r r r Ka i r r r i r r eg i ' r r ' C r ' e i ghch cen -
ru r ) . B r r ss . H : o8 c r r r . C l c rehnd M ' r ' eu r r r o f A r t '
Cleveland (John L. Scverancc Fund)'
cven when ungilded, an esPccially bcautiful' soft
g lou . o f ren . in l . ry tn p r r rc coPl lc r o r s i l ver
!1111q11s. thc s,trfrcc of thc"c rr orks'1 he pri nrary
evidence available indicatcs that the main
stylistic thrust carlc out of the northwestern
Iidic rcsions as sccn in exampics of the pre-
Karkota"period (Fig. 17 5), as well as later Pieccs'
-iti.lt ,ft'.* stronf affinities to the afi of Gan-
dhara. Bactria, and associated regions'
An overlay of the Gupta style that wxs also
vi.iblc in rhe Kaimrri stonc 'ctrlpturc tr 'rdiri 'rn
fos tc rcd . . r d isc incL ive ' c r i cs o fs t rb t l c a r ld t l cganc
i rn" * . . , i " . t . ' ' a i tg rn ' rppror i r t r le ly scvcnt l t -
..n,i,ry ,.p."".ni 't ion of srtryr drc"ed in a
. " f t "n , 'boo t r . . ,nd l re i o fa type found in Surya
i r , "n" t i " A [gh . 'n is tan 1 l - ig rTzr ) Thot rgL
,t"niine in a rtricrly ftontrl posc the Strry..
i;;;; i",r"t. t l ,c g'a"ful [orrrr ' and "rbde
lod! tr"n'ir;out sttggestivc of I Gupta lrcritege'
Thc caftan clings to the body in a manner
reminiscent of Buddhist robes of the Gupta
oeriod, and likc then, the dr:rpery assumes
iron.rin.o." at the hem, bctween the legs' and'^t
thc colla, and cufi-s. In this case, thc linear
detail of thc bordcr pattcrn of the garment
and tl.re dcsign of the crown contrast sharply
with the snr"ooth surfaccs of the rest of the
in-rage. On the basis of comparison to works
nf ,il. ,",,"nth ccntury in other Parts of South
Asia, howevcr, the piece should be assigned
ro th.rt period.Or l rc r K ' i r l r r i r r t c tn l p icce ' d isp l r l r ' i rn r la r
amalganation of the styles. of the ancient
,rorrh"*a,,"tr1 regions and the traditions of
.,.,rthern and norilt-ccntral India after thc Gupta
pcriocl. Two rcPrcsentxtions o[ Budd]ras' one
i .na lne f f ; s . r7 . :z ) .nd one ' ca ted ( f ig r7 ' z j ) '
b",rry id, ireritagc, tho'rgh thel probably datc
r. Ca. eighth cen',\luseum of Art,
v ln a manner, of the GuptaraPery assumes:n the legs, andcase, the linear
rf the garmentcontrast sharPlyrhe rest of theLrison to works
parts of SouthilJ be asigned
h.oiav a sin.rilar.-: the ancient: traditions of, aner the Gupta: Buddhas, oneL ! u
\ r | 5 . r / . ? J , / l
r :robably date
17.23. Buddha. Frorn Ka{mir region. Ca. eighth cen-tury. Brass with silver inlay. H: 4r.2 crn. Los AngelesCounty Museum of Aft, Los Angeles (Nasli and AliceHeeramaneck Collection).
fiom the eighth century, perhaps the period ofLalitaditya, by comparison to the standingcrowned Buddha figures from Cairkur.ra's s/r.lpa(Fig. r7.rr). The metal figures are slightlyslenderer in build, however. The standing imagehas an accented bend to the hips, and the weightof his body is supported firmly by his stiff leftleg, while his right leg appears to be caught inmotion. The left arm swings out fiom his body,as if helping to balance the figure. The implicitmovement ofthe figure bears a striking similarityto the "walking" Buddhas of Thailand.l5 Agreat deal of wear on the torso has softenedthe details of the drapery, although it is clearlybased on the Bactro-Gandhara heritage. ATibetan inscription on the base of the piececalls this the "Respected image of ReveredNegaraja." Here, the term Nagaraja refers toSakyarnuni Buddha, in one of his rarely applied
I{ASMiR AND RELATED sCHooLs J7T
epithers.16 The presencc o[ a Tibetan inscrip-tion on an image of unquestionable Ka6mirimanu&cture suggests that the piece rray havebeen executed for a Tibetan patron, or that itwas made in Ka3mir, but transported at an earlydate to the adjacent regions of westem Tibet,where the inscription was added.
The seated Buddha figure is worked in avirtually identical style (Fig. 17.23). The positionof the hands has protected the drapery on thetorso from wear caused by its being touchedduring worship and it may be suggested that thestanding {igure might also have had such aclearly delineated robe. The gestLte is the mudraof the fourth level of the teachings displayed inexactly the same manner as seen in the laterwestem caves. Since this figure only slightlypostdates the latest of those images, it may beassumed that the iconography is the sarne,although it is unfortunate thar rnore informa-tion about the context of the image has notsurvived. The facial features are typical ofKaimiri rendcrings of this date and include thecharacteristic higli arching brows; wide, hori-zontal eyes; plump, curved lips; a markeddelineation of the chin; and a narrow chin butbroad brow. The fullnes of the face and treat-ment of the eyes and brows suggests strong tiesto seventh and eighth century Inner Asiandepictions.
One ofthe most elaborate of the known Ka6-miri bronzes is a represeutation of a crownedBuddha, Vairocana, seated atop a lotus, f,ankedby stilpas, and accompanied by numerous otherfigures and elemflrs (Fig. 17.24). Its inscrip-tion, which contains a date of the year 3 or 8,is of litde use in detcrmining the date of rnanu-facture since the era is unspecified and the twodonors, Sankarasena and Princess Devairiya,are unkno.wn.u The ligatures and style ofthe work, however, suggest a ninth-century date,Thc fact t lrat onc of thc donors was a prince.sindicates the level of patronage that the workrepresents, that of the nobility. The wholecomposition rests on a plain base that containsthe inscription, above which is a highly con-ventionalized rock mass in wfuch the Buddhistwheel, two deer, and two human figuresmay beseen. The rusticated rock mass is arranged
372 LA"IER NORTHERN SCHOOLS
ilr--V"rr..""' Buddhr' Frotl Ke(rnir rcgion. CA'
"l'/ n.*. *i,r, sl'er inlav- tl.3r cnl
:::1,'r ::l:l:tt ' Ne\1 York
iiti. *a no.' l"l,' D Ro;kcrcllcr 3rd collection)'
jf '=dr'l
At--***
I
in cavelike forms containing dresc clemcnts,scparated by pil larl ikc clustcrs of rock. Abovethe rock basc is e rvater surfacc or,rt of rvhicht }e lo t l s "n . l f \ r ^ , , , igdr r r r c rgc . rhc , , r l ,o lercprcsenting the cosmic oceu (that r-r-rr1st becrosscd to attain enlightcnment) supportcd bythc goros (drvarves) r'ho represent propcrtics orcatcgorics of tl.re rvorlcl in rvhich tire teachingsof the Buddha arc prcscnt (r.vhee1/decr). Out ofthis, thc lotus clncrgcs bcaring aioft tJre UnivcrsalB . r , . lh . r (s , a1 l ,a r iLaLayn l in r r l r i , h ' . e r lbo , i , , lthc essence of all Btdclhas (Tathayatagarbha),Dr \ r . r l r r \en l . . r l , l f i r r rc I l r , l , ' n r . , . ro C i thcrsidc of him bear sfrlpas of forner Buddhas rndsyr ' rbo l i zc thc . r r r . r inuent o f r l rc . " p . , . r v rc ror 'o f t h c q L t c r r f o r , n l i g h t c t r r l e r r r . r \ p , r t o f r l r cljniversai. Thc BLrddha is seeu as both rrirrrara-kayd ̂ id srabhaL,ikafrayo tlrroLrgh the rlcans of.a ' lhoqokaya. g r . 'p l r i c r l l l s l rown i r r r l r , " r range-rncnt of elemcnts in the composition. Thesec l , r | | c ' t . . r re .pcc i f i c r . . c r r rc , . ro c \o te r icinitiations (allisefta) that thc practitionerr rn . l c rgoe ' ro ( rcvc lop hr ' c l rq ioLr . . rb i l r ry .Thus, the cro\r'n rcprcscnts the five jtard andthe chasuble refers to the four quarters of thcr r r r rc r . . . In r l ro r r . rhe f ig r r r< rcpr , * r ' r . r l i cBuddha as thc Univcrsrl teecl.Ling rhc //ranrraof the lourth, csotcric level.18 This icorLogrephicform is also closcly rclatecl if not iclcntical tovotivc inages fbund throughoot the rvcstcrncavcs.re All of this errrichlicnt is relatccl to their.rcrcasingly cleborate ritual aspccts of RLrclclhisnancl eech of the elcmcnts is syrrbolic of variousinitiations, the implication bcinq that l'hcn thei - i , i . - : - ; . . . . . - i . . . - 1 . - . , c t i t i ^ n e r 1 r . . ,
bcconrc a lluddLa. Thts, thc' devotee seeshimself in drc image as thc fully cnlishrcncclBuddha.
A drantatic translo|merion of an earlierreligious conccpt is seen in a rcpr.sentation ofVajrapani, thc bodhisattva rvho crnbodies thcconcept of thc n-Lysticrl porvcr of trinsccn.lcntknorvledgc (P1. ra). In contrasr to pcacc-fir1reprcscrtatioDs, Vajrapani. iclcntified by the /ojraln his lcft hand, hcrc is sho*.n r,ith an angrycxprcssion orr ]ris face, creatcd by the archeclbron's end barcd fangs. His hair is depictcd in a"1lame-likc" convcntioll and tl-rc c,rnarnenrsthat he lvears arc serpents, gcncrally rcaarcled
KASilliR AND RETATED sclrools tZJ
r7.25. Avaloki leivAr3. Frorn Kx(r) ir region. Loharapcriod, reign of Qucen Diddi. Cr. 98o roo3. Bronzcrvith si lverinl:ry. H: iJ.4 cnr. Sri l ,ratrp Sjnsh Muscunr,Srn:rgrr.
as symbolizing the sub.jugation of thc hindranccsof tire practitioncr. His corpulcncy is alsoiconographically spccifi ed. These lcatnres dercr-minc tlrrt the fisure is the angry (kro,lha) fotmof Vajrapeni. Angry fornLs wcrc present in thecavcs of Aurangabad and in othcr earlier corl-r c x i . . b r r r b 1 l l r , c r ! l l l r . , r n i r r r l ' . c n r r r r ) r . r r r cprobable c1:Lte of this image, thc Lrsage had be-come rvidespread in lludclhist arl. Essentially,thcsc forms represeDt thc intcnsity rvith whichtirc practitioncr ovcrcoulcs his l-Lindrances andthe fcrvor widr I'l.rich he pursucs his task.
A mctal imagc of Avalokitc(vara datccl inthe reign of Quccn Didcle (98o-roo3) scrvcs asan ir-nportant clocun-rcnt of stylistic change inKa(miri scri lpturc (Fig. r7.25).20 The six-armedbodhisattva is llar.iLcd by Tara and Bhrkuti,who appcar in a rnuch recluced scalc. A greaterarrgularity to thc posc and treatncnt of thefornrs of the body of thc main figure lnarks a
374 LATE\ NORTHERN SCHOOTS
departure from the more softly nodeled formsof previous centuries, yet the still musculartorso, distinctive facial features with high
arching brows and large, half closedclearly within the broad definitronsKaimiri style.
eyes areof the
T n r A r r o F A D J A c T N T R l c r o N s : W r s r r n t H T M A L A v A NF o o r H r L L s A N D W E S T E R N T I B I T A N C u r r u n a r R r c l o N
The metal imagcs made by Ka6n.riri craftsnenand, often, the craftsmen themselves, frequentlytrayeled to neighboring regions, for Ka(mirserved as a cultural and artistic source for muchoF the surrounding area. Kaimiri rrrists areknown to have traveled throughout Inner Asiaand even into China, and a number of works ofart may be attributed to these individuals. Ofmore immediate interest are works found inthe neighboring hill states and the Tibetancultural areas of Himalayan India, which provideimportant insights into thc range of artistictraditions that llourished in Kaimir and itsneighboring states. In somc cases, as in tbewestern I{imalayan foothills, distinctive localstyles prevailed, while in others, as in Ladakh,a virtually pure Ka6miri idion was fostered.
The temples and sculptures of the westernHimalayan foothills region have been largelyoverlooked in studies ofSouth Asian art. Becauseof this, many of the monurncnts remain largelyunknown, and those that have been identifiedhave not been placed within the general historicalcontext.2l However, these regions fostered artschools that werc not only relatcd to those ofnearby centers, such as Kaiurir and other partsof northern India, but that were also distinctivein their own right.
This can be seen in a large image of DurgaMrh i .es r r r . rmard in r . ca l l cd La l ,sana in i rs in -scription, rvhich is in a temple namcd for thegoddess, the Laksana Dcvi unndir at Br:.hntorin thc Chanrb.r Hil l rracts (Fig. r7.26). ls in-scription further reveals that it was dedicated inthe reign of Mcruvarman, a king whose capitalwas at Brahmor, and who is believed to havelived in the mrddle ro ldrc sevenrlr ccnrury.22This datc falls in the pcriod ofgeneral turmoil innorth-central India and is just after the es-tablishn.rent of the new Ka6n.riri dynasty of theKarkoLas. fhus . i r fo rm. a r r i rnpor rdn t miss ing
link in the development of Hindu sculptureand numbers among the very few survivinglarge-scale metal inages fron any early period.Although the image has not been chemicallyanalyzed, its yellow color suggests tiat it isprobably an alloy primarily of zinc and copperrather than tin and copper, strongly suggestingties to the work of KaSmiri craftsmen. Possibly,a local artist using Kaimiri tcchniques producedan image of a stylistic type that was heavilydependent on the post-Gupta traditions of west-em India in particular. The slender waist of thefigure contrasted against the full hips and thighsespecially characterize thc sryle, although theelongation of the form and the richness of theprccisely rendered onlalnents is a prelude tothe known metal works of Ka6mir. The facialfeatures lack the highly emphasized arched browsand elongated eyes found in KaSmiri sculp-tures that were heavily dependent upon Bactro-Gandhara traditions, and instcad, the face maybe associated with thc post-Gupta styles ofnorthern and wcstern India.
Another image in tbc sarne ten.rple showingNgsirhha has been judged by somc to be of asorncwhat later date (Fig. t7.27)- However, inspite of its unuslral appearance, espccially thepose, the inage probably dates from the sameapproximate period as the Durga. It cxhibitsmany of the same ciraracteristics of qualityand materials of fabrication, although it showsan cntirely dillerent anatomical strrlcture, onewhich n.rore heavily depcnds on the classicistictr.rdirions of G.rndhara and rclarcd regions. Tlrefullness of the arns and legs are part of thc at-tcnlpt to denonstratc graphically the power oftlrc deiry. . lt lrough 1re is shown in r qrriescenrposc, simply scated on an arbitrarily definedlandscape supported by two lions. Again, thehigh quality of craftsmanship, as well as theiconographic ingenuity of the work, suggest
KASMIR AND RELATED SCHOOTS J7J. -.t ..,.. ...
: :: ions of the
- - i , , c r r r l n t l r e
=u' surviving- - . . 1 . , ̂ ^ , ; ^ l
ri':n chemically::rrs that it is- - - , . , J . ^ . ^ " "
' . : . \ ' suggest ing:!:rr.n. Possibly,. . . . . h , ^ , t , , . . , 1
::: \1'as heavily.r::irrlls Of west-:.: ( aist of the
- . r n , l r h ;d l .. i , h ^ , , . 1 . r l . "
:,-iness of the, .'. prclude to: - i t I I le Tac l ; l l
: r rrched brows
t: -: !on Bactro-I - \ . - A - ^ - . ^ . ,
-:::r sryics of
. ..1-. .L^.".,.-
-:-: ro be of a:lo\\'evcr, in
.t:.cially the:-- r:rr the same::. It exhibits. - t ^ , , " l i f - ,
: :::h it sirows:::,tctute, one:-:: classicistic
.: :;gions, The: . : i o f the a t -
. : i :; porver of::- : qulcsccnt
::-::h defined' , . l q a l D ! t n e
:, .... '11 as thc::i. suggest
r7.26. Durga MahisAsurarnardini. Ar Laksant Dcvima4lir. Btahnor, Chanba Hill rracrs, Him,chalPradcsh, India. Reign of Meruvamran. C:. urid-to-larc scventh centu.y. Metal. H: r24.r clD.
the richness of the traditions of thc region.In the western Tibetan cultural arcas of
mNga'-ris (Ndri), La-dwags (Ladakir), andlahul-Spiti to thc east and southeast of Ka6nir,Buddhist monasteries frorn the eleventh centuryand later have survived ro the present day.While the original buildings have oftcn beensr rb jcc ted to la rc r a l te rar ions . they conra in menyobjccts and paintings produced by Kaimiriartists duing their original pcriods of construc-tion. An approximately eleventh-century mctalimage of a bodhisattva from Lahul-Spiti is suchen exampJe (F ig . r7 .28) . Ne; r l y human-s ize . i cdecisively demonstrates that major metal imagesofa Kaimiri idiom were in use in the rcgion. Theattenuation of the figure, relative still-ness of thepose, and harshncss of the rnodeling, as well asthe forms of the claborate jewelry, especiailythe crown, characterize the later Kajmiri and
r7.27. Nrsirhha. At Laksand Dcvi rrraalr'r. Brahrnor,Chamba Hill rracts, Him.chal Pradesh, India. Ca. rnid-to-late seve[rh centruy. Mctal. H: 9r.) crn.
related forms. It is especially useful to comparethis figure to the bronze from thc rcign of QueenDidda (Fig. r7.25) as it provides an understandingof the stylistic direction and an idca of the rela-tive treatmcnt of largc-scale imagcs as opposedto smaller versions. The anatomical stllcture ofthe figures is vcry much thc sarae, diIl^cring onlyin minor details, although there is lcss of aGeling of flesir in the largcr figure. Because ofthe scale it has becn possiblc to develop thejewelry and textile design in much greater de-tail, although this greater complexity is also acharacterisric of rhe larer dare. An inrcre"tingstylistic Gature is the dctailed elaboration onthe navel ofthe latcr image in contrast to earlicrexamples, which has becomc a very stylizedremlant ofthe cmphasis on a muscular anatomyseen throughout Ka6miri sculpture schools. ThisGature occurs in painting as well.
J76 LATER NORTHERN SCHOOLS
r7.28. Bodhisattvs. Frorn Lahul-Spit i rcgion, Hirn'chal
Pradesh, India. Ca elcventh centurv Metal H: ca-
rzo cn . Natiot lal Museull , Karachi '
Probably thc nost abund:rnt evidencc of tl.re
e\tension of Kain:iri art styles beyoncl thc nuin
polit ical ccnters of Kaimir is found in the ancietrt
kingdon of Ladakh, norv in thc state of Ka(nir
in Incli:r. In recent ccnturics, the region has bccn
almost couplctcly uder thc cultural srvay of
I rbc t . . ln . r rnd( ( ,1 . L . .oeK I l s aPr l ) (cc r l . r (
esscntially an outpost of Tibetan culturc. Horv-
ever, through thc eleventh ccntury, thc rcgion
was greatly influenccd by the cosmopolitan
culture of thc capitals of Kaamir. Such associa-
tions lnd thc transurission of Kaimrri culture
to Ladakh is suggested by scvcral isolatcd
sculptures and inscriptions.Arnong r l re .e . ; , r ' rh .Lp . rhe mosr imprc 's ivc i .
an enornoLls rock-cut represenhtion of the
Bodhisattva Maitreya carved on the face of a
solitary rock pinnacle at Mulbck, an ancient
stoppillg point on what is now the road betweenSrinagar and Leh, thc main netropolis ofLadakh(Ftg. r7.zg). Standing in splendid isolatiorr, the
pimracle rmrst have bcen an important beacon
for ancient travellers. The nonunental imagenray hrvc been cre.,ted :rround tlte eiglrrlr .rr
ninth century, a clatc suggested by both feeturcs
of the anatomy and face of the Maitreya figure.
Although at filst glance, thc somewhat stiff
posture suggests a latcr clate, the rather firil body
r.vith its l1eshy appearance reveals tics to cighth-
ninth-ccntury Ka6mtri conventions, Thc attcn-
tion to the abdominal and pcctoral muscles is
standard for Kaimiri works of that tirne, as are
tl.rc high arching brows and full cheeks of theface. The general simplicity of thc omar.ncnta-tion andjewciry fruther suggests an earlier rather
than a latcr date.The irnage is about nine rneters in height
and is onc of the few surviving Brlal sculpturcsin thc Indic spherc. It is likely thac the creation
of the sculpturc was related to the Vairocanacult, which was responsible for other giganticin.rages in thc Kaimir region, such as the now-
lost fuhad Vairocana of Parihasapura.The history of Ladtkh becones increasingly
clear around the elevcnth century for it was atthat timc that the great Tibctan translator (Tib.
/o-rs--la), Rin-chen bZang-po (qs8-ro:s), andthe Indi.ar pa4dita, Drperirkara Atiia (982 roJ4),r re re ac t ive in rhe sprerd o f Buddh i . rn in we5tc r t l
' i i ,' ' io; :r ' -
:,
KASMIR AND RETATED SCHOOIS Ji77
\
r7.29. Bodhisattva Maitreya. Mulbck (Ladakh region),Kaimir, I11dia. Ca. eighth-ninth cetltury. H: ca. 9 nr.
u
378 LATF"R NORTHERN SCHOOLS
Tibet and Ladrkh. Rin-chen bZang-po is saidto have lourded one hundred eighi iernplc" inLad;,|h. spiri. and Ctr-gc.
"ni *"ny ,nor.
bulldlng en(leavors arc arrributed to his fol_lowers.
Thc f i vc rc rnp lc " cornpr is i rq rhe C l ros- ' k j ro r\Skr. dharna u,anlala) ai Alcli i irr tadakh arcclearly thc result of such building activity, forthey may be attributed to the mid_to_lateeleventh century on the basis of stylistic andcpigraphic evidence (Fig. r7.3o). Although theexact drre lor the foundirrg oI Aichi is unc-ertain,inscriptions at rhe 'Du-khang,
the earliest andmain building o[ the Chos-'khor, rcveals thatit was built by one Alchi-pa sKal-ldan Shes-rabof the'Bro fanily, who hacl studiccl at Nyar-main Ladakh under immediate followcrs of Rin_
chen bZang-po, and had returncd to his fanilyestates with the desire ro share his Buddhistexperience with those in his home vil)age. AsJn exprc r \ ion o f l r i s r rndcr " rand i r rg o f tLe Br rd_d l r i s r teachrngs . rnd " ro in , r r r rc r peop lc in rheessenr i , , l l r y o f re la r iv i rv \ i tu tya f i ) . " e r rhe dcd i_cator)- rnscdption states,23 he built the 'Du_
k l ' r r r * . t , , . i conogmpJr ic p rograr r o f rhcDu- lhang rc f re . r r BuJd l r i . r r rac l r ings prop-
agated by Rin-chen bZang-po prior to hisconvcrsion to forms of drc religion beingpreached by Ati(a, $,'hich occurred in eitheiroJo or roJ4. This scrggests that thc structurcwas.erectccl by the to4os or 1'erhaps early ro5os.
The enclosed courtyard in fiont of thc 'Du-
khang makcs it dif i icLrlt to photograph in itsentirety. but dctails shon that thc entrancc to
t he r : : ,
exal l ] :
sryl!-.
bcars :inhab::: :
thc l i : ;
t t-aditr. :
rescmf .nenls :
\l'orkl]:-
that rh.tion, cc-had anc:
Thc :lntcf lot
for ther
t l l Laoa\
,i
s..1"-.f ,
? l NJU | l ^ - -: l / . / L t l ) | ) r ^ | a
L: '/ '/^ lz a | o L D f l . l r ; E
_
! l
" ; / " . ' . / , . '! i
!5
.'!IN:
. ':/
)',1-,1
F
L:
r7. jo. Plarassociatcd t
f . l4
,:.1n
.y
:i Bud-! : i t h e::: iedi-: " : Du-
:: the
- - - i l - ,
r:ltctufe
l::ihist.-:. As
PIOP.:o hisbemgeither
the interior of the hall is decorated with fineexamples of wood carvings in the Ka6miristyle. The toralla ovet the porch of the buildingbears rampant lions and other composite animalsinhabiting semi-roundels (Fig. r7.3 r), suggestingthe vitality of the ancient Kaimri woodcarvingtradition. Details of the ornament3tion closelyresemble the stoncwork of surviving monu-ments in Kaimir proper. However, the wood-working is much more detailed, suggestingthat the renowned Ka{miri woodcarving tradi-tion, celebrated for its exquisite workmanship,had ancient roots,
The paintings that decorate the walls of theinterior of the
'Du-khang are truly remarkable,for they, along with a Gw other examples alsoin Ladakh and neighboring Himalayan regions,
KASMIR AND REIATXD SCHOOLS 379
constitute tte only extant examples of complexMahayana Buddhist painted mqf.|olas in the
Indic context. This astonishingly well preservedcollection of ma4dalds documents both major
oortions of the Ka(miri Buddhist pantheon and
ilrtu"lly the whole Brahmanical pantheon asoerceived bv the Buddhists. hrtended as techdcal*"dit"tiotr"l devices for the use of the monks,
ttrc ma4/alas rcpresent the S arv adurgatip ari ! o dhanaTantra cycle, in which Vairocana, as Sarvavid(Universal Knowledge), appears in many differ-ins manifestations. All forms, which includeSaivavid Vairocana
", Sakyamuni, Mafiju3ri,
Prajnaparamita and others, are composed into
these huge ma1dalas, each with thirty-sevenprincipal deities and many ancillary figures.
One of the best preserved examples (P1. 15)
(K ] CHOTENS
1il.J r':--,/
/, ' :\ l\UI
o 2 a 4 o 6 0 1 0 0
0 5 l 0 l 5
r7.3o. Plan of Chos-'khor, including original temples and laterassociated buildings. Alchi (Ladakh region), Kaimrr, Iirdia.
;
shows thc hierarchic scheme of thcse meditative
c1evices. In thc outer ring arc the exterior' ' r ' a i r , rs . ' de i t i cs o f var io t r ' non-Buddh is r pan-
.h"'on, wlto, oncc converrcd to t]rc BLrddhisr-dh-oru-, prouid. a safe haven for thc practicc of
g.ld,lhisi ,r.r".litotions Thc outer portion of the
,rondalo ,.prrscot, tl-rc four contincnts of Bud-
d l r i s r co ' rno logy .?a Thc cent ra l Por t lon ls
..rr."it"a ", ""i i . lr ly
pil l 'rrcd "nd chnrnbered
t,"it pt"."a ,lirectly on tle centcr of the pinnacle
of lt,,io,,,nt Me.r.t, ti.tc axis of the univcrsc ln thesc
vast hxlls residc the thirty-seven urajor deities
of the nv4lala, who reprcsent the thirty-seven
wings (or aspccts) of enlighten rncnr (bodhiPaksi-
Lo).Each fisurc is rendered in exquisite detail and
h", "tt
elJg"nt, attenuatcd b-ody with a nar{ow
-aist ao.l ihe in.rpression of musculature in the
torso, characteris;ic of tirc Ka(miri idiom (Pl'
16). Certain fcaturcs, such as the practice of
deuicrine rhe f:rrlLer eye in ' t lrrrc-qu'rrers-
vieu frie .rs i[ der.rcbed fro'n the l 'ce' tugge't
tics to other rcgional schools of South Asia
(Pl. 3z). Often only abottt- tcn centlmcters ln
ireigt.r,,,tt"," fig.,,es "t"
clearly the work of
,rriii",otit, xrtis;. h other nural traditions of
South Asia, xs at Aja+t' (Pls 8 rr) ' patnters
worked on a lareer s-ale, but hcre the elements
ofth" .o,ttpori iJos xPPcar to have bccn litcrally
tra,rrf".t.d'fro,tt a manuscript tradition to the
murirl contcxt. Cornbined into extren-rely com-
plex and enormous cornpositions, however' the
tiuy figurcs do not seem at all inappropnate on
the wall surfaccs.TLc co lo rs o f t l r c DL ' -khrng pr in t ings ' t re
confined to muted hues of the prinary colors
o l t r , b l rck rnd wh i te . thc l in r i rcd t tse o f g rcen
l , ,d r . l lo * rnJ t l rc p rcv . r l cncc o f red rnd b luc
g iver 'a re .c rved " t ld - ,o " lb " '
ton l l i l y to r l ie
ioo-, t l.,i.h was perhaps deerned suitablc for
meditational purPosesThc Surrr-isek (gSrrnr-brt ',cg'1 Fig r7 3':) ' a
tlrrcc-riercd structi lre ncxr ro thc Du-klI 'rng'
w. , r , l i ke t l rc 'Du-k l rang. b r r i l t by r t t rcmber oF
tlLe influentirl Bro family T'lrtrl-klrrims- od'
the founder of thc Sum-tsek, may havc con-
structed this building not long after the'Du-
khane was built, as may be inGrred from stylistic
,nd ipierrphic evidcncc l ike otltcr strucrures
^, nl.hi , i ' t" Sutn-t,ek rcverl ' hou tlte native
architectural tradition of Ladakh, characterized
bv oiled-up rock walls faced with mud plaster'
hlib""n ,1""ot"t"d with delicate wood carvings
of thc Ka(rniri style Triangular pedimcndike
fonns are combined widr pillars, pilasters' and
other arcl.ritectural elemcnts, all of which find
corlnteltrarts in the itone monun-rents found in
the Srrnagar region o[ Kaimtr proper' The
flgur", 'et ' into ttre rrchitecturrl tottlcxl ' (some
oi which rnry be latcr rcplacctnenr')25 rlso
conforn-r to the stylistic Paraineten of cosmo-
politan Ka(miri art.' Th" ol"n of the building is unusual, perhaps
cven un iq t rc , in Buddh i ' t r r t ' fo r rhc qs 'enc ia ) ly
squrre cenlr.rl 'plce is cxrcnded by niclret on
,1i" *"rr, ,torrh,'"nd east sides (Fig' r7'3o) The
interior of the Surn-tsek is dominated by three
sisonric bocllrisattv, itttagc' rhat sr'rnd in thcse
ii lh.r, r.pr...n,ing rc'pectrvcly Avalokiteivara
(Pl. r7). lr i. ' i treyr. ind Manjtrsri Thc niches are
ir"o rioti"t in Leight, as are the figures' whose
heacls arc visiblc to visitors standing on thc sec-
ond-\torv l loor' A dcdicarory inscription to rlte
Ie f to f M, i t rey . , ' f cerexp l r rn ' rha t 1 ' l ' r r l - khr in rs -
bd 'e r up t i rc 'e r l r rcc ' reccp t rc le " o f Body '
Speech. rnd Mind.26 The M'rnjuiri im 'ge u rs
. .e r t . , i in o rder to re t ' touc bod i ly in rp t r r i r ies and
to obtairr a human Buddha body (nbnarakaya):
the Avalokite(vara was made to temovc vocal
impurities, as a Buddha-speech image' and to
obi"i,t "
.glo.io.r, body (so'nbhogakaya); ar.d
J8o r ATEI NoRTHERN ScHooL\
rr.rr. Wood carving on facadc, 'Du-khang Alchi
(iaiakh region), Kainir, India Ca mid-eleventh cen-
XASMiR AND RELATID SCHooLs JEI
: : ' : r oP r l x te on
-' -_ _,1nrlngs arc
: : : : :1i l Iy colors
::\!- of llfeen: r. l xnd bluc
: : . . i tv to thc
: . i r i tablc for
: . t 7 .32 ) , a
)u-khang,::rcn-rbcr of
-,::rrims-'od,' - t i lve con-
: : : : the 'Du-
1 - . t ' , l i " r i .
a !tructules
:t1e natrve' : : i . r x c te r i zed
: : : .rJ plaster,
: car-vings- : . . tmentl ike
I , i !CrS, and. .ich firrd
: :, ioutrd in_ - rDer. lne
: : : : \ t s ( some
: . :- :- t)25 also' : cosrro-
.. perhaps: :\-ientixlly
:: iches on.: o). The
. :r ' thrcc: r in thcse
- _ irrcsvara::ches are
- : ' ,. rvhose: : tIIe sec-
: : . n t o t h e- i nr t ts-
: Body,: :qc lvas
: . : i r i e s a n d: . : i1 ta4yi)"'.'l vocal
i - . a n d t o
. ; i : a n a l
.1d*
, . . t,'::..,t'.ta
, ; { . - . - .' . ?
17.32. South lacc of Sum-tsck. Alchi (Lad.kh region), Kalmir,India. Ca. rnid-eleventh century.
362 LA'|ER NORTHTRN SCHOOLS
the Maitreya image was made to obtain an"absolute" Buddha-body (dharnakaya) and as a.
Buddha-mind image.Manju(ri, Avalokite6vara, and Maitreya are
the thrcc Great Bodhisattvas of the Sarvavid
cycle. In Mahayana Buddhism, all characteristics
of existence are divided into "families" (ftr.rla),
usually given as live or six in number. These
bodhisattvxs represent rcsPectively the Vajru,
Palrra, and Buddha families and may document
a holdover from an early tradition that empha-
sized only three major family divisions. In
contrast to the wooden sculptures on the ex-
terior ofthe building, these enormous figures arc
made of mud phster that has been painted with
the sarne cxquisitc detail found on the walls of
the buiiding. Each bodhisattva's /ftofl displays an
array of forms, including figures and buildings,
and each has its own iconographic theme.
In contrast to the paintings of the 'Du-khang,
which were somber and reserved in their colora-
tion, the paintings of the Sun.r-tsek virtually
shinner with warnth and color through the
gcnerous Lrse of ycllow and green, in addition
to red, blue, black, and white (Pls. r7-24).
It i . unlikcly that the differcnce in paletre
between the two buildings was due to a chrono-
logical difference since the buildings were
aparently built within a short time of each
other. Instead, a religious reason may have
accounted for the differences, for while the'Du-khang was apparently built fqr the nedita-
tions of the nonkhood, the Sum-tsek was
probably intended for the laity.A smal1 painting of Amitayus, Part of a
scherne showing Sukbavati, the western Paradlseover which he presides, from the lower story
of the Sun.r-tsek, demonstrates the full richness
of the Sum-tsek coloration (Pl. r8). The crown
worn by the figure clcarly indicates that he is
Amitayus, and not Amitabha or Ardtabha/
Anitayus. The throne configuration in this
composition is less than half a meter in height,
so, as in the case of the 'Du-khang, the artists
essentixily worked in a miniaturist stylc, com-
bining tiny elcnents to achieve a mural design.
Thc central {igure of Amitayus is garbed in a
robc decorated with elephant-riding warriors,
rnany of rvhom are shown performing the
"Parthian shot," that is, thcy are tumed shooting
backwards over their elephants in the manner
charactedstic of alcient Parthian horsemen.
Tlrese deadly warrion uould seem incongruous
as ornaments on the robe of a Buddha whose
very name nreans "Etem,rl Life." It may be
suggested, however, that such a design, wl.rich
may bc traced back to much earlier Iranian
sources, rePresents a late survival in the Ka(miri
context and is indicative of the cultural cross-
roads that define Kaimir itself. It is possible
tbar such Iururiou" fabrics were the prerogativeof Ka6miri nobility, and that the clothing as
worn by the Amitayus indicates his royal pre-
rogative as the king of Sukhavati.Unlike the paincings ofthe'Du-khang, where
color was applied in a flat, gcnerally unshaded
nanner, the Sum-tsek Paintings arc notable for
the richness oftheir coloristic cffects. Often, two
colors are used to suggest a kind of glowing
surface to the skin offigures and also to provide
the impression ofdepth and three-dirnensionality
to the forrns. Such "shading" may be an out-
growth of a long distant ancestry in the Hel-
lenistic-Romanized art of the Indic northwest,
for the forms of the bodies seem to be the
painted equivalents of the sharply defined, often
muscular physiques seen in Ka6miri sculpture.
One of the most interesting painted composi-
tions at Alchi shows Prajfiaparanrita, identified
by the book and rosary that she holds, which is
also on the lower story ofthc Surn-tsek (Pl. r9).
She is attended by for.rr emanations of herself
and is the object of devotion ofa noble woman
and a priest, who are shown just below her. To
either side is a depiction ofa tall structure. Given
the archaeoiogical remains at Parihasapura and
the renown of that site as a Buddhist center,
along with the forms depicted in the painting,
it is likely that these represent Laliaditya's caitya
at ??dhasapura with its towering form and
gigantic metal Buddha irnege. on the ic[t. and
Canknr1a's stupa, at the right. Thc practice of
depicting important Buddhist shrines and monu-
-.nt, ""o
be traced to thc earliest pcriods of
surviving Buddhist art. In the Sunga period, for
example, depictions of the Mahabodhi temple
and other shrines, were alrcady representedThat these monuments are shown with Prajia-
' t
: : a i
peramite suggests that she was the primarydeity of Parihasapura and that the site mayhave been an inportant center for her worshipin Ka6mir.
The shading of the anatomy of the central
figure is done with meticulous care. As is thepractice throughout the Sum-tsek paintings,
each element of the shading is a single pointil-listic stroke, so {inely executed that this feature
is observable only at great enlargement. Prajfia-
peramita's garments and those of her attebdants
and worshipers are also finely painted renderings
of the luxurious textiles that may have beenused by the Ka3miri nobility. Her diadem, withits very linear forms, may be a descendent of
the "hair net" type of crown seen occasionally
in Bactro-Gandhara sculptures of the Kugar.raperiod. Her hemispheric breasts, attenuated'waist and animated posture are feninine char-
acteristics that appear widely in South Asianart; however, the extreme narrowness of thewaist and the attention to anatomical detail and
musculature in the abdomen and torso typify
the KaSmiri idiom.Although the identification of this {igure as a
form of Prajfieparamite is confirmed by theattdbutes she holds, her green color does not
conform to the usual iconographic descriptions
ofher. Further, the presence ofthejfua Buddha
Amoghasiddhi at the top center in the group of
five j iras rbove her suggests that she may also
represenr Sydnrarart (Green Tara), and therefore.mlght be rdentll led as rrajnaParamlra- 1 2r2
This suggestion is strengthened by the presence
of a second painted figure in the Sum-tsek that
more clearly combines the features of Prajfra-
paramita and Tara (P1. zo). Although this figureholds Prajfiaparamita's characteristic attributes,the book and the rosary, she is surrounded bydepictions of peopie affiicted with the eight
perils and their salvation by means of devotion
to Tara. T'his figure is thus a dual goddess,symbolizing not only the salvationism of Tara
but thc suprene salvation dbtainable throughthe knowledge symbolized by Prajf,aparamita.
This representation, which is on a wall of the
second story of the Sum-tsek, is one of the
few major scale irnages ren.uining in the Ka6miripainting style; the figure alone stands about a
KASMIR AND RI I ATED SCHOOIS J8J
meter in height. Yet, the techniques ofmodeling,the coloration and extreme attention to detailare comparable to these elements of the minia-
tures more commonly seen at Alchi. In general,the paintings of the second and third stories ofthis three-tiered building are painted less finely
and with more limited use of the expensivebrighter pigments used on the first story. The
second story was not a public area (and can onlybe reached by climbing a notched log ladderto the right of the veranda on the exterior ofthe building) and the third story is in fact totallyinaccessible because it has no floor at all, and
can only be viewed from below. These storieswere painted for the completion of the icono-
graphic program rather dran to be seen upclose, a fact which may have infuenced theartists to use larger scale depictions for theirwalls, as in the case of the Prajfrtperamita-Tera.
Over the door on the south side of the Sum-tsek and visible to the viewer as he exits thebuilding is a representation of Mahakala, an
angry, protective form ofAvalokiteivara (Pl. zr).As a dharnapala or "protector of the Buddhistlaw," Mahakala is charged with overcoming the
enemies of the faith, namely, those who are
difl iculr to convert. hence explaining in parthis fierce appearance. His name may be translated
as "The Great Time," (that is, the Great Destroy-
er [Death]) or "The Great Black-One." He is
characteristically shown as blue in color, though
can be other colors as well, depending on the
specific form of Mahakala being depicted. His
position over the entrance/exit to the building
befits his protective role. Thc triangle bcneathhim represcnts Lhe
' iail" of mctcoric irnn
intended to imprison all evil-doers. Ofparticular
interest among the figures who surround Maha-kala is the depiction of an angry female who
may be Sri (sometimes said to be dre Buddbist
hypostasis oi the Hindu goddess Sri; Pl. zz).
The iconography of this figure is generalized
so that it is dificult to determine which of the
several manifestations of the Sri-type goddesses
she represents. She is characterized by her angryappearance, skull ornaments, and the mule(aluatara) she rides. Like Mahakala, deities of
this class are also dhatmapalas. The shading on
her skin and that of the animal she rides creates
,'E4 TATTR NORTHTRN SCHOOLS
the sense of an intrer glow, which, Iike the
skin tones ofthe other figurcs as well, is strikingagainst the f,at, dcep blue of the backgrouud.
The ccilings ofthe Sur.n-tsek arc also painted.The dcsign, which consists of painted replicas
of lcngths of cloth, accomrnodates the strlrcturaldivisions of the ceiling with its wooclen beams(Pl. z3). Today, many Ladekhis suspcnd lengthsof cloth as faise ceilings in their: honcs and
sirrines, suggestitrg that the Sur.n-tsck paintingsdocun-rcnt an early nanifestatior-r of this prlctice.It is likely that thc cloth clesigns painted so
carefully by the Alchi artists \.vere close rcplicas
of somc ofthe luxnrious texti lcs available durirgthe clcventh ccntury. Rcflccting thc Ka(n.riri
position as part of the crossroacls of Asia, the
textiles revcal a broad cross sectiou of whatmust l-ravc been popular techniqucs thct in use,including dying, tie-dying, printing, brocrding,and enbroidcry. Thc varieties ofpattcrns further
be t ray t l re . rn , i c t t r lLer i t rgc o f tJ re reg io t . fo rdcsigns which werc cLlrrcDt frorI lnner Asia to
India and China are reprcscntcd. One popularrno t i f . r sc r ic5 o f roundc l r t i r t t t r ru , l rv i t l t pc . r r l . .is known from Iran to Japan and is ultimately
based on Sassanian designs of the sixth century(Pl. z4). Thc exanple i l lustrated bears a pair of
dancing figures of clearly Indic origin, thusrcvcaling the blcnding of traditions tbat is chxr-actcristic of much of l(ailuri art.
A tbird building in the Chos-'khor group, a
modest building known as the Lha-khang-so-ma(Fig. 17.33), bears paintings of a sl.rarply con-
trasting style. Its siurplc construction i11 the
typical Ladrkhi rnud ancl rock tcchniclue cloes
not prcpxre the visitor for thc surprise of the
paintings within, which arc in a style thxt is
clcarly clcrived from the painting idiorn devel-
opcd i r r B i l " r
,n , l Bcng l l i t r r l t c c .L ' t c rn p . , r t ion
of the subcontinent during tl.re Pala and Scna
per iods . T houg l r t l ' e d . r t t o f rh i . . l r t t c l t t rc i '
not fixed by inscription or historjcal documcn-
tation, its traditional namc, Lha-khang-so-ma,Iirerally "thc ncw ternple," suggcsts thxt it was
built aftcr at ieast thc original buildings at thc
site rverc already in place. Yet, tl.rc strong favor
of the Pala idioln in thc paintings suggcsts drat
it might have beeq creatcd not long aftcr the
great castern lndian patlrlita, Atisa, had come to
17.33. Sourh facc of Lha-khang+o-rna from southeast.Alchi (Ladakh rcgion), Kalnrr, India. Ca. third quartcrcleventh centrry.
Ladakh from the east and had exerted his in-fluence on Rin-chen bZang-po around ro5o-54.The Lhe-k l rang- 'o -nra . thcn . and i t s pa in t ings .are vcry propably products of about thc third
quarter of thc clcventh century.The style of paintings in this building is ex-
emplified by a represcntation of Vairocana/Sakyarnuni in thc center of the north wall(Pl. z5). Though painted on a much granderscalc, lvith thc central figurc almost a meter 1n
height, thc composition may be comparcd to
examplcs knorvn from Pala-pcriod paln leaf
m:rnuscript painting. Notable amolrg the distjnc-tive P-la clcments arc the lockcd knecs of the
standing bodhisattva attcndants, their arched
backs, and badring-suitlikc dlorls. The use of a
biack outline to defilc thc contours and formsofthe elcments in thc con.rposition is also typical
in rnany Pala paintings. Yet, whilc the Buddharnd his attendent bodhisattvas are strongly basedon Pala types, the figures are "modcled" in amanuer not seen in Bihar and Bcngal printings.Instcad, the attention to anatomy and shadingallics the figures to thc KaSmiri stylc and thepainting traditions presumably derived from thcnor r l r ! \ c ( te rn t r ld i r ion . . ln cont ras t to pa in t i t tg .strictly of thc Kaimiri mode, howcvcr, Iike theexamples in thc Sur.n-tsek, the shacling of theskin, particularly seen in tl.rc two standingboclhisattvas, does not crcatc the sense of a
;
I
it'1
I
I
KASMiR AND RrrATrD scHoors jid5
glow or sheen but rather appears monled, which"-ieht
,uqg.rt that arrists of the easrern school
h"J .o.i to Ladakh and had added some
misunderstood "touches" of the KaSmrri idiom
to their works. Such hybridization could, of
course, be the rerult of many factors; it is also
Dossible, for example. that artists trained in the
kaimiri sryle had modified their works bccause
of a desire to emulate the paintings in manu-
scripts brought to this region from the east'
A second-composition from the Lha-kharg-
so-ma shows Kalacakra, a tutelary deity of the
Vairayana/Tantric Buddhist pantheon whose
name literally means "time-wheel" (Pl. zo)'
He is shown as blue in color, multiarmed, and
in tlre pose of sexual union (yugaxaddha) with
his female cowterpatt (yajfi6) while surrounded
by a na4dalic arrangement of subsidiary figures.
Tiough the style of the painting clearly shows
ties to the eastern Indic traditions, we can only
infer thar such complex painred compositions
wele once produced in Bihar and Bengal, for
large-scale wall pajntings have vani'hed almost
wiihout a trace from the castern regions and
the extant miniatures on palm leafdo not display
the intricate arangements of forms seen here.
However, later Tibetan and Nepali paintings,
which are clearly bascd on Pala prototypes,
offer some documentation of the earlier Indic
compositions, and from surviving texts and the
known teachings of great religious masters, it
may be inferred that such iconographic arrange-
-"nt, -"r" in use during the Pala pcriod. The
paintinqs of the tha-khang-so-ma. tlren. are
erp.ciaiiy important. for they provide a glirnpsc
of th. i"rtein rradition. tf iough modi6cd by
Ka{miri form, at an early datc and testify to the
imponance of the Ladaklr rcgion in transmining
the beliefs and art of the Buddhist religion from
the Indic regions to those of the Himalayan
realms.
iron southeast.
3:- third quarter
xened his in-ound ro5o-54.lia paintings,bout the third
building is ex-ot Valrocana/re north wallmuch granderlost a metef In
-' compared toiod palm leaf
rng the distinc-d knees of the
. their arched!- lne use or a
rurs and formsn is also typicaliie the Buddha: suongly basedmodeled" in a
ngal paintings.rv and shadingi sr,vle and the
erived ftom theast ro paintings's'ever, like the
shading of thets'o standing
the sense of a
C o N c t u s l o u
The Buddhist and Hindu art of Kaimir came
to an abrupt end when the Muslims bccame
the dominant political force in the region
around 1339, when Shah Mirza, a Muslim
adventurer, overthrew the Lohara dynasry end
maior patronage was no longer avail:rble.
ffo*.u"., rhe traditions of Kaimiri art l ived
on in other regions, most notably Gu-ge in
western Tibet, wbere it remained the dominant
style for some time. There is still much to be
learned about the movements within and in-
fluences uDon Kairniri artistic traditions, as
well as the impacr of Kainttri art on orhcr
oarts ofAsia. Clearly, Kaimir served as a source
of i*"g"ry and influence for the northern and
eastem movements of Buddhist art. The Yun-
kang caves in China, the wall paintings from
several sites in Inner Asia, especially Qiziland Tun-huang, the paintings from the cache
at Tun-huang, and some iconographic manu-
scripts from Japan. for cxamplc. should bc
evaiuared with Ka6mir in mind as a possible
source. Kaimir's position relative to the rest
of South Asia and its geographic isolation
allowed the Ka6n.rrris to maintail a kind of
independence. Yet its role as a trade and cul-
tural center berwccn ancient India, Gandhara
and related regions, western Tibet, and Jnner
Asia left it subject to intcrcoune with a vast
variety of artistic and cultural sources. A full
understanding of the transmission of Buddl.rist
art through Asia is dependent on dcveloping a
greater knowledge of Kaimlri art.
rn r'\ -1-
uzFF { r n N
a <t;F --'! O .", i'7 <-= -L Y.'', 9 r
ao-fii:= sEr , . = j . ) ! Y
x+< )\F 1sY-z Yz 3 e=LLu l = t ! ; aZ , / ' ' \ r t i ' ( \ ( ' \- \_) \t t \_,, \J
P; s
!^9o
;;
T
Detail oI 18. r3-
CHAPTER EIGHTEEN
Bihar and Bengal
Under The Ptla and Sena Kinss
From the eishth to the twelfth centuries, the
.astern resioi of the South Asian subcontinent,
roughly equivalent to the modem states of
Bihar and West Bengal in hdia and the nation
of Bangladesh (East Bengal), was host to a
florescence of artistic activity.l Under the Pala
dvnasw. which ruled large portions of this
,Jeion'for nearly the entiri Four-hundred-year
sp""n, as well ",
oth.t -or" limited ruling fami-
lLs, such a, the Senas, and, to a lesser extent, the
Candras and Varmans, vital centers ofBuddhism
and Hinduism fourished. In Bihar, which derives
its name from the many Buddlist viharas that
once dotted the land, and particularly in the
region of Magadha, the homeland of Sakyamuni
Buddha, Buddhism reached an apogee. During
this period, Buddhist monks and pilgrims from
near and distant parts of Asia, including China,
Southeast Asia, Nepal, and Tibet, came to
Bihar and Bengal to study Buddhism and
ultimately to transmit to their homelands.much
of the religious, cultural, and artistic heritage
of this region. Indeed, the art of the so-called
Pala-Sena period is as notable for its influence
abroad as it is for its rolc as a major art school
in the Indic sphere. Hinduism, particularly
Vai5r.ravism, also reached a peak during this
period and became especially prominent in the
cuhural region of Bengal (West Bengal and
Bangladesh) during the eleventh and twelfth
centuries.The Pala dynasty came to Power around 75o,
when the first king, Gopala, is said to have
ended the "reign of fishes,"z that is, the Practiceof the larger principalities swallowing up
the smaller ones that had characterized the
politics of Bengal after thc collapse of Sa6airka's
empire in the seventh century. Taranatha, the
Tibetan historian writing in the seventeenth
century, claimed that the school of Pala art,
however, was not founded until the reigns of
Dharmapala and Devapala, the second and
362
J86 LATER NORTHERN SCHOOLS
lli'iiir'*t+t*'ff;.';tir:q:*!Sttlli:l-i.*:;'*ifi i**r11 J:'.rFi{t*;tti'i"''1ffi t;.,.'ru'lr*"''* tr1J",ffil'i,f:tr*J"j' w#'*ffi :; ffi'?::"ffi *r#'*ml:*[x:T.::::i:'::::ri.l;:';.l;:l";]liii':'.ffi **:l'::11"u"'l"lillii'l"iiill'*3";
l':';i,:l'lT[=t;it1;;;*.;';4ip;,i5*y#$*X*r*ff r*'.'.g,;;i;:r ;{:''#tiiirq jtt*t*i:{ }*l:ffi :l: rxr**T:, :i#[[:t'd,*:**;]i::r,*;iiili'';il"t:-iqi:{}},,:",J*#:i,"}lili"';;**Hlfr::ffi i':?:,i";il'-Tj'ij+:;:i::'+,r-:^:1'i;.3li;i:#d*"j,illfi f*,if;:"3h:";:pliTiii"a# li3'#:-11; ;**1:n;u.;r ""a ,he nois, c,irna,e
ill*{ji;Tftiff;#}ffi r-r'xlit:**i :#,r""**i+*'$l.;ilJ:j:L}n1
i# T"l'"yllfi "'':"iT't -i*t
t = rack or archi'lcc'lurar exampres'
mru:x1'i:il:i:r1;:,::l; =i,t[ l**,",':mg*thlE#1',:fi
f#*a*lt$, **l*ijtrffiri*"'*#',*liq*'','ffi [i}F5*t+**ii':]".":H'1,'"'ffit*T,;*T$*t:,iffi ;;$t5gi':ffi*iu$fl*gl*,t+ur s**$*J*ry* *i+Lt1[l*:tfi$i,,;ffi'.:'iii.Xiii"il,"l"i'il1,'llli"i,'Iil"i:il ;jrl:-:::::ii:T,ffT';l*t'li'::|:.:l,#"",r*,- s "ial,,u'r,, iilji,i,j;fi i',.,.,*, :::'J,TL1# ::**1 1' ;:tf '"",'J,":1this cxodus causcd the Buddh
crion ascribedhe practiced
urndred yearsLlmost to thelgin, althoughe religion inrt and culturem incursions,rially under-rital force in
rcriviry of themlctures wererese buildingsg alrnost nod and makingEt a systenatic:lopments.6 In
may be ex-ot stone, wasI other fragiler. and thatch,rhe continualmoist clirnate
,hich organicbuilt of theseive over the
ural examples,ferv paintings
' rhe sculptures
a ferv woodenn the case ofnaterials wereirere generallyitic stone localallr: created in
t itould h"ve
a, part of the
r might haves of devotion.aqes from this
: -specific
alloy
r ro rvorkshoPa high copper
e\ls, the alloy
\a:tadhntu),1 ^llr rirual correct-: gold or silver,
and many exanples made of bronze had gildedsurfaces. In general, metal images fiom thisregion are hollow cast, except in the case ofthe smaller works, which are usually solid.Mctal sculptures served alone or in groups asobjects of meditation and devotion and manymust have formed part of three-dimensionalflal!{alas.'fhe varieties of wood sculpture inthis region can only be imagined, but survivingexamplcs suggest that wood carvings wereused as part of architectural decoration, and forthe creation of objects of veneration as well.
Although works of art from Bihar andBengal of the eighth through twelfth centuriesshare a number of features, many distinct work-shops wcre responsible for the vast artisricoutput. Some atelier., I ike thosc at majorreligious centers such as Nalande or BodhGayt, wcre sustained over the centuries andtheir lengthy histories r.nay be traced for thefull four-hundred-year span of this period.These rnajor centers served as sources of stylisticand iconographic inspiration for smaller, lessprominent establishmcnts. Thus, within thebroad geographical range of Bihar and Bengal,regional subschools, largely based on the stylesof the main centers, may be discemed.
Along with regional developn.rents, veryprecise cLronological distinctions may be madefor thc arr of this period. Such refinemenrs arepossible bccause several dozen sculptures, in-cluding cxanples in both stone and rnetal, withinscribed dates, survivc fiorn this period. Thcbasic tendency ofthe sculptural style over tlis ex-
UNDER THE ?AIA AND SENA TfiNGS J69
tended period was toward increased elaborationof detail and complexity oficonography, greaterstylization of forrn, stiffening of body posturesand facial features, as well as increased emphasison the detailing of the back-slab or surroundingelements at the exoense of the orominence ofthe central figure
-of the composition. These
features suggest that the developments in Biharand Bengal were part ofthe overgll cultural andartistic pattems of South Asia during the post-Gupta periods.s
As i-po.t"ttt ".
th" regional and chronologicaldistinctions of Pala-period art is the fact thatthis corpus of images displays a tremendous rich-ness of iconograpbic types. Some of the fonnspreserved in this artistic tradition may refectreligious concepts that had been formulated inearlier periods. Others undoubtedly indicate thevitality of the Buddhist and Hindu religions inBihar and Bengal from the eighth through thetwelfth centuries and are innovations resultingfrom the keen insight and advanced religiousunderstanding of spiritual masters who livedat that time. The present discussion, whiletouching on some of the stylistic developmentsof the period, primarily focuses on the religiousand iconographic developments. The Buddhisticons demonstrate the vigor of the Buddhistreligion at this time and comprisc a point ofdeparture for studying the Buddhist art ofmany other regions of Asia. The Hindu sculp-tures document the intensity of Hindu belief inthe eastcrn regions, in spite of a rathcr delayedadvent of Brahmanism there.
B u o o n r s r A r r
During the Pala pcriod, a number ofmonasteriesand relieious sites that had been founded inearlier periods grew into prominence. At thesarne time, the intense religious activity andapparent wealth of the region fostered theestablishment of many new centers throughoutthe regions of Bihar and Bengal. In spite ofthepaucity of architectural monuments survivingfrorn this period, it is evident that ambitiousand impressive structures were built. The largecu,clform stula at Pahelpur (ancient Somapura)
in Bengal, for cxample, measures more thanone hundred meters fiom north to south (Fig.r8.r). It is set within a vast quadrangular court-yard that contains a number ofsmalier structures,suggesting that the main conpound may havebeen a product of more than one building phase(Fig. r8.z). It is believed to have been foundedduring the reign of Dharmapala, the secondPala king, around the latc eighth or early rrinthcentury, though other objects from thc siteciating fiom later periods suggest that xrtistic
J9O LATFR NO]]TI ]ERN SCHO'L\
tury'
. rc r rv i rv conr inu(d i l t ro t rg l to r r t lhe P l r l t Per ioJ '
i i " " t r r i . i i , . . " . ' ' ' 'y" j tont ' in r ,77 i r rdi \ idtrr l .
j i ' i r ' r i t . t ' . . " . ,1 a t ' l r r i t rc ' ln t l re cer t tc r o f
,;"'";;,i' .o,"pound,"..l] :l l:,i ::iliTi';:(ntr.rDce. ind cnl ' Irged ccl l bLocKs
. - . , " , o i t hc so t r t l t ' c J ' t r nL l \ \ e \ l 5 l de \ ' s l l g -
O .5 , * *
- . a . " " ' ' ' ' t y g ' t e \ \ ' l ) s l l l i ' J r r ' r l ) gc l r l ( n l
i " r , , t . l 'Lr ' . , t " t l i ' " i -d i " tcn ' ion ' l ' r ra ' r /a / ' r ' rv t t l t
, t r " t , t . , t , t r . t i 'p t " cct l tercd u i t l t i r t sr tc l t r for r t r r t
, , , . , t f r " a i , , t t t1 cot r tpr red u i t l r t l te n ' ' r r r l ' : r ' ' t t '
t . , i ; , ,1 , , , r t 'ar i i , r l t r r ' t r rv ivc, f rorr r Ncp' r l r r rd' r ib" ,
i r ' " . , r i i . ' ,1
, , . in whrc l t t l r ' cc t r r r ' ' l tentp le
i " " t ' ; t . , l t ' . t t "a 'a b1 " corr rp ' - ' t rnd rv i rh 3 ' re ' '
ii-'pir*ro* temPlc is cruciforn in plan' rvith
e.c1r'it1c bci"g off'er su r\'rr t,r is ol rltc pd4(aratna
0"" t"tltrl ui'itty t*t"p' the north' u'hich is
"til:if l;..IlJJ"ill,",..,''.,,,onun,e'r. \\ a,n .ob " l r i v on " o f t he r r l o ' t e l r bo ra l c o l t l t c t n ' t t c
Lr" . . i . . r 'u t ' ' " t " ' * 'n ' l i r ^ o f " r r c i rcd Js ' t
:::;;;;; ior the tcrr"ced edirrccs or
{ ' i " , " , "a t . " t f t ' r ' r As i r ' Yct rhc Pr l r rpur
, t l l '1 , , ' t " ' ' ' " "< l ' t t iqr r< i r r B i l r r r ' ' r rd l i ' " rgJ l
iit '"' ,t-ti"t '.t"ttr.'r.t
plan.orlp'et the sitc of
^"ri.f*t- ttt eastern Biirar (thought to bc--t}.rc
,,,-, "f
rt "
encient Vikranairla n-ronestcryl
',,-0"'L' ,t''" 'rrch brril'lings 'l'I lril:,i:,1::;
,.it-"d . popui"' rnd cl.r'rr:iclerts
tIPC.
Thc rvrils of thc plinth and lorv"r tcrraces of
,h"';;t1t;;;, -""ti-tt' *"t" decorated rvitlr
;"-.;;;i' ;kr*' (Fig r8 3) aod :r rorv of
sirrr-rlrrce ,rone in'^get on tlre l l inrh firrrlrcr
."; iJ ;;, r lrc 'crrlpi 'rr"l <rnbcll i ' l tr 'cnr' An
rcor,-,tr.rplt ic progr"rn for thecc dccnr'rttotts n1'
"", i", ft*tt . i trbliJrcd' rhotrgh drc
.terr,nco t r . r . r .pcc i r l l l
"s q f tcn c l r 'L r rn t l lg ' l r cc ty
.-"."*.f '*-ft
shorving ninor clivinities' rni-
rn . r l s . , r rd o t l ren t rb je ' t ' '
l r r cor t t r " ' t to t l rc p r r rc i ty o f r rc l l l t cc t l l r ' r l
-"-,"t"^i..-
',lti' p""td' ihe thousirnds of
'u r . iu inq ' c t r lp t ' r rc ' Pre \c1 l ! Jn l l l l Lo \ t ov ( r -
; i ; i " ; i ; . ' , " ,1 or fo"" ' A bl ' | ( | srorrc sculP-
, ,u . i ron i N i l . ,nda 1 l i3 r8 4 ) -an i r r rPor t rn t
Bucldhist nionastcry and onc of the prtncrpu
."-"r. oi Pal. '-pcriod 'rrt d rrcs fr"rn 'pproxt-
t".r"n, ,f,. 5cvcntl l cenrlrr) 'r ld cl ' 'rr ly dcrllon-
:;;,;.1 ,1'. p,"-Pil "n'l
caril P:' lr-pcrio'l stylisic
Jcpcn, lcnc< or l c r r l i c r Br 'd ( l l r l s t ' c r r lP t t r rJ l
: ; t i : ' . ; ' .1 , . t ' t r t ' t [ ronr \ ' ' rnaL l r ' lhe ' l c t tder '
; j:;;. ' ;;..1 fiq"'e or r) ' i ' bodhiutrvJ' 'vho m"v
i l ' . ' ; i l iu. ' lokir . .u. , r . ' or \ ' '11r ' rnt Lbhrdr" e
;, .;;;tit.""t of lete Gupta-period carvi.gs'
iJ trt*rt,ro rclxxecl Postttrc' trcatmcnt of the
i"tt, "tT""tJt 'i"tplitity in particular recall
rhc .. ,r l rcr rdolt . Horvcver. . l ErcAte-r cr l \Pncqs
rn t l t c c r r v i nq rnd rhe dc r ' L i l i ng o l t he l o t r l \
fedestri anci jeweiry indicate a dcParturc trom
UNDER THE PALA AND STNA KINGS ?01
cStupa
oStupa
n-er tgrraces oflecorated withmd a row ofplinth further
llishment. Anlecorations hasgh the terraLrming, fieelydirinities, ani-
f architecturalthousands ofalmost over-
:k stone sculp-an important
' rhe principal
&orn approxi-:learly demon--period stylisticrist sculptural. lne slenoer,n'a. who mayrunantabhadra,9riod carvings.2rment of theardcular recall:eater crlsPness
1 of the lotusleparture from
0 32 64 96 124 16A 192 221F ' , ' , ' ' ' , ' , ' ' ,
1 5
r8.2. Plan of Great Sr[pa. Paharpur, Bangladesh. pala period, prob-ably reign of Dharmepela. Ca. late eighth<arly ninth century.
JJt F-:i i;=-l -'--.{
tEEIffiM a n y
S u b s l d i a r y
S T T U C I U T E S
392 LATER NORTHERN SCHOOTS
r8.3. Tena-cotta plaqucs on Great StaPa Pahalpur, Bangladcsh.
Ptla period, probably rcig11 of Dhrrmap:la. Ca. late eighth-
early nirth ceiltury.
the early style. Accompanying thc bodhisatrva
are two femalc figures. Tl.rcc iila Buddhas
appear on his l.ralo and a fourth, perhaps the
spiritual progenitor of the bodlrisattva, aPPcxrs
in his headdress.Another inage from Nalanda, this tirne identi-
fiable as the Bodhisattvlt Khasarpana Avaloki-
te6vara, was probabiy carvcd in the late elevcnth
centLrry and sl-rows luauy of the charactcristics of
the fully dcvelopcd Pala-Sena tradition (Fig.
i8.5). Tl.re ccntral {igure and his attendants stand
in the accented tribhaiga, or thdce-bcnt Posture.Not only is this positiolr collllr1only seen in
imagcs from this datc, but the anguler transitions
between thc sections of the body are typical of
this pcriod as well and imPart a stylizcd, rather
than naturalistic, effect to the figurcs. In contrast
to the earlier inage frorn Nalanda, thc back-slab
is now pointed at the top, rathcr than rolrndecl,
and it has been grcatly elaboratcd upon in
its dccoration as well as in thc iconographic
additions of the various attendants and other
figurcs. Even the clothing of thc bodhisattva is
more detailed than that of thc earlier fignrc.Also typical of this later plnse of Pala art, the
lotus pedestal upon which the ccntral figurc
stards is l.righly ciaborate xnd is carvcd in a
scries of thrcc-dimensionally conccivcd layers.
Khasarpaqa Avalokite6vara is attcndcd by his
usual con-rpanions, Tara and Sudhanakun-rara(Very Rich Princc) to his right and Bh;kurr and
Hayagriva (Horse-Ncck) to his lcft, while above,
ures. In contrastla. the back-dabr rhan rounded,rrared upon inr iconographichnrs and othere bodhisattva is: :arlier figure.o: Pala art, thc' ;cntral figurei. carved in a
::r;cived layers.---- r.t L., h;.
S:ihanakumaranj Bhrkuli andr-. rvhile above,
r8.4. Bodhisatwa. From Nelanda, Bihar, India. Pre-P,laperiod. Ca. seventh century. Black stone. H: 2oo cm.Nelanda Site Muscum, Ntlandl.
all five of thejinc Buddhas are represented. Likemany other Pala-period sculptures, the imagemay have been painted in its original state, ac-cording to the iconographic precepts of thesadhanas, theBrddhist textual ritual guide. Thus,Khasarpap might bave been white; Tara, greenor white; Sudhanakumera and Bhgkuti, gold;and Hayagriva, red. The {ivejiza Buddhas mightalso have been painted their respective colors.The arimal-headed, skeletal figure at the extremebottom left of the stele is the preta Socimukha.Pretas are a form into which beings who havebeen lustful and greedy are born. This preta,whose destiny it is to be insatiably hungry, isbeing saved by the bodhisattva, who lets himsuck the nectar that falls from his hand. Bud-
UNDER THT PALA AND SENA KINGS J9J
r8.J. Khasarpa4a Avalokiteivara. Frour Nalanda, Bi-har, India. Pela pcriod. Ca. late eleventh century. Blackstone. H: r2J cnl. Ndlarde Site Museum, Nalandt.
dhologically, this is an exarnple of the compas-sion exhibited by the bodhisattva of conpassion.This specific aspect of Khasarpa4a Avalokiteivarais known as Prctasarhtarpita Lokeivara, thepr e t a-satlsfying Loke6vara.
Numerous other bodhisattvas and forms ofbodhisattvas are also represented within thespan of Pala-period art. A repres6ntation ofSadakgari Avalokite6vara found at Colgong, ineastem Bihar, was probably carved in the latceleventh or twelfth century as indicatcd by thcelaboration of the various elernents in thecomposirion (Fig. r8.o). Ir is inrererring to notethat the foliate motifs are suggestive of theNepali painted designs of the thirteenth andfourteenth centuries tlut are based upon Pala
394 LA'|ER NORTHTRN SCHOOIS
r8.6. $adaktari Av:lokitelvara. From Colgong, Bihar'
Indie. Pala pcriod. Ca. lxle elevcnth or trl'clfih centurt.Black srone. H: t43.3 cm. Patna Museunr, Pxtr la.
prototypcs. Iconographically, this figure is yet
anothcr nanifestation of the ubiquitous bod-
hisattva Avalokiteivara. Thc two principalhands, now lost, would have bccn in aiTjali
tndra, d:'e second right hand should have
carried a rosary, and the sccond left, a lotus.
The central figure is accor.npanied by Mani-
dhara, the n.ralc on the figurc's proper right, and
by $adaksari Mahavidya, the Gn.rale to his
left. These two attcndants exhibit the sameattributes as thc central figure, that rs, thc anjali
wdra, the losary, and the lotus. 'lhe five jin
Buddhas are represented along the top of the
stele and the irnagc of Amitabha probably aP-
peared in the headdress of Sadaksari Loke(vara.
Sadaksari (Six Syllables) reGrs to tl.'e tdtitra ofAvalokiteivara, Oth naqi padne hutir, ',vhtch
consists of six syllables. A trarr,"a is a phoneticsyrnbol that both evokes and vivifies thc diviniry
r8.7. Sirihan,da Av.lokitc(varr' Frour Sultangafrj, Bi-har, lndiA. Pala pcriod. Ca. late elcvclth or earlyrwelfih ccntury. Black stone. H: ca. r8o cDl. Birming_ham Museum and Art Gallery, Birrningham.
being propitiated, and this sculpnrre therefore
reprcsents a personification o{ the maxtra of
Avalokitc(vara. -fhe
padna or lotus held in hishand signifies the lamily (Arrla) of this figure and
is his principal emblcm. The rosary (rriala) is thc
ritual tool used in reciting rhe ruanha the
ncccssary number of times (usually one hundrcd
eight) in thc propitiation of Avalokite(vara.
Thc trvo principal hands were rt aiijali nudrd to
signify the deep respcct and devotion that the
practitioner is supposed to feel whilc performing
tl:'e fidt1trq. In csoteric teachings, $adaksariholds between his two hands drc gem of en-
lightcnment that, while concealed from the
casual viewer, is promised to tlle devotee who
visualizes himsclf as $adaksari.A figure of Sirirhanada AvalokitcSvara, also
found in eastcrn Bihar, at Sultangaiij, and prob-
ably of the san.rc approximate date, further
:tr :i1 his
a :: :a and
- - : ; t h e
h:. 'r ' :ra. alsolc- . =ad prob-;::. further
r8.8. Avalokitelvara. Frorn Tapandighi, West Bengal,India. Pale period. Ca. late eleventh-early twelfthcentury. Black stone. H: ro5 cnr. State ArchaeologicalMuseum of Beugal, Calcutta.
exemplifies the great iconographic variety of
this school (Fig. r8.7). This stele was found in
association with the famous, larger than human-
size metal image of a Buddha (Fig. rr.6) and two
elaborately carvcd black stone pillars that were
unearthed in r87z during the course ofconstruc-tion of a railroad, The nearby ruins suggest
that these sculptures belonged to a monastqry
and might have been hidden when the establish-ment was attacked by Muslim invaders. The
carving is again highly refined and the figure
and back-slab are detailed with the precision and
care found in the finest of these works. The ac-
cented posture, sharply outlined Gatures of the
face, and detailing ofthe back-slab indicate a date
of the late eleventh or early twelfth century forthis sculpture. The name Sirhhanada is a directreference to the teachings of the Buddha, the
Buddha being the lion or sithha and nada refetritg
UNDER THE PALA AND SENA KINGS J95
to its roar, or his teachings. Thus, Avalokite6-
vara-of-the-lion's-roar leiterates the complete
body of dharna that the Buddha Promulgated.The analogue of the lion's roar stems from the
fact that the Buddha was considered a lion
among people as well as a menb.r ofthe Sakya
clan, which had the lion as its totem. The voice
ofthe lion is, ofcourse, a roar, as befits one of the
mightiest animals Lnown in India. The Buddha's
teachings among people are thus likened to the
roar of the lion among animals. There is a
trident with a serpent entwined about it to the
right of the bodhisattva and the remains of a
lotus bearing a flaming sword aloft may be seen
to his left. The sword is equat ed with ptajna , the
Buddhist concept of transcendental knowledge.
An unusual Gature of this stele is the Postureo{ the jixa Buddhas above the central figure,
with their legs akimbo in the manner of flying
gaxdhoruas or uidyadharcs rather than their usual
uajr op aryahkdsano.The full richness of the srylistic develoPments
of Buddhist art under the Palas or Senas may be
seen in a figure ofthe Bodhisattva Avalokite6vara
of about the late eleventh or early twelfth
century from Tapandighi in West Bengal
(Fig. I8.8). While clearly deriving from the
same stylistic milieu as the Colgong $adak-sari, this sculpture is more elaborate and three
dimensional. The fowers and jewels are not
simply incised, but have become deeply carved
forms rising out of the surface of the stcle. Themain figure occupies only a relatively small
portion of the total space of the stele and the
viewer's attention is captured by the variety of
other features. In contrast to thc KhasarPalp
Avalokite(vara image from Nalande (Fig. r8.5),
this bodhisattva is attended only by Hayagriva
and Sudhanakumara; Tare and BhJkuti are
absent.Buddha images also abound from the Pala
and Sena periods. Typically, Pala-Sena depictions
show seated Buddhas displaying bhanisparla
ruu&a.lrst as tlte prevalence of dharnacakra mudrd
and the prominence of Samath (where Sakya-
muni Buddha first preached) during the Gupta
period are undoubtedly correlated, a rclation-ship seems to exist between thc PoPuladty ofthe
bhunisporla mudra ar.d the importance of Bodh
396 LATER NORTHERN SCHOOLS
r8.9. Victory over Mara, ard other Lifc Events ofSakyanuni Buddha. At Jagdilpur (Neland.), Bih.r'India. Pela period. Ca. late tenth century. Black stoneH: over 3oo cm.
Gaya (the site of the Sekyamuni Buddha's en-
lightenment) in Magadha during the Pala-Sena
periods. The Pala-period image within the
Mahabodhi temple. at Bodir Gaya shows a Bud-
dha, trndoubtedly Sakyamuni, ln tbe bhimispario
mudrd in contrnernoration of the Buddha's defeat
of Mdra at that very site. This image must llave
scrved as a model for nruch of the imagery of the
art of this period, not only in India but in other
Buddhist lands where Bodh Gaya was looked to
as a spiritual center. Often, a represcntation of
liaky"-"ni Buddha in bhrtntispaia mudra served
as the central image in a stele, around which wcre
depicted sevcn morc events from his life. A
paiticularly fine and cxplicit cxaurple of such
an "eight scencs" stele is enshrined at JagdiiPur(a modern village at thc ancient sitc of the
Nalanda monastery), which dates fiorn around
the late tcnth century (Fig. r8.9). Not only is the
moment of calling thc eath to witncss depicted
by thc bhamispaia milra and the prcsence of the
bodhi leaves above the head of thc central Bud-
dha, but also, immediately surrounding him, the
armics of Mdra arc shown in the act of attacking
him with stones and other weapons in thcir
attemDt to swav him from his resolve.
Io iddition to this event in the life of Sakya-
muni Buddha, seven other ircidents are depicted
in the stele. From thc botton left, along the
perimetcr. the sceues are: t l)e offering of rhe
monkcy: the 6rsr sermott; t l te dcsccnr from t]re
hcaven of the thirty-rhree gods: rft pariniruana;
rhe taming of rhe wild elcplratrr; the miracle of
Sravavi; and the birth of Salyrmrrni Buddha.
Each of these scenes bears at least one distinctive
featurc that identifics it as a specilic event in the
lifc of Sakyamuni Buddha. Thus, in the offering
of tlre nonley, the Buddha rs tn dhyana tuudta
holding a bowl and is ofi-ered another bowl by a
mork.y. Th" first sernon is indicated by the
two small dccr ilanking the wheel of the law
bencath thc Buddha's scat and the Buddha is
showrr in dharnacakra nudra.'flrc descent Gom
Trayastrirh6a, the heaven of the thirty-three
gods, is also easily idcntified because of the
ores.oce of the Brahmanical deities, Indra and
b."hme, -ho accompanied thc Buddha on his
rctnrn to eartl.I, and by the un.rbrella being hcld
aloft ovcr tl.re Buddha's head. The reclining
Buddha at the top ofthe stelc, with the mourning
attcndants, thc strtpa in the sky, and the pair of
hands beating hcavenly drums is a standard
reprcsentation of the grcat deccase (pariniruatla)
The gcsture of the standing Buddhe in the next
scene and the rcprescntation of the clephant are
asain spccific referenccs to a well-known subject
iti luailirt literaturc, that is, thc taming of thc
wild clcphant, Nelegiri, who had becn releascd
by thc Budclha's evil cousin Dcvadatta with the
intcntion of killing the Buddha. The second
representation of a prcaching episodc may be
identifred as the n.riracle ofsravasti because ofthe
secondary Buddha figurcs occurring to cither
side of the n.rain figurc, indicating the occasion
when the Buddha muitiplied himself in order
to confound tl-rc schisr-natics. Thc scene at the
lower right rcpresents Sakyanuni's birdr, with
Qr-reen Maya grasping the branchcs of the jal
UNDER THE ?ALA AND SENA KINGS J97
i
I--:eir
tree while the child is bom fiom her risht side.Numerous other versions of these eigf,t scenes
togethe.r appear in stelae of the pa[ period.A small devotional image from Nalanda ofabout rhe renrh century offers an abbreviated,but more typical version rhan the Tasdiipurrelief (Fig. r 8. r o). The order o[ rhe,..n"id;fi..,trom the previous example and the weahh ofspecific derail has nor been included. The armyof Mera attacking the central figure is impliej,not shown, and in each of the o-th., ,.""o, ,t
"identifying characteristics have been limited toonly the barest necessities. In this version. thepresence of rhe drree Buddhas benearh the mainimage adds a new dimension to the alreadvcomplicated iconography. Indeed, the nu-.ror',stela-e showing rhe eighr scenes of the Buddha,sli le trequently have addirions and variations rharamplify their
- iconographic meaning. Thesesuddhas. togerher with the central f igure. mayrepresent four of the five Buddhas of-the aaAri_jitta na4dala. The three figures alone mavdepicr rhe three srages oIBuddhahood: the or.i-present, and furure. Speci6cally. rhe Buddha onthe lett. who5f uarada mudrd offers the gift ofenlighrenmenr. might represenr rhe prediclon ofenjrghrenmenr; rhe central Buddha. mediratingt:. dh!*! nudrd wirh a serpent. p.csurnrblyMrrcaiinda. who prorectcd Saiyanrrrni Bucldhalrom rhe rains during his post_enJighten mentmedrratlons. could indicate the achievemenr ofenlightenment; and the Buddha at the dghr,whose a[haya mudra grants rhe abscncc ofiearrhrough lnowledge oIBuddhahood ma y indicatcthe teaching o{ thc dharna and therefore thepostenlightenment activities of a fullv enlisht_cned Buddha. As has been seen in other .1n_terts. mulriple lcvels of meaning are ch.rracteris_ric oI Btrddhist inragery. end during this pcrio<1or Increased rconographic complexiry rhey arernvanably present.
While' ernphasis on Sakyanrunr Buc{dha(and rhereby the nirnnnakayaj renrainccl greatrhroLrgirour Pala-.rnd Sena-pciiod Brrddhisi art,growrng cxplicitness and anenrion ro rhe j iaaBuddL,.s (anbhogaAaya) is also apparenr. Anapproxlmatety elevcn I h_centr try representarionof a seated Brrddlra. again in bhunisparia nudra,tron Bareya, in West Bengal (Fig. rS.rr), is
a : , . -
::cted: rhe
r j rl'"
fc= theb-. ana;i::,e ofk:dha.n:--:tiver :r theof:ringa ' : , { l f a
s . b y at,.' the[e ]aw
lciu islt fromr-tlreeof thera andon hisLg heldcliningurrungoair ofutdard
atla).e nextIlt AIC
ubjectof theleasedth the-'condrt beoithe:irher4510n
orderr rhes'ithre J4t
r8-ro. Vicrory over Mera and orher Life fvenr of'r*IrIr ] , r ,uddha. From Nai. lnda. Biher, India. pala
ffiiff ""iiil'.|,lT,K,i:::" stone H:47.5 cm.
such.an example, for it does not depict Sakya_muni. bur.rather Aksobhya. recognized by ihebhumisparia mudra as well as the elephant uihanabeneath his lotus seat. A lotus vrne emergesfiom the point of the halo and issues lo"tusflowe-rs upon which the five j ina Buddhas areseared.. The. cenrrrl f igLrrc is again Ak.,qbhys.tndrcatlng that he is in thi. casc rhc centcr ofthe matllala and as such is sfibhauikqkaya-Vajras depicted along the sider ofthe srele, abouthalfway up. are further references ro Aksobhyasincc his
.[ala is known as irc vojra hmtiy aid,
as such. rhl\ eJemcnr syrnbolizes borh his ownexrstence as well as that of thc bcings who arehis progeny.
- Another stele of about the eleventh centuryshows rhc j ira. Rarna.ambhava. recognized bytus characteristic uaruda nudrd and lLis horscuahana d,eptcted beneath his lotus seat (Fig.
398 L^TER NORTHERN SCHOOLS
r8.rr. Akgobhya. Frorn Bareya, Nadia distlict, WestBengal, India. Pala period. Ca. eleventh century.Black stone. H: 70 cln. Siate Archaeological MuseumofBengal, Calcutta.
r8.rz). Iconographical ly. the. format is quitesimilar to representations of Sakyamuni foundtluoughout Bihar and Bengal and, stylistically,it rellecrs features both of central Bihar (mainlyMagadha) and of Bengal, as miglrt be expected,since it was found in the Bhagalpur district thatis situarcd between Bengal and central Bihar.The arrangement of the stele with its centrallyplaced Buddha, the coniguration of the throne,the treatment of the halo, and the position ofthe vidyadharas can be rraced to the earliestexamples of the Pala school in Magadha, al-though the elongation of the head and buoyantfeatures of the face impart a special livelineis tothe image. While the fo.,n"t of the stele followsninth-century examples rather closely, thepointed top suggests an eleventh-century dateand indicatcs that this sculpture is an intentionalcopy of an earlier mode of representauon,
r8.r2. Rahasanbhava. From Bhegalpur district, Bihar,Indie. Pala period. Ca. eleventh century. Black stone.H: 67.4 cm. Bangiya Sahitya Parisad, Calcutta.
except for a few features that clearly assign itto its own time.
More typically Tantric in nature are a numberof images that show angry forrns of deities(krodhahaya). Heruka, a name given to a specificdeity as well as to a class of angry deities thatare euunations of Aksobhya, was undoubtedlyknown in Buddhist theory long before hisimages became cornmon in art. One examplefiom Subhapur, in Bangladesh, of about theearly eleventh century shows a specific formof Heruka that stands in the irdhaparyaika(half-squatting, that is, one-leg-folded)
- pose
atop a- lo rus pedesra l 1F ig . r8 . r3 ) . H is bu lg ingeyes. bared langs. and ornamenral details,including the garland of severed heads, allsuggest his krodha natrlre. While frighteningperhr.ps ro rhe uninitiared. worship of rhe deiryby advanced pracuirioners is intended to destroy
UNDER THX PETA AND SENA KINGS Ji99
r8. r3.. Heruka. From Subhapur, Bangladesh. palapenod. Cr. e.rr ly elevenLh cenrurl . Black stone. H:I65.2 cm. Dacca Muscum, Dacca.
I8.r4., HevJjra,-_FroDr prhirpur, Bangladesh. pi lapcnoo..La. t \ el irh cenrury. Black stone. H: ca. 7.5 crn.Indlan Museum, Crlcutta.
all Maras and confer Buddhahooo on oevorees.In his left hand, Heruka holds a now damagedkhatvaiga wnh a bejl and srreamers; rt ls norknown what the right hand held as it has beendesrroyed. A khatuitipa is a typc of staff orclut. rhar symbolizes victory iou.. d"mons).While surviving representations of Heruka andHeruka-class deities are relatively rare in theIndic.sphere, images such as thi; undoubtedlyserved as-the basis for rhe nrany dcpicions o[the god found in Nepali and Tibetan art of aslightly later date.
Heruka+ype deities sometimes appear alone,as in, the case of the example from^subhapur,but they uray also be shown with a female inyuganaddha
,(ssxLt union). In this case. rhc dciryrs oJten callcd Hcv;rjr.r. I he femalc representsP:aiia or, knowledge
_and the malc symbolizesrne methods of achieving rhi. knowledge
(upaya). When the rwo are combined, differen_tirt ion-ceases to exisr. By means of the rcaliza_tron ot rlus nondifcrentiation through a Jcngthyritual, the Buddhist practitioner hopes to achlevelanyata, wlu,ch is somctimes defined as neitherbeing nor nonbeing. In this state, hc has ceasedto have desires of any kind and rhus. by defini_uon. carurol bc concerned wirh rhe erotic aspcctsof the representation.
^ A very small imagc of Hevajra was found at
P,aharRur..rndicaring thar advanced Tantric Bud_dhologrcal
_rheory was known and apparenrJyprac iced therc , (F ig . r8 . r4 ) . p robab iy dar ingrrom,thc rwelfth cenrury. as suggeved by thecomPlcxlry,ol the rrnage, and rhus represenringrhe lare5r phase of Buddhist arr in rhe .r,te.iportion of the subcontinent, the deity is shownwith a profusion of arms and heads, in inter_course with his female companion. The standing
40O LATEII NORTHERN SCHOOLS
posture shown hcrc is most commonly found
in Ncpali and Tibetan paintings and sculptures
of . r l - re r J r te . r l though aga in . i r i s apparent
rirat (]rc source [or t]rosc tradlrions was.rncicnt
India. Lnagcs such as this were reservcd for
thosc initiated to the highest level of Anut-
tarcyogifti-ta tra, The proponents of Anuttara
yoga recognized that the initiations and their
prictices should be kept secret in order to avoid
misreprc.cntation. mi'underscrnding. and per-
secrtion. Indeed, such images have often been
misread in modem timcs by those who ascribe
an crotic aspcct to them and who viewcd the
sexual syrnbolisn.r underlying many of thc basic
concepts as degcnerate. Rather than being
intcnded as erotic works, such images express
the basic principle of the duality within the
unity of the universal that is a basic themc of
much religious symbolism in India. Sexually
explicit images and the rituals associated with
them were kept secret to Protect from danger
thosc individuals who might bc ill-prepared to
runder takc these practiccs wil]rolrl ProPer trrinilrg
and initiation. The incorrect usc ofthese practices
held thc very real possibility of severe psycho-
logical or rnoral damage and many would
ers i l y lose thc i r wry . r long th r ' Pr t l r i f no t
deterred.An itrage such as this would have been handed
down from mastcr to disciple, fiom generation
ro generalion. as cach tcacher [c]t -r ncw init iate
was ready to acccpt thc teachings. It is ofinterest
that in the Buddhist context, an imagc that had
belongcd to a series of iilustrious teachers is
consicicrcd to bc of tntrcll grcrter importance
than one that has only aesthctic appeai. This
vicwpoint does not dcny an interest in tl.re
visual n.rerits of a work, for it is known that
artists were sought out arrd praised for thc
quality of their creations. Yet it can be inferred
fiorn the traditional histories associated rvith
devotional objects in countries whcre Buddhisn.r
is still practiced today that the illrportance of a
rcligious image cven at an early dete in ancient
Lndia was bascd primarily on its sPiritual $'orth.
Parqa(abari, t fcnale ktodhdkaya deity, is also
an enunation of Aksobhya. Gencraily, she is
depicted as a stout, dwerflikc figtte. An in.rage
of Parnaiabari of the eleventh century from
rs.rj. Parnaiaben. From Vikramapura, Bangladesh.Pala period. Ca. eleventh ccntury. Black stone H: rrzcrn. Dacca Museum, Dacca.
Vikramapura, an ancient capital city and rnajor
art center near present-day Dacca (Dhaka) in
Bangladesh, closely follows the textual descrip-
tion of thc goddess given in the Sadhanamala in
her six arms, three faces, garment rnade of leavcs
and the attributes held in her hands, including
the 'ajra, cluster of leaves, and bow (Fig. r8.r5).
She tramples on personifications of uighnas
(obstacles) and holds her front left hand in
tarjanT nu&a, a threatening gesture, as if ad-
monishing other t'ighnas. In spite of her own
terrifying appearance, suggested by her bulging
eyes, bared fangs, and flan.relike l.nir, worship
of Parna6abari is said to remove the Gar of the
terror stricken.
Judging frorn the abundant remains of metal
ilnages dating from the Pala and Sena periods,
the Bihar and Bengal regions rnust have been
important centers of metal image production.
.:.r:
t:;i r '
a ' ;::i