Louis J Sheehan - 83327 - smile 4.smi.001 Louis J. Sheehan, Esquire

Thursday, February 19, 2009 - 2:16 PM

When the Taliban blasted the Buddha statues in Afghanistan they were destroying statues from the 6th century that had been carved into sandstone cliffs where thousands of Buddhist monks once lived. The destruction of the Bamyan Buddhas infuriated those in the west because of the obvious: it was an affront to the idea of religious freedom and they were acts of vandalism on priceless artifacts. I think there's more to it, though. I think even to those of us from Judeao-Christian backgrounds the Buddha wears a calm, benevolent face that provides comfort. I know it does for me. Part of this is because even in his innumerable renditions, there is something familiar... or maybe it's the smile. http://louiscjcsheehan.blogspot.com

Bodhisattva at the National Museum, Delhi, India
CC Hyougushi at Flickr.com.

In "Buddhas and Bodhisats," Parnassus, Vol. 12, No. 2 (Feb., 1940), pp. 26-30+51, B. A. de V. Bailey describes some of the aspects of the iconography of the Buddha. He says the first known effigies of the Buddha come from about 100 B.C., centuries after the death of Siddharta. These are at the north Indian site of Mathura, but it wasn't until the Gupta era (320-600 A.D.) that the Buddha developed as a religious symbol. The Buddha may be standing or seated. In "the seated adamantine pose", his legs are locked together with both feet visible and the soles turned upwards. Hands may be in the dhyana (meditation pose) or abhaya mudra (protection gesture). Long ear lobes were weighted down by earrings in early representations, but by later came to symbolize wisdom. You can see this in the image to the right.

The hair is usually cut short with curls over the head, as shown in the image to the left. This may show that Prince Siddharta cut his long hair when he renounced his patrimony. There is a projection on the skull called the ushnisha where the soul is supposed to be located. http://louiscjcsheehan.blogspot.com There is usually a tuft of hair (urna) that indicates predestination to enlightenment. Buddha usually wears a garment over his left shoulder with the fabric in stylized folds and a bare right shoulder. To learn about the way these garments were draped, see: "Prolegomena to the Study of the Buddha's Dress in Chinese Sculpture," by A. B. Griswold. Artibus Asiae, Vol. 26, No. 2 (1963), pp. 85-131.http://louiscjcsheehan.blogspot.com

For more on the iconography of the Buddha, see:
"The Problem of Proportion and Style in Indian Art History," by John F. Mostelle. Art Journal, Vol. 49, No. 4, New Approaches to South Asian Art (Winter, 1990), pp. 388-394.
"A Long Roll of Buddhist Images. III," by Helen B. Chapin and Alexander C. Soper. Artibus Asiae, Vol. 32, No. 4 (1970), pp. 259-289+291-306.

I must admit I started out to answer the question of why an ascetic like the Buddha would wind up depicted with the proverbial "Buddha belly". Unverified Internet searches suggest it may be a function of Chinese Buddhism, but Chinese Buddhas are not always fat and I don't think Indian-Nepali Buddhas are always thin.

Do you know about the sculptural representations of the

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