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The Role of Buddhist Painting in the Development of Modern Art
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of mankind and compassion replaced wisdom as receiving the greater emphasis.
The three chief Bodhisattvas of the Mahayana Buddhism are Manjusri, Avalokitesvara and Vajrapani. They form a triad corresponding to the Hindu triad of Brahma, Vishnu, Shiva and each has his shakti or consort. Another Bodhisattva, a kindly one is Maitreya, who is the Buddha to be. The central concept of Mahayana Buddhism is the worship of Adi- Buddha, a self-created primordial being who, when all was perfect void, produced the three worlds by his meditation. From AdiBuddha's meditation were produced the five Dhyani Buddhas. According to this doctrine, the individual soul is an emanation of the mystic substance of Adi- Buddha and will return to him when cycle of transmigration is complete. The historical Buddha was distinguished from the Adi-Buddha and the Dhyani Buddhas. He was clearly deified and appeared in this great pantheon as a supreme god. In the re-edited form of Buddhism, Buddha ceased to be the teacher and was slowly transformed into a transcendental God head with the recognition of the Buddha as a God, the only proper approach to him was through Bhakti and so art, in all its form became as means of adoration and glorification of this new God head. It grew and flourished as the god head became more and more popular.
With the rise of the Gupta dynasty in the fourth century, the Indian sculpture entered a new epoch'. The Gupta period witnessed glory and greatness in every branch of national life. Plastic art reached a stage of beauty and completeness, it never had before. A style was evolved which combined the various elements of earlier Indian art traditions, eliminating or modifying features which indicated foreign origin. There emerged an element of refinement in the sculpture with a highly developed sense of rhythm and beauty. The artist guided by subline idealism carved out images, full of charm and dignity, irradiating a spiritual joy. The main interest of the Indian artist was the human form, and during this period, he succeeded in carving out a figure more graceful in proportion and more balanced than hitherto and also in investing it with the highest spiritual values. The indigenous art of making images of
1. Sculpture in India: its History & Art, p.19. 2. Ibid p.19.
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