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112
THE INDIAN ANTIQUARY
(MAY, 1922
As Mr. Sewell has pointed out, this particular the four men are standing at the four corners of the stone is carved in the cruder style of the older couch instead of behind it. Only one of the four is sculptures of the Amaravati Tope.
Armed; the queen lies on her right side as on our slab Unfortunately, the slab lacks a. corner, but and the four women slumber in the foreground. It otherwise it is well preserved. In the foreground is interesting to contrast the carving and grouping crouch three women in attitudes suggestive of on this slab, which is of the later Amaravati style, deep sloep, and the arm of the fourth is just visible with that of the Colombo example. near the edge of the stone. Facing these, and | Writing of it, Dr. Burgess says: "Scene very lying on her right side on a couch, is a woman. frequently represented. It reveals the bedchamber Behind the couch stand four men, one of whom is of Maha M&ya, the mother of Gautama the Buddha, armed with a long spear; two are unarmed, and on the night of her conception, with four femalo of the fourth only the left shoulder is visible. slaves in the foreground. She is represented asleep
There can be little doubt that this represents on her couch, and with four male figures at the the bedroom of Queen Mâyâ on the night of the corners of it who are the guardian Devas of the four conception of the Buddha.
quarters.—Vaiéråvana of the North, Virupaksha of According to the Jatuka, Mâyå, on the night of the West, Dhritarashtra of the East and Virudhaka Buddha's conception, saw in a dream the four of the South-whom she saw in her dream take up Gods of the cardinal points raise her couch and her couch and bear it to the Himalayas, where carry it to the Anawatapta lake where she bathed. I their queens bathed her at the Anâwatapta lake." She was then carried back again, and as she lay It is undoubtedly this scene which is portrayed on her couch, the Bodhisattva, descending in the
on our slab-the bedchamber of Queen Mahå Måyå form of an elephant, entered her right side.
just before her visit to the lake Anâwatapta. The traditional attitude of repose for Måyå at this
Other representations of the conception of moment was on her left side. So much so that in
Buddha which throw light on this subject are the the Candlare sculptures "in sculpture No. 251 in
following the Rawlinson Collection at Peshawar....the
(1) In Cunningham's Bharhut Stupa, Plate sculptor having placed the head to the left, has
XXVIII is representative of Mây Devi's been forood to draw the queen with her back to
Dream. She lies on her right side and an elethe spectator to avoid breaking the tradition"
phant is hovering above. Behind her head a (Spooner, Handbook to the Sculptures in the Peshawar
female attendant stands with hands raised in Museum, p. 6). And this case is not unique, since
prayer. Before her couch are two seated there is a small sculpture of the same period in
females, one with a chauri; both are apparently the Lahoro Museum which shows the quoen lying
asleep. On p. 83, paragraph 2, Cunningham on her left side with her back to the spectator.
says: "A white elephant of the Chhadanta The only exception to this rule which I have been
breed approached the princess in her sleep and ablo to find is on an old relief at Sânchi (Fergusson, appeared to enter into her womb by her right I'rec and Serpent Worship, Pl. XXXIII) where Mâyâ side." At p. 89 he says: "In Bharhut sculplies on her right side, the elephant hovering above. ture the princess is represented in the centre Possibly the tradition had not crystallised at that of the medallion sleeping quietly on her couch, early period.
with her right hand under her head, and her Tho Amarůvati sculptures, which show the scene left hand by her side. The position leaves her with the elephant, all show the queen in the same right side exposed." The Princess was obvi. traditional position, that is to say, lying on her
ously meant to be lying on her back. left side. Seo Forgusson, Tree and Serpent Worship, (2) In Tree and Serpent Worship. Pl. XXXIII, Pl. LXXIV, and Pl. XCI, 4, p. 232, which represents Right hand pillar of E. Gateway (p. 145), Suddhodana and his friends.
** Maya (is) asleep on the terrace of the palace, It is extremely unfortunate that our stone should
dreaming that a white elephant appeared to be broken at the top left hand corner, since had it
her and entered her womb." been perfect and shown no elephant, the identifi
(3) In Tree and Serpent Worship, Pl. LXXIV cation of the scene would have been simple.
Amaravati: Mâyâ is on her left side on a couch An Amaravati slab figured by Burgess (Amaravati the elephant far above her. Behind her a and Jaggayyapetta Stupas, Pl. XXVIII) resembles two women, and in front of her are five women the Colombo sculpture. The chief exception is that 4 gods are at each corner." i
1 [When preparing "India" for Hutchinson's illustrated History of the Nations, 1914, I drew Mr. R. B. Ogle's attention to the ancient sculptured representations of Maya's Dream as reproduced in the above books, and this caused him to draw the spirited illustration shown at p. 118 of that work, which to my mind adequately represents the scene as it presented itself to the imagination of the ancient artists.-ED.)
