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178
Lalit Kumar
It has been observed that a number of images of Maitreya in the early Kusana period have been reported from Mathura; though, Avalokitesvara has been regarded as the earliest known Bodhisattva.
The sculptures of Maitreya are also quite common and had been the most popular Bodhi-attva in Gandhara. 15 There are also examples of Avalokitesvara from Gandbara but these are ascribed to a late period16 when the iconography was fairly evolved.
The answer to this problem possibly lies in the socio-religious condition of the period and in the early Mahayanist philosophy. When Miss Getty says, "He (Avalokitesvara) soon became the most popular of the Northern Buddhist gods, being looked upon a representative of the Buddhist faith untill Maitreya should appear on earth as Mănuşi Buddha". Further she' adds, "Another reason for his popularity is that he is believed to have created the fourth world, which is the actual universe and he is therefore our creator".17 Her observations hold good for Gupta period and thereafter when many images of Avalokitesvara were given shape, 18 Had he been popular why his images are scarce and lesser in quantity than images of Maitreya in the Pre-Gupta phase of Indian iconogrphy. This fact certainly poses a vexing problem to the students of Buddhist iconography.
REFERENCES
Agrawala, V. S., Studies in Indian Art (Varanasi, 1965), P. 140. 2. Bhattacharya, B., The Indian Buddhist Iconography, (Calcutta, 1958), p. 143.
3. Saraswati, S. K., Tantrayan Art-An Album, (Calcutta, 1975). P. XXVI: Getty, Alice. The Gods of the Northern Buddhism, (First Indian Edition), (New Delhi 1978), p. 57.
4. Bhattacharya, B., op. cit., p. 49. The name of Dhyant Buddha Amitabha has been found mentioned for the fist time in Sukhavati-Vyaha or Amitayus-sutra a work which was translated in Chinese during 147-170 A. D. (Agrawala, V. S. op-cit. p. 140). 5. Sharma R. C.; "New Baddhist Sculpture from Mathra" Lalit Kala. No. 19, pp. 25-26, pl. XLII, fig. 18.
6. Bhattacharya, B., op cit., p. 124; Getty, Alice. op. cit. p. 56 7. Vogel. J. Ph. The Catalogue of Archaeological Museum at Mathura, (Allahabad. 1910), p. 38.
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