|
|
|
August 10, 2003
Review: Be your own light
IT IS an irony of fate that a person who was neither a theist nor an atheist nor an agnostist was converted into a divine being after his death. In his lifetime he never preached any faith, religious doctrine, rituals or dogma. If anything, he vehemently opposed image-worship. That was Gautama Buddha. But posthumously all that he had fought against in his life came to be associated with him, courtesy his followers. Thus every Pagoda (temple) today is adorned with thousands of statues of Buddha — first of these having been built in the first century AD at Gandhara.
Prior to this, the image of the founder of Buddhism was never represented in his worship. Symbols, such as a lotus, wheel, a pair of footprints or an empty seat, signified his presence. The idea of making his images originated from the Greeks who had a long tradition of sculpting images of their god. The Greeks modelled the early images on their own god Apollo. In due course of time the practice spread to the rest of the subcontinent and the images of Hindu gods came to be developed.
Thus was born the Buddhist Gandhara art, the subject of the book under review. The prince-philosopher, Buddha (meaning the enlightened one) was born in Kapilavastu in 623 BC. Later, he was called Siddharta (desire accomplished). Buddhism was not a religion but a philosophy of life. According to the orthodox school, Buddha was not a god but an inspired teacher who preached the middle path between indulgence and asceticism in quest of ultimate deliverance from the cycles of suffering in life.
As myths and legend emerged with the passing of time more and more images were fabricated and Buddha was turned into divinity. Like any other religion, his devotees and followers buried the real Buddha beneath a mass of legends and myths after his death. At the same time, a very powerful lobby of Hindu Brahmins, whose supremacy had been challenged by Lord Buddha, drove out Buddhism from the subcontinent.
From his deathbed Buddha had advised, “Decay is inherent in all component things. Work out your salvation with diligence. Be your own light.”
Buddha’s simple teachings without any rituals and dogmas attracted the people of the subcontinent and beyond, especially those fettered in a caste-ridden society. From Nalanda (Bihar) to Taxila (NWFP), both seats of higher learning, the followers of Buddha worked to spread his message. Coming largely from commercial classes, these adherents had wealth to undertake the construction of gigantic stupas and monasteries all over the subcontinent. Sculptors were enlisted to display the glory of Buddha and the legends linked to his birth and life became the subject matter of their artistic expression.
In the northwestern regions, the impact of Greece and Rome gave birth to a hybrid art and architecture rich in Buddhist imagery, called the Gandhara art.
The author of the book under review, Ihsan H. Nadiem, museologist, archeologist and historian, is a scholar of international repute. The author of over half-a-dozen highly acclaimed books, Nadiem, gives an account of the history of Gandhara, the life of Buddha and his teachings, and Gandhara art and architecture. In a few pages and in fascinating style, he encapsules the history of the land, as he highlights all the important events and ruling dynasties.
The writer’s research is painstaking and thorough. The beautifully printed prestigious book with coloured photographs has one major drawback: it has no index.
Buddhist Gandhara: History, Art and Architecture
By Ihsan H. Nadiem
Sang-e-Meel Publications, 20 Shahrah-i-Pakistan, Lahore. Tel: 042-7220100
Email: smp@sang-e-meel.com
ISBN 969-35-1408-4
104pp. Rs1,000
|
|
|
|
