Indian and South-East Asian Art
Professor A. D’Ascoli
Indian Civilization
• 2500 – 1550 BCE Indus Valley & Saraswati
Civilizations – built cities of Mohenjo-Daro and
Harappa
• 1500 BCE – Hinduism develops
• 1000 – 600 BCE – Vedic Period (Aryan Migrations)
• 8th century BCE – Caste system is firmly established
• 6th – 5th centuries BCE – Jainism and Buddhism appear
• 563 – 483 BCE – Life of Gautama Buddha
• 550 BCE – Vedas are written down by the Aryans
Indian Civilization
• 326 BCE – Alexander the Great invades India
• 324 – 301 BCE – Chandragupta Maurya rules
and establishes an Indian Empire (established by
Alexander as ruler in his name)
• 269 – 232 BCE – Ashoka rules – Buddhism
spreads
• 250 BCE – Sarnath is made capital of India
• 1st century BCE – Bhagavad Gita is written
(One of Hindu Holy Books)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PA3tXytB4
08
Caste System
• Indian society is divided into 4 distinct classes or castes:
• (1) Brahmins – priests, leaders, seers and religious
authorities;
• (2) Kshatriyas – originally the kings and warriors of the
ancient past, now they are the administrators,
politicians and civil authorities;
• (3) Vaishyas – businessmen, merchants, traders,
doctors, lawyers, teachers, etc.; and
• (4) Shudras – they are the laborers, the servant class.
• However, even beneath the Shudras are the Outcastes –
called the ‘untouchables’ – these are members of Indian
society who fall outside of any of the castes and are
therefore avoided by members of the other classes
completely
Indian Civilization
• 4 Major religions exist in India today – 3 which
are indigenous
• Jainism
• Buddhism
• Muslim
• Hinduism
Indian Religions - Hinduism
• Origins are unknown (1500 – 500 BCE)
• Hindu derives from Sanskrit word for Indus
River
• Hindu worship focuses on a pantheon of gods
who personify the forces of nature (not an
historical person or prophet)
• At the center of the Hindu religion is the idea of
Brahman – the indivisible essence of all spiritual
reality, the divine source of all being
Indian Religions - Hinduism
• Brahman’s 3 functions are divided into 3 gods:
• (1) Brahma – the creator – not the same as
Brahman;
• (2) Vishnu – the preserver; and
• (3) Shiva – the destroyer.
Brahman: Essence of Reality
He is not ultimate reality
because he can be visualized.
Brahma’s life span = each day is
1000 times the whole of human
history.
The world will end with the
appearance of Vishnu and is about
4000 years from now.
Indian Religions - Hinduism
• The idea of kharma is also central to Hindi thought
• Kharma means action, however the concept of kharma
involves moral cause and effect (you get what you put
out)
• People’s accumulation of these moral actions will
determine the form in which he or she will reincarnate
• Because of this people’s current condition (poor,
deformed, etc) is believed to have been caused by your
previous misuse of your earlier existence
• Ancient Hindu society reflects these religious beliefs in
their caste system.
9 Basic Hindu Beliefs
• Hindus believe in a one, all-pervasive Supreme Being who is
both immanent and transcendent, both Creator and Unmanifest
Reality.
• Hindus believe in the divinity of the four Vedas, the world's
most ancient scripture, and venerate the Agamas as equally
revealed. These primordial hymns are God's word and the
bedrock of Sanatana Dharma, the eternal religion.
• Hindus believe that the universe undergoes endless cycles of
creation, preservation and dissolution.
• Hindus believe in karma, the law of cause and effect by which
each individual creates his own destiny by his thoughts, words
and deeds.
9 Basic Hindu Beliefs
• Hindus believe that the soul reincarnates, evolving through many births until
all karmas have been resolved, and moksha, liberation from the cycle of
rebirth, is attained. Not a single soul will be deprived of this destiny.
• Hindus believe that divine beings exist in unseen worlds and that temple
worship, rituals, sacraments and personal devotionals create a communion
with these devas and Gods.
• Hindus believe that an enlightened master, or satguru, is essential to know the
Transcendent Absolute, as are personal discipline, good conduct, purification,
pilgrimage, self-inquiry, meditation and surrender in God.
• Hindus believe that all life is sacred, to be loved and revered, and therefore
practice ahimsa, noninjury, in thought, word and deed.
• Hindus believe that no religion teaches the only way to salvation above all
others, but that all genuine paths are facets of God's Light, deserving
tolerance and understanding.
•
Hinduism
• http://indianterrorism.bravepages.com/hinduex
tremismup.htm
• http://www.pakistankakhudahafiz.com/2011/0
3/30/hindu-extremism-and-christianpersecution-in-india/
THE TWO MOST POPULAR
GODS
SHIVA
VISHNU
Avatars of Vishnu
Krishna
Rama
Goddesses
Lakshmi
Saraswati
Kali
 Wife of Shiva
Black in color & wearing a
necklace of skulls.
She is a bloodthirsty
goddess.
A violent destroyer of her
enemies
affectionate and caring for
her devotees.
.
The Ganges River
Falling from
its source of
Vishnu’s feet
onto Shiva’s
head and out
from his hair,
the water of
the Ganges is
sacred enough
to purify all
sins.
Indian Religions - Jainism
• The ultimate goal of Jainism is the same as in
Buddhism and Hinduism – which is the escape from
the cycle of samsara (the transmigration of the soul
(reincarnation)
• Jainism, more than any other Indian religion, focuses
on self-reliance and responsibility for one’s own fate
• Jainism is a very ethical faith – it emphasizes virtue,
self-control and non-violence to all life forms
Indian Religions - Buddhism
• The historical Buddha was born Siddharta Gautama
Sakya (563 – 483 BCE) and was a prince of a kingdom
in the foothills of the Himalayas, in present day Nepal.
He is also known as Sayakamuni (the sage)
• He achieved enlightenment and then traveled the
countryside preaching and educating others on the path
to enlightenment.
• He taught the importance of the Middle Path –
rejecting both extremes – those of asceticism which
only weakens the mind and the body and indulgence
which obstructs wisdom
Indian Religions - Buddhism
• Buddha set forth the Four Noble Truths and Eightfold
Path of the dharma (religious truth or law)
• The 4 Noble truths are:
• (1) Life consists of suffering, impermanence,
imperfection and incompleteness;
• (2) the cause of life’s suffering is selfishness;
• (3) Suffering and selfishness can be brought to an end;
• (4) The answer to life’s problems of suffering is the
eightfold Path.
Indian Religions - Buddhism
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The Eightfold path consists of:
(1) knowledge of the 4 Noble Truths;
(2) right aspiration to the goal of enlightenment (nirvana);
(3) right speech that is honest and charitable;
(4) right conduct – no drinking, killing, lying or having lust;
(5) right living according to the goals of Buddhism;
(6) right effort;
(7) right thinking with a focus on self-awareness; and
(8) right use of meditation to achieve enlightenment.
Buddhism - extremists
• http://www.compassdirect.org/english/country
/bangladesh/17879
• http://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/bu
ddhist_extremists_brutally_attack_catholic_chur
ch_in_sri_lanka/
Great bath
Mohenjo-daro
Pakistan
2600-1900 B.C.E.
Oldest South East Asian city
Robed Male Figure
from Mohenjo-daro, Pakistan
ca. 2000-1900 B.C.E.
steatite
6 7/8 in. high
Indian Art
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Indus Valley Seals
3000 – 1500 BCE
Indus Valley, India
Cared in intaglio
(negative relief)
• Written language that is
still undeciphered above
animal designs
Indian Art
• Ganesha
• 12th century CE
• Southern Deccan Karnataka,
India
• From Hoyshala Period when
Hinduism was enjoying a
resurgence
• Ganesha is a Hindu god that
is associated with playfulness
and prosperity
Indian Art
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Lion Capital
250 BCE
Sarnath, India
Mauryan era – erected by
Ashoka to mark a place
of significance to the
Buddha
• As lions are powerful
animals – so Buddha was
a powerful teacher
Indian Art
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Great Stupa
3rd century BCE
Sanchi, India
The stupa is the central
symbol of the Buddhist
faith ( a temple)
• These stupa contain
relics of the Buddha
• 60 ft in diameter and 25
ft high
Indian Art
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Gate of the Great Stupa
3rd – 1st centuries BCE
Sanchi, India
The gate is inscribed and
carved with tales from
the life of the Buddha as
well as stories from the
epic Jataka tales
• Over 30 feet high – there
are 4 in total
Great Stupa - detail
Sanchi, India
first century B.C.E. to first century C.E.
Chaitya Hall
Karle, India
ca. 100 C.E.
Chaitya Hall
Karle, India
ca. 100 C.E.
halo of enlightenment
ushnisha
urna
elongated ears
mudra
chakra
prana
Seated Buddha
from Mathura, India
2nd century C.E.
red sandstone
27 1/2 in. high
Indian Art
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Seated Buddha
2nd – 3rd century CE
Peshawar District, Pakistan
From Kushan era
The Kushans are credited
with creating the first
anthropomorphic icons of
the Buddha
• Greco-Roman influences in
robe
Indian Art
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Standing Buddha
4th – 5th century CE
Mathura, India
Gupta Period work of art
The Buddha stands in
calm serenity
• Robe is sheer breaking
from Greco-Roman
traditions
Indian Art
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Boshisattva Padmapani
5th century CE
Ajanta Caves, India
Gupta period painting
The serenity in his face
reflects compassion
• Painted in the traditional
tribhanga pose (Standing
figure with a slightly s-curved
body, weight shifted to one
leg)
Indian Art
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Kandariya Mahadeo Temple
1025 – 1050 CE
Khajuraho, India
The largest tower is over 100
feet tall
• There are 84 smaller towers
• Placed on a masonry
platform to add to its height
and promote its majesty
• Full of erotic relief sculpture
Indian Art
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Taj Mahal
Agra, India
1630 -1648 CE
This is actually a
mausoleum
• Built by Shah Jahan as a
tribute to his wife
Mumatz Mahal
• Islamic influence is
clearly seen here
Indian Art
• Shiva Nataraja (Lord of the
Dance)
• 11th – 12th century CE
• Chola, India
• This is probably the most
famous of Indian icons
• Shiva symbolizes both the
creative and destructive
forces in the universe
• A ring of fire surrounds him
as his hair flies out in both
directions
Indian Art
• Tirumala Sri
Venkateswara
• 16th century CE
• Tirupati, India
• Temple complex
covers over 2 acres of
land
Indian Art
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Sabarimala Temple
800-1000 CE
Kerala, India
Series of Pilgrimage
Temples where strict
rules must be followed to
enter
• Only men, women in
menopause over 50 or
girls under 10 are
allowed inside
Indian Art
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Akshradham Temple
2005 CE
Delhi, India
Built to represent the
Hindu religion in
allegory
• 141 feet high
Indian Art
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Lotus Bah’ai Temple
1986
Delhi, India
Home of the Ba’hai faith
in India
• Built to represent a Lotus
flower
• In Ba’hai faith all
religions are welcome to
come and worship god in
whatever form
Indian Art
• Golden Temple (Hari
Mandir)
• 1581-1606 CE
• Amritsar, India
• A spot where the
Buddha and several
Gurus used to meditate,
it was formerly a small
rock in a lake surrounded
by a forest
Indian Erotic Art
Indian Erotic Art
Southeast Asian Art
Bamayan Buddhas (destroyed)
Bamayan, Afghanistan
3rd century C.E.
150 feet tall
Bamayan Buddhas (destroyed)
Bamayan, Afghanistan
3rd century C.E.
150 feet tall
Death of the Buddha (Parinirvana)
Gal Virhara, Sri Lanka
11th - 12th century C.E.
Cosmic Mountain
Borobudur, Java, Indonesia
ca. 800 C.E.
400 ft. wide
Angkor, Cambodia
12th century C.E.
Angkor Wat
Angkor, Cambodia
12th century C.E.
Angkor Wat
Angkor, Cambodia
12th century C.E.
Towers of the Bayon
Angkor Thom, Cambodia
12th to 13th centuries C.E.
Towers of the Bayon
Angkor Thom, Cambodia
12th to 13th centuries C.E.
Bagan. Bagan, Myanmar (formerly Burma): Ancient
temples and pagodas, including Sunset Temple (1057).
1057-1287.
16 square miles.
The End . ..
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