Eight Great Events from the Life of the Buddha
An item at Art Institute of Chicago
Narrative events are depicted on all sides of this stele. A miniaturized scene at the lower left of the base, below the central Buddha's feet, shows his miraculous birth from his mother's side. Above this is the Buddha's descent from heaven, where he went to preach to his dead mother, and farther up, the moment of his enlightenment, with his proper right hand touching the earth to witness. The upper left scene depicts his first sermon at the Deer Park in Sarnath. On the right side are scenes representing the miracles that the Buddha performed at Shravasti, including the gift of honey from a monkey—shown in miniature at the lower right corner of the platform near his gift-giving hand—and the Buddha's taming of a wild elephant, by his left foot. The scene of the parinirvana tops the stele: the Buddha's life flame is extinguished as he reaches nirvana.
Buddhism and Buddhist Art
An exhibit at Art Institute of Chicago
One of the world's major religions, Buddhism has inspired an immense amount of art. Much of it directs our attention toward meditation and toward the life and teachings of the Buddha Shakyamuni ("sage of the Shakya clan"). In the 5th century BC, his exposure to profound human suffering prompted his transformation from the sheltered Prince Siddhartha into an enlightened being and teacher. He preached a code of moral conduct to escape the cycle of pain and rebirth. Upon the Buddha's passage into nirvana, his followers placed his remains in large hemispherical mounds (stupas) that were adorned with stories of his life. Examples of such narrative sculptures can be seen in this gallery, including The Birth and First Seven Steps of the Buddha on the adjacent wall. Buddhism spread from its early centers in eastern India through the northwestern Gandharan region (present-day Pakistan and Afghanistan), into Central Asia and China, Korea, and Japan. It grew in complexity and scope, influencing the art and iconography of these regions. From the 3rd century BC, the religion expanded southward to Sri Lanka and, eventually, across the seas to the rest of Southeast Asia. When Buddhist monasteries and universities were destroyed in eastern India around the 12th century, monks migrated northward into Kashmir and Tibet, carrying with them sacred scriptures and images. The life story and representations of the Buddha have continued to evolve as they now inspire veneration across the globe.