Asian Art History - Quiz 1

toranas

gates at stupas that mark the 4 cardinal directions

yakshi/yaksha

female/male earth spirits (fertility figures)

India

the nation which was the birthplace of Buddhism and Hinduism

King Ashoka

chiefly responsible for the spread of Buddhism

stupa

-a Buddhist shrine

-circular mound-like structure housing the Buddha's remains or Buddhist relics

-an ancient form of mandala

circumambulate

how Buddhist worshipers move through the stupa, entering through one of its gateways to walk on the lower circular path before climbing stairs to walk around the second level in a clockwise direction

Buddhist iconography

the images and symbolic representations that are traditionally associated with the Buddhism or principles and ideas of Buddhism

jatakas

tales of the Buddha's past lives

karma

(Hinduism) the past good or bad actions of an individual which determine the nature of their future rebirths

Buddhism

-one of the major modern religions originating in Asia

-founded by the Buddha, who advocated self-discipline to free oneself from earthly attachments

Prince Siddhartha Gautama

-the Buddha

-eldest son of the king of the Shakya clan, born 563 BCE

urna

a circle of hair, usually symbolized as a dot, between the eyebrows of a Buddhist figure

Gandhara

area of Indo-Greek interaction, influential in the creation of Buddhist art

Bodhisattva

-a person who has attained enlightenment but who has postponed nirvana in order to help others achieve enlightenment; someone on the cusp of "Buddha-hood"

-the laughing Buddha is a pre-incarnate Bodhisattva; a symbol of good fortune

symbolism in Buddhist art

-deer (the Buddha's first sermon)

-wheels (the four noble truths of the law: life is suffering, the cause of suffering is desire, one can overcome desire, this can be done by following the eight-fold path)

-lotus flower (emergence from murky water to display beauty above the water; represents achieving Enlightenment)

Ashoka's wheel

depicted in the flag of India

Ajanta Caves

rock-cut Buddhist monuments in India which contain the oldest best-preserved wall paintings

Avalokitesvara

bodhisattva who embodies the compassion of all Buddhas ("Lord who looks down")

Maitreya

a Buddha (or bodhisattva) expected to appear on earth in the future; "pre-Buddha"

nirvana

"cessation", the escape from the cycle of birth, death, and rebirth by merging one's individual self into the vital force of the universe

viharas

monasteries; celled structures where monks live

Mathura

-City where early images of Buddha were sculpted

-statues were similar to the Indian portrayals of yakshas

-Regional school of Buddhist sculpture during the Gupta Period

-Round faces, full lips, broad noses, transparent robe material (seemingly a combination of Mathura and Gandhara styles)

-Drapery: series of regular strings hanging over the body

-Standing Buddha from Mathura, Gupta Period, Mahayana Buddhism, 4th century CE, red sandstone

Dvaravati

An early Mon buddhist culture that influenced the present time thailand

sukhothai

one of the earliest thai kingdoms and was also located in northern thailand. Was important because they promoted theravada buddhism

Lost wax technique

A method that was used to create sculptures by molding a wax model and then filling it with metal

Dharmaraja

A title that kings used to justify their right to be king

Pagan

the pagan kingdom was located in myanmar and helped promote buddhism and also holds a huge amount of buddhist temples, stupas, and monestaires

Nat

spirits where most were humans that had died in a cruel or unfair way and they were also used to help spread buddhism since they were the local spirits

Anawrahta

The founder of the pagan empire and also played a big role in promoting Buddhism

Shin Arahan

The chief monk in the pagan empire, who played a huge role since hes the reason in why king anawrahta turned buddhist

Kyanzittha

King anawrahtas adopted son who overthrew his biological son for the throne. was important because he helped spread/promote buddhism and also helped with the creation of major buddhist manuments

lacquer

sap that was used as a protective coating on crafts/items