Vishal Nath Indian Art and Architecture, School of Arts and Aesthetics, Jawaharlal Nehru University.
Interconnectedness between Lotus, Pillar, Tree and Serpent in early Indian Art.
In this essay, I am trying to locate the interconnectedness between the four most depicted symbols or beings in Indian art. They are the pillar, lotus, tree and the serpent. As I see each symbol has its long origin and myth surrounding its existence. One difficulty that one encounters while trying to go through the paintings or sculptures related to the myths around these symbols is the Myth surrounding that particular symbol. There are so many myths according to different geographies, religions which tend to fall into folklore myths. …show more content…
It represents the place of Buddha’s enlightenment, when Buddha went and sat at Bodhgaya. It represents growth towards liberation therefore it is also sacred developmentally. In one of the famous relief where depiction of Siddhartha’s born is depicted we see his mother Mayadevi with Siddhartha near a tree and we see the tree spirit coming out piercing the tree to offer her respect to the child the divine child. As bodhi tree is one of the earliest Buddhist symbols and object of reverence, according to some Buddhists, people asked Buddha whom should they pay respect to when he is absent and Buddha replied they should pay their respect to the Bodhi
Interconnectedness between Lotus, Pillar, Tree and Serpent in early Indian Art.
In this essay, I am trying to locate the interconnectedness between the four most depicted symbols or beings in Indian art. They are the pillar, lotus, tree and the serpent. As I see each symbol has its long origin and myth surrounding its existence. One difficulty that one encounters while trying to go through the paintings or sculptures related to the myths around these symbols is the Myth surrounding that particular symbol. There are so many myths according to different geographies, religions which tend to fall into folklore myths. …show more content…
It represents the place of Buddha’s enlightenment, when Buddha went and sat at Bodhgaya. It represents growth towards liberation therefore it is also sacred developmentally. In one of the famous relief where depiction of Siddhartha’s born is depicted we see his mother Mayadevi with Siddhartha near a tree and we see the tree spirit coming out piercing the tree to offer her respect to the child the divine child. As bodhi tree is one of the earliest Buddhist symbols and object of reverence, according to some Buddhists, people asked Buddha whom should they pay respect to when he is absent and Buddha replied they should pay their respect to the Bodhi