Dietrich Seckel
Autor(a) de The Art of Buddhism
About the Author
Obras de Dietrich Seckel
Etiquetado
Conhecimento Comum
There is no Common Knowledge data for this author yet. You can help.
Membros
Resenhas
You May Also Like
Associated Authors
Estatísticas
- Obras
- 8
- Membros
- 113
- Popularidade
- #173,161
- Avaliação
- 3.3
- Resenhas
- 2
- ISBNs
- 8
- Idiomas
- 1
Early Buddhist art was narrative art. During Buddhism's first centuries, the Buddha's presence and teachings were represented by such non-figurative forms as the lotus, wheel, Bodhi tree, the empty throne, footprints, wheel atop a column and other combinations. Many of these symbols predated Buddhism: the elephant of his mother Maya's dream was already associated with life-giving forces, the lion was already an imperial symbol, the wheel "long before it becomes the symbol of Doctrine and the First Sermon" a sun wheel, and the lotus as the seat of divine beings, for example. In short, "Buddha's life [was] shown in pictures of his birth, the attack of Mara, the First Sermon, his entry into Nirvana" (p. 19). Each of these symbols is discussed in length in this thin (107 pages) but excellent volume, and important symbols such as the stupa, footprints, the wheel and the tree are covered extensively.
Then came a transitional period during which the aniconic symbols and the iconic image existed simultaneously, "side by side" as Seckel writes. Moreover, the old aniconic forms didn't disappear as images of the Buddha became more and more common, but retained their meaning, and even gained new, deepened meanings with the development of Mahayana and Vajrayana Buddhism, adding more symbols such as the vajra, mandala, words, letters and sounds. But readers should be aware that this is not a "what" book but a "why" book. It's an excellent companion to (not a replacement) of, say, Reading Buddhist Art or Buddhist Art: An Illustrated Introduction.
Such chapters raise the old question of how can one reconcile Buddhism's rich artistic visual history with its focal point "the Nothingness of Nirvana, which transcends all phenomena" (p. 7). The final chapters and particularly the last, entitled "Zen Symbols", addresses this question. As Seckel summarizes: "the ultimate goal of Zen art is the No-Longer-Symbol: the empty picture, the 'picture' as emptiness, the shapeless shape, the 'thundering silence'."
"Before and Beyond the Image" is a well-chosen title; moreover, it hints at the fact that many readers will find themselves pondering long "beyond the last page" some of the ideas and questions found within on the very paradox of Buddhist art.… (mais)