Aja Tā Iconography and Chronology

Ajat Iconography and Chronology Author(s): Sheila L. Weiner Source: East and West, Vol. 26, No.
3/4 (September - December 1976), pp. 343-358 Published by: Istituto Italiano per l'Africa e l'Oriente (IsIAO) Stable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/29756316 . Accessed: 22/01/2014 13:50
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Ajanta
Iconography and Chronology

by Sheila L. Weiner
This article is part of a larger study of the origins and development of the art of
Ajant? that examines three interrelated aspects of that art: its historic context, its icon?
ography in relation to doctrinal changes, and its stylistic development (*). The basic argument of the overall study is thatwhile no one of these aspects can conclusivelyprovide us with the key toward understanding the internal chronologyof the caves or the relationship of
the caves consistent to sites elsewhere, patterns. In these three aspects I attempt together to show this article, provide the how us with compatible elements and of iconographic
the art of Ajant? relate to the doctrinal dimensions of Buddhism. Viewed

ments and inscriptional evidence fall into place. Our
in relation to the development of Buddhist concepts, confusing stylistic ele?

intent here, however, is to deal
only with the iconographyand ground plans of Ajant? in juxtapositionto the development ofMah?y?na Buddhology. The purpose of this article then is to suggest that the ordering which in turn effected the development of the vih?ra ground plan. Or to put it another way, that the evolution of the ground plan of the vih?ra is a reflectionof changes in the
iconographic caitya per equal, but program se seems no longer of the Mah?y?na caves at Ajant? can to some extent be determined by iconographic changes
related. With
the development of the vih?ra shrine image, the primary importanceof the
to have superior, been relegated either to the image. to a lesser position, or to a position
or religious
practices
of the Buddhist
samgha.
The
two
are
inter?
To art historians,Ajant? is a key to understanding the development of Indian art: aesthetics and more with the evolution of Buddhism in India, the significanceof Ajant? is overwhelming. Old, transitional and new iconographicformsappear side by side. But art historians and Buddhologists alike. with not just the absolute but even the relative Students of Ajant? have long struggled chronologyof the site. Although there are two inscriptions adjacent to the fagades of caves XVI and XVII, respectively, which can by deduction be dated with reasonable cer? A.D., they cannot by themselves be used to tainty to the last quarter of the 5th century
its place in time, the influences upon it, and its influence in turn are most uncertain to its forms, its line, its architectural scheme and evolution. To those concerned less with
(*) S. L. Weiner, Ajant?: Its Place in Bud? dhist Arty Berkeley-Los Angeles, 1977 (forth
coming).
343
date
the entire excavation, if not most
or even
the whole
of the caves
to which
(fig. 1). The varied iconographicprograms and the unfinished or partly finished state of
many and other of the excavations, sites as well were excavated suggest in bits that the Mah?y?na and pieces, at Ajant?, Kanheri, irregularly, and at different times. caves
they most
closely
relate
Most revealing is an inscription which we find at N?sik on the fagade of cave XII, an unfinished vih?ra. The inscription which records the donations of Indr?gnidatta refers
to the inclusion of a catty a shrine the inscription inside the cave. predated begun. Obviously, must keep in mind when attempting to establish any sort of absolute date for excavations on the basis of inscriptions, or attempting to date a series of excavations on the basis of shrine, the excavation, ? The however, was an occurrence which just barely one
In the case of the inscriptionsadjacent to caves XVI and XVII at Ajant?, moreover, we are dealing with a so closely prescribed period of time in relation to such a distinct in relation to the few dated works of the 5th and 6th centuriesknown to us from related regions. Nothing in the area is specificallydated. In other words, we have no dated Western Gh?ts. Even ifwe disgregard regional differ? stylisticentry and exit point in the ences and look back to Udayagiri and a 401-415 date, then ahead to the dated images of
regional style that one can argue for a stylistic evolution either forward or back in time
specific
inscriptions.
473-6 fromS?rn?th, to caves XVI and XVII at Ajant?, and further to the 578 date of B?d?mi III, we are confrontedwith a stylisticpendulum. What we can glean then from archaeological, epigraphic and stylisticevidences is ob? viously limited. In and of themselves and in relation to one another, they fail to bring
order
ining the variety of forms and plans thatwe find at Ajant? in relation to what we know about the progression of Buddhist doctrine, however, apparent archaeological, stylistic and if not definitively. Ajant? is after all a Buddhist site! The changes in iconographyand ground plan with which we shall deal were neither limited to nor necessarily initiated at Ajant?. They are to be observed at other Buddhist sites and monuments as well. Their origins may be traced on the one hand, to N?g?rjunakonda, N?sik, Hadda and B?gh, and are related on the other, at N?sik, Kanheri, Aurang?b?d and Ellor?. to be on the very thresholdof Mah?y?na expression andmay be the first major site in India proper where that threshold is visually crossed. The evolution of the caityahall, the gradual trend toward the pre-eminenceof the Buddha image and the concomitant evolving ground plan of the vih?ra shrine appear at Ajant? in intermediarystages apparently bypassed at other sites. Two are of particularnote: 1) the caitya hall with a standingBuddha inscribed on the frontof the st?pa (fig. 4), and the combinationof a vih?ra shrinewith the image of
the Buddha at Ghatotkaca. in dharmacakra mudr? and Compared to other sites which are iconographically more advanced, Ajant? appears epigraphical inconsistencies seem to fall systematically into place ? cumulatively at least,
to the myriad
elements
of style, date
and meaning
of
the Ajant?
caves.
By
exam?
da ?sana) preceded by an antechamber (fig.5).
vajraparyanka
?sana
(as
Outside of Ajant?, this is to be found only
opposed
to pralambap?
344
The
tersonly. The area of worship was the caitya hall. The vih?ra shrine appeared later. Its earliest precursor is found at N?sik, in theGautamiputra vih?ra. There we find a st?pa flankedby worshipping figureshewn in high relief in the centre of the rearwall between was also to be found in theNahap?na two cell entries (fig. 6). Apparently, a similar relief
vih?ra. It was,
early
rock-cut
vih?ras
at Ajant?,
as elsewhere,
were
intended
as residential
quar?
We
on the fagade of cave XII know too from the Indr?gnidatta inscription
shrine at the rear of that cave as well (lbls).
however,
later
transformed
by Saiva worshippers
into a figure of Bhairava.
was that there and

at
to be a caitya where
If completed, cave XII would have foreshadowed the developments at Kud?

Mah?d, we find an astylar hall with between a recessed circumambulatory and hall. st?pa sanctuary
the rear and cells along thewalls. At Mah?d, in cave I, two unfinishedcolumns and a rough
the boundary the raised a kind sanctuary At Kud?, in cave I, of columns (2). These similarly separates in turn seem to be from the st?pa of rudimentary antechamber that we the forerunners of the type of configuration
rail demarcate a pair shrine
find at B?gh, where in cave 4, otherwise known as the Great Vih?ra, we find behind a large columned hall lined with cells, a recessed st?pa sanctuary (3). Similarly,at the rear of B?gh 2 we again find a caitya sanctuary. The sanctuary,however, is preceded by an antechamber (4). On each of the two lateralwalls of the antechamber,lining the path to the st?pa} is a standing image of the Buddha in varada mudr?, flankedby attendants (figs. 7, 8). The position of the Buddha and attendants in relation to the st?pa is obviously
subordinate.
we find in B?gh The conceptual, if not structural, prototype for the arrangementthat 2 may be traced to the configurationof site 6 at N?g?rjunakonda. Juxtaposed to the
Great apsidal St?pa was shrines a roofed mandapa in the centre, one than 25 by two structural air forecourt with fronted by an open a a votive st?pa and the other standing image housing and were proportionately of secondary
of the Buddha.
measured no more
The small apsidal halls were included in the vih?ra compound.

11 feet in entirety
Each
of which were standingBuddha figures flankedby attendants (fig. 2). In spite of the proliferation of Buddha images and, in time, the introductionof
importance to the Great St?pa (fig. 9). A structural prototype for the arrangementin cave 2 at B?gh may be found at theTepe Shutur site at Hadda in Afghanistan, datable to the 4th century (5). In the centre of the but extending from the rear northeast complex is a large st?pa adornedwith Buddha figures, corner is a shrine with the remains of a st?pa frontedby an antechamber along the walls
(ibis) j Fergusson, J. Burgess, Cave Temples of India, London, 1880, p. 270. (2) J. Burgess, Buddhist Cave Temples and Their Inscriptions, {Archaeological Survey ofWest? ern India, IV), London, 1883, pis. VII, IX. (3) J. Fergusson, History of Indian and Eastern Architecture, rev. ed. 1910, repr. Delhi, 1967, I, fig. 113, p. 198.
(4) Ibid., fig. 100, p. 182. ? Nouvelles fouilles (5) M. et Sh. Mostamindi, ? Hadda (1966-1967) par l'lnstitut afghan d'ar cheologie?, AA, XIX, 1969, pp. 23-24 [= Ch. Nouvelles fouilles a Hadda {1966 Moustamindi, 1967) (Direction Generale de TArcheologie, Mi nistere de la Culture et de Flnformation), Caboul, 1970, pp. 8-9].
345
Bodhisattva figuresduring the early centuries of the Christian era, it would appear from
the extant monuments that as late as the 5th century paramount
tributed to the st?pa which retained the central and most prominent position, if not in theminds of the general populace, at least in the samgha complex. As we know from the spectively, standing Buddha images were erected at each of the cardinal points in front of the st?pa (fig. 10); and in the Northwest the sides of the st?pa itselfwere usually
adorned with Buddha It seated Buddha and representations of the st?pas on the drum slabs from Amaravatl and N?g?rjunakonda re?
importance
was
still at?
ofHadda and B?gh 2 with their than supplanted the caitya. Conceptually, the antechambers
figures attendants, similarly augmented the funerary monument. is perhaps well known that the early texts eschewed representations of the Buddha. it is important, as noted by Etienne Lamotte, that even as late as the 5th century However, admonitions to the bhikkus refers to the care and upkeep of the funerary monuments
figures.
In each
instance,
however,
they supplemented
rather
we
find no mention in the P?li commentariesof Buddha shrines. Buddhaghosa, in his
{cetiyaghara), the assembly halls {uposathaghara) and residential quarters of the order (parivena) but says nothing about the shrine image (patim?ghara) (6).
as well as texts, the role of the Judging from the configuration of extant monuments was at in at Ajant? we the 5th century still ambiguous. least in the samgha, And image,
find evidence of this in the alternate compromise effectedby the inclusion of a standing image in abhaya mudr? sculpted on the frontof the st?pa in cave XIX, a solutionwhich in part may have been influencedby the use of Buddha images in theNorthwest to adorn the st?pas, and in part, by the example of the greatAmar?vatt and N?g?rjunakonda st?pas with their standing images at the four cardinal points. The remains of the front of the Tepe Shutur st?pa atHadda (fig. 11) suggests the possibility of an arrangementsimilar to that of the caitya in cave XIX on which the figure of the Buddha stands in high relief
between
makaras each mounted on top of one of the flankingcolumns (fig. 4). The frontportion of the caitya projects forward and the base like that of the Hadda st?pa is recessed in
successive somewhat stages. It is also offset on it thus recalls the other sides as well, and although its outline characteristic is of irregular, the peculiarity of the ?yaka projections
two engaged
columns
connected
by an
arch
springing
from
the mouth
of
two
theKrsn? Valley st?pas.

The total composition and
The design of the fagade of Ajant? cave XIX is particularly interesting and revealing.
of its parts are most reminiscent of the format of disposition the st?pa representations and N?g?rjunakonda. depicted on the drum slabs from Amar?vati a to discern basic horizontal-vertical unity to the organization Upon analysis it is possible
of the fagade of cave XIX that reflects the ordering of the composition of the represen? tational slabs. The underlyingunity of the fagade seems,however, to have been disrupted
(6) ?. Lamotte, Histoire du Bouddhisme In? dien, I, (Bibliotheque du Museon, 43), Louvain,
1958, pp. 703-4.
346
by iconographic innovations and changes which apparentlydiffered from the original plan,
and upon analysis account in part for its aesthetically and iconographically eclectic character.
of the design was verticallyvery simplydependent upon a central The basic symmetry axis established by the alignment of a single portal emphasized by a projecting porch sur?
mounted boyant flanked enframed by a superimposed in turn by an imposing caitya window almost flam? rises to a central pinnacle above the level of its own course and is arch which on each side by a dv?rap?la
suc? is four-partite. The elevation Each and dwarf. in is than the but each demar? shorter cessive layer is somewhat previous, height clearly course. The gallery and lowest course are clearly cated from the other by a horizontal on the st?pa the most represented significant, and most reminiscent of the configurations pinnacle retraces the dome of the st?pa. The balcony and projecting canopy of
slabs fromAmar?vati and N?g?rjunakonda. The outline of the caitya window with its
elaborate
XIX seem in general to be a rock-cut adaptation of the Krsn? Valley st?pa plan.
earlier, but similar type of transference may be seen on the fagade
the porch echo the lines of the ?yaka platform. The entrance from the outside frames the form of the Buddha image on the st?pa within, just as the gateway of the st?pa on the representationalslab encloses the central image (fig. 12). Similarly,the disposition of relief panels on either side of the entry corresponds to the succession of figuresdepicted to the left and rightof the gateway on the st?pa slabs. All in all, the fagade and st?pa of cave An
of the Gautamlputra
vih?ra at N?sik. Superimposed upon the frameof the door is a torana of the S?nchi type sculptured in relief (fig. 13).
At to have first glance an almost the fagade classic of cave XIX On closer appears, because of its symmetry and balance, however, one realizes that the examination,
of the design, so stronglyemphasized by the dominant verticals and hori? basic symmetry zontals,has in fact been mitigated by the composition of the Buddha figures to the left and rightof the entrance and on the side walls. Each half does not quite correspond to the other (figs. 14, 15).
The columns of the entrance and gallery, that is, the engaged columns to the
quality.
left and right of each of the dv?rap?la-bodhisattva figures, are almost identical to those that the archi? flankingthe image on the st?pa inside. There can be littledoubt, therefore,
tectural elements of the fagade too and interior are of the same period, of a Buddha despite the introduction
portico
of new motifs, for the disposition of guardian figures to the right and left of the caitya
arch is new. New is the introduction
of the dv?rap?la to the left of the arch (fig. 16), andwhat seems to be a st?pa in the crest of the figure to the right (fig. 17). Functionally, the dv?rap?las are descendants of the form and attributes seem to be additionally derived from Jambhala figures or P?ncika Kubera types, and in cave II at Ajant?, there is in fact a shrine to H?ritI and P?ncika.
guardian yaks as that are found on toranas and rails at older st?pa sites or caitya halls. Their
image in the crest of the head-dress
These dv?rap?la figuresguard the st?pa in the sameway as attendant figuresflankBuddha that images. Although he did not deal with the iconographicrelationship,it is significant
347
when discussing the attendant figures in cave I, M. N. Deshpande noted their stylistic affinityto the guardian figureson the fagade of XIX (7). On the level of the caityawindow, the fagade of cave XIX is perfectly symmetrical,
and on
is established by the disposition of the engaged columns. The symmetricalorganization of the lower level, however, is disturbed by the compositional arrangement of theBuddha is we It the columns. in this disarray that find a further in? figuresbetween engaged
cursion of new iconographical of the entrance elements.
the ground
level
to the right and
left of the entrance,
a perfect
architectural
balance
The two figuresof the Buddha with his rightarm extendedwhich appear immediately
to either side echo one another almost
and gesture recall the figures of the Buddha which appear to the left and rightof the rail entrance to the st?pa on theAmar?vati drum slab now in the British Museum (8). In gesture and stance they are reminiscent too of the figuresof theBuddha flankingthe ante?
chamber to the st?pa sanctuary at B?gh.
perfectly
and
in fact
in posture
Hovering, however, above each of the Buddha figures to the left and right of the entrance to cave XIX, although difficult to discern in photos, are vidy?dharas bearing a crown. On the left, the crown is directly above theBuddha's head, on the right it is off
centre. The
beneath the feet of the figureon the left has been added a horizontal platform clearly in?
tended base to separate it from the group mudr? which of three Buddha below. This figures seated on a simple clearly cushion an after? in dharmacakra appear lower group was
figure on
the right, moreover,
stands on an undifferentiated
rock base, whereas
thoughtor a later addition. It and the crown-bearingvidy?dharas as well as othermodifi? cations which destroy the symmetry of the fagade unmistakably too point to a sudden or later incursion of newly adopted iconographic motifs thatwere not part of the original scheme. Moving furtherto the left and right this same trend is evident in the difference
between the two
a d?goba, not unlike that in the cave itselfexcept that the figure is now in varada rather st?pa has been replaced by an image of the Buddha, and above that is another figure of the Buddha in dharmacakra mudr? flanked by two attendants. The umbrellas above the seated figure echo the upper umbrella forms of the st?pa composition on the right (figs. 12, 14, 15). Only the gallerywith the caityawindow and arch, and the uppermost regions of the
fagade original as far as one plan. From can see appear changes to have in plan Impromptu at least obvious modifications in the escaped or additions, however, can be further observed maintain the symmetry of the original con than ahhaya mudr?. However, in the case of the composition on the left, the drum of the
compositional
arrangements.
To
the right, the figure
stands
in front of
by the irregular disposition of the imageryalong the side walls and projecting jambs of
the court. the elements, however, which
(7) M. N. Deshpande, Ajant? Murals, ed. by A. Ghosh (Archaeological Survey of India), New Delhi, 1967, pp. 30-31.
(8) D. Barrett, Sculptures from Amar?vati the British Museum, London, 1956, pi. IV.
in
348
ception we
at Ajant?.
we can be fairly sure that the standing images in abhaya and For one thing
if not the entire composition of which they are a part, are among the earliest.
can gain
some
insight
into the development
of the image in its various
aspects
varada mudr?s,
This coincides not onlywith what we find at N?g?rjunakonda and B?gh, but with figures as at Ajant? as well, and signifi? added to the sides of the facades of theHinay?na catty cantly at Kanheri too (fig. 9).
art or at in early Kus?na or B?gh. it first seems to appear in the In India proper Amar?vati, N?g?rjunakonda on cave we at western caves and at S?rn?th. In XIX find it above the st?pa, the Ajant? The seated Buddha in dharmacakra mudr? is unknown bracket It was capitals, added on also the upper to regions of the fagade and as additions to the lower area. the exteriors early caitya halls and vih?ras it appears as the principal and rather Most impressively flanked by attendants or cauri of vih?ra shrines, usually as Padmap?ni or Indra. In fact, with the and Vajrap?ni and interiors of the many
Gh?ts. throughout the Western awesome in the majority image bearers at times distinguishable image is always no doubt in dharmacakra
exception of the image in cave VII
at Ajant? which displays the abhaya mudr?, the shrine
mudr?.
The symbolism associated with the image of the preaching Buddha was in themain
derived from the aniconic form complete a wheel-crowned by bearers and above seems to have pillar in its most representation of the First Sermon, which at is in the It late phase Amar?vati. symbolized appeared a cushioned throne. The throne is flanked by cauri above up to the height of the wheel, reclining on appear successive are two layers
of devotees on either side of the column. In addition, to the left and right,at the feet of profile, back to back. All thatwas lacking is the image of the Buddha (9).
The was pears, hiatus between With on the aniconic and iconic not very great. for example the occurrence to be bridged that needed representations as it ap? in dharmacakra mudr? of the Buddha the iconic mode of representation for the the throne are deer, and at the top of the column the capital lions in
them, reaching
turningof thewheel of the law was emblematicallystandardized. The Sermon in theDeer Park was, however, the last of the principal incidents in the life of S?kyamuni to be re?
with Combined N?g?rjunakonda. from the earlier aniconic representations, a seated image in vajraparyanka symbolism derived or sattvaparyanka ?sana in abhaya and dhy?na mudr? was used to depict the Enlightenment, or in a combination to represent the Temptation. of the varada and bh?misparsa Early Amar?vati and representations Mathur? but of the Sermon are similarly in the Deer Park, however, appear only and in Gandh?ra and evolved from a combination of aniconic iconic forms. The Iconic iconically in India. presented at Mathur?, had previously appeared representations of the Enlightenment and Temptation
the fagade of cave XIX,
of the throne Buddha is shown in abhaya mudr?, and thewheel and deer are either in front or to the right of the Buddha's raised hand. Only later does the dharmacakra mudr?
become part of the configuration.
(9) Ibid., pi. IX A.
349
In
the Northwest In
the
teaching
function mudr?
seems
to have
been
at first associated
with
India, Maitreya. at S?rn?th, Ajant?, and on the facades of many other western stances it is clearly associated with S?kyamuni and the First Sermon. 5th century.
the dharmacakra
first appears more
or less contemporaneously in? excavations. In most In no instance, how?
ever, is the Indian Buddha in dharmacakramudr? datable to a period earlier than the If we consider the time that the Buddha in dharmacakramudr? appears in India and
be proliferation, infusion. conceptual a gap between it at Ajant?, its late occurrence S?rn?th or elsewhere, suggests seem In perspective, it would that the teaching S?kyamuni The doctrines. shrine and later images in caves I, II, and early to be the first seated shrine images in India.
its sudden a new
XVII
bridges
(fig. 5) at Ajant?, and the shrine image at Ghatotkaca, among others, are cases in
figures sites, in fact seem Earlier, a st?pa, as
These point. at and other
upon images in yoga posture may have been superimposed or set up at the four cardinal points as at S?nchi, or as at Devnimori In India, however, inserted in the st?pa as well as on the surface. they were always in to be the earliest thus appear The images at Ajant? ahhaya, varada, or dhy?na mudr?. in India. shrine figures, and among the earliest, if not the earliest, in dharmacakra mudr? in the Northwest, In contrast the image is seated to the other principal sanctuary figures at Ajant?, except that in cave XXII, in cave XVI is also in dharmacakra is enthroned upon a simh?sana, mudr?, but that The is, with variation feet down. is significant. There is It ap?
neither
pears too, for example, in the Sri Yajna Cave at N?sik and in cave III at Aurang?b?d. In cave XVI at Ajant?, however, unlike those at N?sik and Aurang?b?d, the imagemay be
circumambulated. shrine chambers, Moreover, there is no in Ajant? XVI in contrast to I, II, and XVII The and most other in antechamber preceding the sanctuary. arrangement
?sana or European in praiamhap?da posture, a wheel or of the law deer upon the throne.
cave XVI is thusmore akin to what we find in either a typical st?pa sanctuaryor caitya hall rather than a Buddha shrine (figs. 3, 19). If we look ahead to later Buddhist (as well as Hindu) ground plans at Aurang?b?d and Ellor?, we find that the antechamber is dispensed with and the shrine is projected into the centre of the hall, as for example, in caves VII at Aurang?b?d (fig. 22) and VIII
at Ellor?. iconographic These in ground plan as they evolved appear to have corresponded changes is eliminated and the antechamber In each instance in which changes. to in
which the shrine is projected forward, the imageenshrined is shown inpraiamhap?da ?sana
as opposed to vajraparyanka. that over? than coincidental back and looking forward, in review, it seems more Looking are almost contemporaneously suddenly in the late 5th and early 6th centuries, we
whelmed by a proliferation of indistinguishable emblematicBuddha figures and the intro? most duction into India, probably from theNorthwest, of the teachingBuddha in praiam? hap?da ?sana. In fact, it is only after the 5th century that the praiamhap?da ?sana figure
becomes early as
where it is from then on predominant. Examples fromMathur? or S?rn?th datable as

the late 5th century are rare, if in fact any can be dated earlier than the 6th.
popular,
and
at that time, primarily
in the cave
temples
of
the western
regions,
350
It is at this point, I believe, with the sudden proliferation of emblematic images, the in? cursion of theTath?gata in the crown of the guardian figureof cave XIX, the appearance of crown-bearingvidy?dharas hovering above the head of each of the Buddhas on either
side of the entrance p?da with ?sana to cave XIX, that we if not and the introduction of of the shrine in cave XVI, have crossed the Mah?y?na expression S?tra. threshold figure in pralamba and are confronted inherent texts. in the
evolution of the trik?yadoctrine as they appear particularly in the Ratnagotravibh?ga

Mah?y?nottaratantra The S?stra and the Lank?vat?ra is a treatise on Both are Mah?y?na Ratnagotravibh?ga the tath?gatagarbha ? theory and the Lank?vat?ra
a striving toward,
an actual visual
the concepts
? is actually a collection of various theories amongMah?y?na Buddhism, among which the

garb ha theory, and the Vijn?nav?da with their relation to and exposition are prominent of the concept (10). Our of the nirm?na concern here is particular or transformation Buddha.
Until the discovery of the Sanskrit text of theRatnagotravibh?ga, itwas thoughtthat was not fully formulated even by the time of the completion the doctrine of the trik?ya of the Lank?vat?ra S?tra, in which the following distinction was drawn between the
Nirm?na-Buddha and the Dharmat?-Buddha:
...the teaching pointing to self-nature, individuality and generality of things, is that of the Transformation Buddha and not that of the Dharmat? Buddha. ...such teaching is meant for the ignorant, being in conformity with their mentality... (n).
The distinctions formulated in the Lank?vat?ra,which as early as 443 A.D. had been
translated
in turn preceded by the docetic speculations of theMah?samghikas and the double-body

theory of N?g?rjuna's Frajn?p?ramit?.
into Chinese,
are more
fully elaborated
upon
in the Ratnagotravibh?ga
and were
Until recently, it was generally thought that the earliest explicit formulationof the trik?yadoctrinewas to be found in theAwakening of the Faith in theMah?y?na (Mah? probably not until the time of Asanga and the subsequent systemizationof Yog?c?ra phil? A.D., that osophy, which flourished as a school in theNorthwest during the 5th century
the trik?ya was ever, Whereas draw upon crystallized (12). The Lank?vat?ra and are to all in three and the Ratnagotravibh?ga theory is common the Mah?y?nasraddhotp?da, how? some respects more fully developed. texts, Vijn?nav?da doctrines do not y?nasraddhotp?das?stra) attributed to Asvaghosa. Suzuki, for example, believed that it was
appear in theRatnagotravibh?ga. The basic text of the Ratnagotravibh?ga, it would thus seem, is the oldest of these scriptures (13). Most probably, however, the full text of the
Ratnagotravibh?ga, excluding the basic Chinese verses or Sanskrit slokas, but including the
the garbha
(10) J. Takasaki, A Study of the Ratnagotra atantra): Being a Treatise on the vihh?ga (Ut tar Tath?gatagarbha Theory of Mah?y?na Buddhism, (SOR, XXXIII), Roma, 1966, p. 53. C11) The Lankavatara Sutra, trans, by D. T. Suzuki, London, 1932, pp. 81 f.
(12)D. T. Suzuki, Studies in the Lankavatara Sutra, London, 1957, p. 308. (13) I am grateful to Prof. Alex Wayman of Columbia University for having drawn my attention to the relative date of the Ratnagotravibh?ga.
351
commentary
in prose (14).
and verse, was
not
complete
until
shortly
after
the
time of Asanga
and Vasubandhu
The Ratnagotravibh?ga, as the title indicates,is an analysisof theAbsolute or Ultimate

Entity from its aspect of the ratnagotra. Ratnagotra is interpreted as "gotram ratnatrayascf (v. 1,24), the Germ of the 3 jewels, and explained in the sloka (v. 1,23) as cvisayah param?rthadarsinam subharatnasargako yatah'', the sphere of those who have the highest perception from which the pure 3 jewels rise. Here, cgotrcf
means
or cratnatraya?is a name for the Absolute when it is regarded as the Parana' (refuge), or the object of worship. Par excellence, it is the rbuddharatna'5', and the other two,
i.e. the cdharmaratna? and
something
original,
while
cratnatraya'',
its result.
... On
the other
hand,
^ratnc?
syanda) of the former (15). This point, as Takasaki
^sangharatna?
are merely
the
^natural
outflow5
[dharmat?ni
notes,
is taken from the Srim?l?s?tra
and
is known
as
the
ekay?na theory (16). It is one of the basic characteristicsof Mah?y?na Buddhism. With its emphasis on the Buddha rather than the dharma, Mah?y?na Buddhism became more religious thanAbhidharma Buddhism. ? Among the 3 jewels, the jewel of theBuddha came
to be
theory is reflected at Buddhist sites in the gradually greater prominence in time afforded
to the image vis-a-vis the st?pa.
regarded
as
the only ultimate
refuge
(17).
The
incremental
effect of
the ekay?na
To the "Germ of the Three Jewels" the trik?ya concept was basic. The description of the nirm?nak?yaBuddha is to be found in the original slokas:
For advancing into the Quiescent Path, For bringing to full development and for giving prophecy, That is the Apparitional Form [of the Buddha], Which also abides always in the Absolute Essence, As the visible forms in the element of space (18).
following
Significantly,line 26 of the inscriptionadjoining cave XVI at Ajant?, specifically states that the mandapa within the cave is dedicated to the three ratnas (? se[v]yat?m = then that the different posture of the Buddha in the shrineof Ajant? XVI, the terminology of the inscription,the difference in the iconographyassociated with the seat of the image and the correspondingdifference in the plan of the shrine, suggest that the image has been infused with a new or at least differentsignificancefrom images in the otherAjant? shrines. We seem to be dealing with a manifestation or hypostasis of differentBuddha principles, particularlywhen considered in lightof the development of Buddhist doctrines, the evolving emphasis on the Buddha, the specificity of the distinctions in the text of the Ratnagotravibh?ga, and the dedicatory terminologyof the cave XVI inscription. The in
V?k?taka Inscription in (19)V. V. Mirashi, Cave XVI at Ajant?, (Hyderabad Archaeological 1941 (henceforth: HAS, Series, 14) Hyderabad, 14), p. 13. antar-mandapa-ratnam = etad = amalarh ratna-tra[y-o]dbh?vi[tam] ?) (19). It would seem
(14) Takasaki,
(15) Ibid., (16) Ibid., (17) Ibid., (18) Ibid.,
pp. 21-22. p. 22, note 37. p. 28. p. 326.
op.
cit.,
pp.
61-62.
352
volvement of the Mah?samghika school in thewestern regions, the activity of N?g?rjuna of theYog?c?ra school in theNorthwest and its dependence upon the concepts elaborated upon in the Ratnagotravibh?ga, add furtherto the plausibility of the interpretation. As noted by Rosenfield, the impact of the Yog?c?ra tenets and the influenceof trik?yacon?
cepts as early as the 3rd or 4th cen? in the iconography of Gandh?ra as stele and others which he refers to as "Buddhist Nari turies in reliefs such the Muhammad seem to be manifest In (20). addition, we find in Gandh?ra, at just about coming the same time, that to 4th centuries A.D., the pralambap?da ?sana into use for cult images. traditionally associated with the Krsn? region, and, perhaps not insignificantly, the strength
Theophanies" is, the 3rd
A case in point is the figure in the BritishMuseum. Of the shrine images at Ajant?, that in cave XVI is perhaps themost impressiveand
awesome of all. ants too are well upon the entering Around ? and of the figure itself, those of the attend? or is immediately overwhelmed life size. The casual visitor devotee the hall from the centre door as there is no antechamber separating him from over and elaborately carved by two massive or pradak there is a circumambulatory the image and attendants passage on each side are octagonal pillars screening off side aisles entered by small is framed from the distance cause more light to be cast upon the image. The absence Aside from the colossal dimensions
image, which
pillars.
doors from the hall and furtherlightedby small squarewindows near the roof ? (21). These
windows
sin?patha,
chamber, the framingof the image by the pillars, which incidentallyhide the attendant the flankingpillars of the side aisles, all add to the inherentawesome quality of this en? throned and rather colossal Buddha image (figs. 3, 19). It has been argued that the shrines in caves XVI and XVII are earlier than those of I and II because of the pradaksin?patha. The assumption is that the development of the
vih?ra worship. by shrine reflects In part a change away that is true. The from ritual appearance was never circumambulation of the Buddha in favour satisfied of bhakti for image a need The figures from the distance, and the circumambulatory passage which is in turn enhanced by
indirectly
of the ante?
bhakti worship, but the overriding importanceof the universal principles ritually realized ing Buddha was instead impressivelysuperimposedupon the st?pa in the later caitya halls
itself circumambulated appropriate. as in Ajant? XVI. A quote from the Lank?vat?ra S?tra the process of circumambulation really supplanted or abandoned. teach?
or was
seems particularly
...R?vana, Lord of the R?kshasas, with his attendants, riding in his floral celestial chariot came up to where the Blessed One was, and having arrived there he and his attendants came out of the chariot. Walking around the Blessed One three times from left to right, they played on a musical instrument... (22).
The shrine images in caves I and II as well as themany others at Ajant? which sit
in vajraparyanka ?sana, as previously mentioned, are seated on a throne adorned with the
The Dynastic Arts of (20) J. M. Rosenfield, the Kushans, Berkeley-Los Angeles, 1967, pp.
235-38.
(21) Burgess,
(22) Suzuki,
op. cit., p. 54.

Studies..., cit., p. 67.
353
cakra
The symbol of the lion, in and of itself, as we know signifies the overwhelming power and authorityof the Buddha. Textually, theBuddha is called the lion of the S?kyas, "S?kyasimha". His call is like the roar of the lion, and like the lionwho in legend arouses
its still-born cubs, the power of his gospel awakens and summons the world (23). Buddhist scripturesdescribe the king or emperor as a lion; at his accession, he roars like a lion; he sits on a lion throne, and dies on a lion couch. The Buddha inherits all royal attitudes, and is hailed as the S?kyan lion. (Mah?vamsa, VI) (24).
symbols which specifically refer to a particular sits on a simple lion throne. figure in cave XVI, however, and deer:
incident.
The
awesome
The
associated
lion throne has historically and traditionally throughout the Near East been
with royalty and divine power. Its antecedents in India go back to the portrait
of Vima Kadphises (25). There is little doubt that in time the attributesof the king were transferredto the Buddha and that the symbols of royalty associated with divine and
cosmological authority were adapted to the representation of the Buddha image.
Undoubtedly, the utilization of the lion thronewithout the deer and cakra, coincid? ing as it does with the royal posture of the Buddha, as opposed to that of the ascetic,
represents the shrines the a new or at least different I, II and others. conception The of the Buddha of of caves of regal posture in from that represented con? in the pose, appearing and manifestation as
upon junctionwith the lion throne,or even by itself,as noted by Seckel,when commenting opposed to themeditation and withdrawal signified by the yoga posture (26). Again a
passage from the Lank?vat?ra S?tra seems particularly appropriate: Then the Blessed One beholding again this great assembly with his wisdom-eye, which is not the human eye, laughed loudly and most vigorously like the lion-king. Emitting rays of light from the tuft of hair between the eyebrows, from the ribs, from the loins, ? from the Srivatsa on the breast, and from every pore of the skin, emitting rays of a at the end of kalpa, like a luminous lightwhich shone flaming like the fire taking place rainbow, like the rising sun, blazing brilliantly, gloriously... laughed the loudest laugh. At that time the assembly of the Bodhisattvas together with Sakra and Brahman, each thoughtwithin himself: ? For what reason, I wonder, fromwhat cause does the Blessed One who is the master of all the world {sarvadharma-vasavartin), after smiling first, laugh the loudest laugh?... Why, emitting [rays of light], does he remain silent,with the realisation [of the truth] in his inmost self, and absorbed deeply and showing no surprise in the bliss of Sam?dhi and reviewing the [ten] quarters, looking around like the lion-king, and thinking only of the discipline, attainment, and performance of R?vana? ? (27). significance the European posture, symbolizes a call to action
In light of themany factorswhich set the image in the shrineof cave XVI apart from others and point to a significancedifferentfrom that of the others, it seems only apparent
(23)D. Seckel, Art of Buddhism, New York, 1964, p. 234. (24)A. M. Hoc art, Kings and Councillors, Le Caire, 1936, p. 90 as quoted by J. Auboyer, Le trone et son symbolisme dans ITnde ancienne, Paris, 1949, p. 109, note 3. (25) rosenfield, Op. tit., pp. 183-86. (26) Seckel, op. tit., p. 166.
(27) Suzuki, Studies..., tit., pp. 76-77.
354
WP\ HiCHRWiTM MA?INE
J I P I ||)25 2 \ 3? 5 ONAMAKfi? 18 Archaeological Mission. cavations, Hadda, Fig. 2 Shutur Tepe plan ground of ex? - Afghan
P""! WZT] _ ?3 STATUS a&KTCO W* nm r , _ ^11 I II II I |||hf} SCENERY 'mmm~^%^
^i _ ^ If ^^^^^^^^^^W ?- ^
Wr__J n I I-1| W NtCWC
II). 1931, Fig. (From: Ajant? of plan General 1 Ajant?, Yazdani, G. London, I, - pl.
4 Fig. Ajant? XIX, j/?p^.
'
'^'^
^^^^^^^^
pi. XXXIII). 1880, Fig. Ajant? XVI, 3 (From: J. ground plan Fergus
The Burgess, J. Cave Temples India, son, of London,
Fig. 6 N?sik, Gautamiputra
vih?ra, relief panel.
Fig. 5 Ajant? XVII, Buddha
in shrine.
Fig. 7 B?gh 2, antechamber, left side, Buddha

and attendants.
Fig. 8 B?gh 2, antechamber, right side, Buddha

and attendants.
^ . m I ^ ^^^^ fj^ ^jjj

Museum. N?g?rjunakonda, Fig. 96 Amar?vatt plan. ground site Tepe Fig. Hadda, 11 Shutur, main of front st?pa.
Museum. Fig. 10NagarjunakondIa, drum Ndgdrjunakonda slab.
..???1 ^^^^^^
Fig.
12 - Ajant? XIX,
facade, centre.
Fig.
13 - N?sik, Gautamiputra
vih?ra, doorway.
Fig. 14 Ajant? XIX, facade, left side.
^^^^ ^^^^^^^ 15 Fig.
Ajant?
XIX,
fagade, right side.
Fig.
16 - Ajant? XIX,
facade gallery, left side,
^^^^^^
Fig.
17 - Ajant? XIX,
facade gallery, right side,
dv?rap?la.
^^^^^^^^^j^ ^^^^^^^^^
Fig. 18 - Kanheri a hall, veranda, standing catty Buddha. Fig. 19 Ajant? XVI, Buddha in shrine.
Fig. Visvakarman, Ellor?, 21 st?pa. -
Fig.
20
Ajant?
XXVI,
John st?pa (Photo:
and
? >
Fig. 22 -
"
- ? ?i
shrine image Ajant? XXII, Fig. 23 shrine image.
Aurang?b?d, Cave VII,

and doorway.
Fig. 24 K?rli, Buddha chapel to leftof caitya hall.
Fig. 25
K?rli,
cattya facade, panel

centre door.
to right of
that the lion element of a
throne and
the circumambulatory The
path around image
be identified images in XVII, I, II, or other vih?ras, at Ajant?, which can iconographically
as S?kyamuni, seems to have taken on a new role directed toward the visual realization of the nirm?na or transformation Buddha concept in its most general sense. The nirm?na is an assumed Its role is that of an agent, ? by doctrinal definition timeless and an apparition. concept of the nirm?nak?ya somewhat parallels that of Christ as, on the one hand, the
total conceptualization.
Buddha
the image represents an integral in contrast to the in cave XVI,
form or collection of forms for the benefit of sentientbeings. As Suzuki has noted, the
Mah?y?na formulations, it is the unidentifiable,and paradoxically timelessand active image

in dharmacakra mudr?, rather than the identifiable figure representative of the First Sermon,
agent of, and on the other, the lord himself (28). Among the Therav?din sects, S?kyamuniwas and is differently regarded. In the per? spective of theMah?y?na, however, S?kyamuni,or the historical Buddha, is of the nirm?? nak?ya as is every image or form representativeof the Buddha. Within the context of
that could be substituted for or associated with the st?pa and the ritesof circumambulation associatedwith the aniconic symbol of the absolute. The imagewhich appears in the later shrinesprojected into the vih?ras and adorns the st?pas of themost recent caitya halls is not S?kyamuni but the unidentifiable Buddha inpralambap?da ?sana, seated on a lion throne in dharmacakramudr? (figs. 20, 22). It is perhaps, therefore, not insignificant that in the
inscription outside of cave XVI
cave XVI
in contrast to the use of muni-r?ja-caitya in the inscriptionadjoining cave XVII (30). Before concluding, let us compare portions of the contentsof the inscriptionadjoining
to other excerpts from the Lank?vat?ra. The inscription reads:
at Ajant?,
the shrine
is referred
to as caitya-mandiram
(29)
Having presented (the cave) with devotion to the Community of Monks, Var?hadeva together with the multitude of his relatives, having enjoyed royal pleasures, ruled righteously being praised by Sugata (31). According to the Lank?vat?ra:
The Sugata is the body in whom are stored immaculate virtues; in him are manifested [bodies] transformingand transformed;he enjoys the truth realized in his inmost self (32).
Sugata is derived fromPali.

of the Buddha (33). The
It means one who has attained bliss and is an epithet

definition, however, is more elaborate, suggesting
Lank?vat?ra
of the epithet changed in keepingwith the evolving conceptual changes that the significance of Buddhist doctrine. By using the phrase, ? in him are manifested (bodies) transforming
and transformed?, the Lank?vat?ra, it would seem, is referring to the sugata as the
(28)D. T. Suzuki, Outlines ofMah?y?na Bud? dhism, London, 1907, p. 256. 14, p. 12, 1. 20. (29)Mirashi, HAS, (30)v. V. Mirashi, Inscription in Cave XVII at Ajant?, (Hyderabad Archaeological Series, 15),
Hyderabad, 1949, p. 12, 1. 24. (31) Mirashi, HAS, 14, p. 15, v. 30. (33) F. Edgerton (ed.), Buddhist Hybrid skrit Dictionary, New Haven, 1953.
(32) Suzuki, Studies..., cit., p. 68.
San?
355
Absolute, as ground and result, in keeping with the tath?gatagarbha theory as expounded
in the Ratnagotravibh?ga.
The final verses of the cave XVI
inscriptionread:
even so long to the three
As long as ... the sun (shines) with rays reddish like fresh red arsenic,? may this spotless cave containing an excellent hall (mandapa) dedicated ratnas, be enjoyed!
... inhabited by (May) thismountain, the peak of which contains various (types of) caves ... the rid of its manifold whole world also sins, enter that may great people getting sorrow free from and and noble state, (34). tranquil pain! In a passage from the Wei version of the Lank?vat?ra, translated into Chinese at
about 520 A.D., we find the following:

As they are covetously attached to their thrones, wives, children, and relatives, they find themselves bound by the five passions and have no time for emancipation. Seeing this, they abandon their dominions, palaces, wives, concubines, elephants, horses, and precious treasures, giving them all up to the Buddha and his Brotherhood. They now retreat into the mountain-woods, leaving their homes and wishing to study the
doctrine... (35).
Within context, bearing in mind that cave XVI was dedicated to the three jewels,
and
lels in use of terminology and similarities in content between the inscription and the
Lank?vat?ra Those than late earlier seem other regard trait, consider the other who than accidental. the circumambulatory its absence indicative vih?ras at Ajant?. passage in the vih?ra shrine as an early, rather in ritual practices directed more
recognizing
the dependence
of the Lank?vat?ra
upon
the Ratnagotravibh?ga,
the paral?
of a change then would
toward bhaktiworship. They would thus date lower VI

than How
and caves XI, XVI, and XVII

they account
ation of the st?pas, if not the excavation itself,of the later caitya halls, Ajant? XXVI and of the differ? Ellor? X? Their position takes no account of the changes in the iconography
ent Buddha caitya halls
for the configur?
were it not consistentlyemployed in each of theBuddha shrines as well as the significant

in each
image
associated
with
the later excavations. excavations
The
difference
might
not
be con?
figurationssuch as Tin Thai at Ellor?).
of the later Mah?y?na
(as distinct
from proto-Tantric
It has been suggested that the Saiva counterpartof the st?pa with an image of the Buddha may well be the lingawith the head of Siva, such as we find at Udayagiri, datable to the firstdecade of the 5th century (36). We cannot be surewhether the st?pa in cave as suggested XIX at Ajant? predates or antedates the linga atUdayagiri, but it is significant, by K.V.S. Rajan, that the later Brahmanical columned halls with shrines seem to follow
(34) Mirashi,
(35) Suzuki,
HAS,
Studies...,
14, p.
cit., p.
15, vv. 30, 31.

76, note 1.
(36) S. Dutt, Buddhist Monks India, of London, 1962, p. 192.
and Monasteries
356
in plan allowing the st?pa
the pattern always
of Buddhist
rock-cut
architecture
(37), omitting
the
antechamber
and
for circumambulation. as
In cave XIX at Ajant?, the standing figureof the Buddha was added to the frontof r?vati and N?g?rjunakonda (figs. 4, 10). And at B?gh and Hadda we find figuresof the Buddha in the antechamber "lining the path" to the st?pa (figs. 7, 8). At Ajant? where
in the monastic Buddha achieved particular prominence image of the ascetic preaching to three extant catty a halls. In contrast to the restrained, in proximity shrines, it was the dominates the st?pa of cave XXVI, and in the Visvakarman cave in very much the same way the image stood in front of the st?pas at Ama
reassuring image on the front of the st?pa in cave XIX the enthroned and majestic type Ellor? overwhelms it (figs. 19, 20, 21). And we find it again in the shrinesprojected into The evolving the centreof the latermonastic halls at Aurang?b?d and Ellor? (fig. 22). we know about the ever prominence of the Buddha image is thus in keeping with what increasing importanceof the Buddha as theAbsolute from the early expression of the ekayuna theory in the Srtm?las?tra to its fullyformulatedrealization as theprincipal jewel,
the only ultimate No not, and in a even doubt refuge these (sarana), or object doctrinal sequence. elements of worship and New in the Ratnagotravibh?ga. did not occur, are as others did sporadi? first manifested developments iconographic concepts figure of cave XVI at
straight or uninterrupted in many of
cally. Old
at Ajant?. derived cave of
traditions linger alongside the new. Cave III at Aurang?b?d in ground plan
its decorative vih?ra closely resembles the typical Mah?y?na of early and late elements, some old and obviously at Ajant?, excavation and some new. The Sri Yajna evidence It as well is not as from changes in the level as suggested above, improbable, in cave XVI at Ajant? may no there is pradaksin?
It displays a combination from the different phases of as we know excavated
at N?sik
the floor was
that old conceptsmay well have lingered alongside the new.

Tentatives, be found and variants of the concepts precursors as well as elsewhere. in other caves at Ajant?,
from inscriptional in various stages.
realized
as noted by Spink, that theBuddha figure in cave I patha in caves I and II, it is significant, projects much furtherforward than in II (38). In cave XVII, the Buddha in ascetic pose,
seated on a throne adorned with the deer and cakra, and lions as well, is free of the back wall.
Although
Similarly, the Buddha in the shrines of Lower VI and XI can be circumambulated. In Lower VI, the lions on the base of the throne are distinctlymore prominent than the
cakra as and deer. In XI, there is no st?pa. At antechamber the base at Ajant? are before the shrine cakra at K?rli, and and and attached The appear to a monolithic shrine image to be looking the deer, another the image a devotee, itself is as well
the lions. in cave XXII ahead and in contrast the more to others, kind to further doctrinal
of emblematic representationthatwe find on the facade of the K?rll caitya. The wheel
(37) K. V. Soundara Rajan, ?Beginnings o? the Temple Plan,? Bulletin of the Prince ofWales Museum ofWestern India, 6, 1957-59, pp. 77-78. W. (38) Spink, ? Ajant? and Ghat?tkacha: A Preliminary Analysis ?, AOr, VI, 1966, pp. 142-43.
developments
complex
357
and deer seem to support the lotus on which the feet of the Buddha rest. The image is seated in pralambap?da ?sana on a lion throne, flanked by attendants,each of which stands on a lotus. The entire configurationis in relief and is characterized by an ethereal or free-floating quality in contrast to the solidityof the other shrine images at Ajant?. Icon ographically, the configurationcan be matched almost figure for figure, to the Buddha group in a chapel to the left of the K?rli caitya (figs. 23, 24). The varied elements in
relation to other
seem to coalesce in the panel on the facade of the caitya hall at K?rli, where the configur? hieratic ordering, signifiedby the superimpo ation would seem to suggest a symbolically and the hovering crown-bearing vidy?dharas above the Buddha. At the very bottom of the relief are kneeling devotees and n?gas (fig. 25). The axial and staged arrangementof
the K?rli sition of the image above the cakra and deer, the attendants on the floating lotus platforms,
shrines,
the solid
and
ethereal
and
new
iconographic
motifs,
however,
XXII at Ajant?, to the chapel at K?rli and to the paradise-like settingof the figureon the st?pa in cave XXVI at Ajant?, and on the other hand, viewed in the perspective of the Theophany reliefs discussed by John Rosenfield (39),suggestsan evolving visual elaboration
within an ambient that was
composition
viewed,
on
the one
hand,
in relation
to the configuration
in cave
by Mah?y?na doctrinal distinctions. This surmise is happily ifnot definitively,reinforced the occurrence of a Mah?samghika inscriptionfound just above the panel with which we have been dealing. The inscriptionrecords the gift of a village to the mendicant monks dwelling at the caves for the support of a school (nik?ya) of the Mah?samghikas (40). Another inscription in one of the vih?ras at K?rli records the gift of a nine-celled hall as the special property of the communityof the Mah?samghikas (41). The inscriptionsare
in Prakrit,
striving
toward
a veridical
base
for the visual
expression
of
and mendicant activity in thewestern regions of theMah?samghikas from whose docetic speculations the trik?ya doctrine in time evolved, and provide an epigraphical base in juxtaposition to a specific relief for our speculationswith regard to the development of Buddhist iconography in the region. Above all Ajant? is a Buddhist site and its evolutionmust be viewed in context. Its
and stylistic origins are rooted in Buddhist iconographic and architecture are reflective of the continually evolving antecedents. concepts and In turn, its art trends religious
and may
pre-date
the relief.
They
serve, nevertheless,
to establish
the residence
which grew from theHinay?na to the florescenceof Mah?y?na doctrine. There is little at Ajant? to suggest the future course of Buddhist thought and practices. As such it is perhaps the last of the extantMah?y?na sites devoid of esoteric influences. Looking back?
the gradual progression toward the entry of new iconographical motifs, at Ajant? and the ever-increasing which evolved importance of the image, monumentality course in a sense, heralded and the and almost perpetual of Buddhism the future subsequent ward, however, personification of abstract principles, which constitute the later Buddhist pantheon.
(39)rosenfield, (40)H. L?ders,
Op. CiL, pp. 235-38. ?A List of Brahmi
Inscrip
tions ?, EI, X, no. 1105. (41) Ibid., no. 1106.
358

Aja Tā Iconography and Chronology

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Ajat Iconography and Chronology Author(s): Sheila L. Weiner Source: East and West, Vol. 26, No.

Iconography and Chronology

the art of Ajant? relate to the doctrinal dimensions of Buddhism. Viewed

in relation to the development of Buddhist concepts, confusing stylistic ele?

the entire excavation, if not most

da ?sana) preceded by an antechamber (fig.5).

Outside of Ajant?, this is to be found only

into a figure of Bhairava.

was that there and

If completed, cave XII would have foreshadowed the developments at Kud?

rail demarcate a pair shrine

The small apsidal halls were included in the vih?ra compound.

find no mention in the P?li commentariesof Buddha shrines. Buddhaghosa, in his

theKrsn? Valley st?pas.

1958, pp. 703-4.

image in the crest of the head-dress

to the right and

left of the entrance,

the right, moreover,

rock base, whereas

the right, the figure

into the development

of the image in its various

exception of the image in cave VII

at Ajant? which displays the abhaya mudr?, the shrine

the fagade of cave XIX,

(9) Ibid., pi. IX A.

first appears more

or less contemporaneously in? excavations. In most In no instance, how?

its sudden a new

These point. at and other

where it is from then on predominant. Examples fromMathur? or S?rn?th datable as

at that time, primarily

evolution of the trik?yadoctrine as they appear particularly in the Ratnagotravibh?ga

? is actually a collection of various theories amongMah?y?na Buddhism, among which the

in turn preceded by the docetic speculations of theMah?samghikas and the double-body

and verse, was

The Ratnagotravibh?ga, as the title indicates,is an analysisof theAbsolute or Ultimate

syanda) of the former (15). This point, as Takasaki

is taken from the Srim?l?s?tra

the only ultimate

(15) Ibid., (16) Ibid., (17) Ibid., (18) Ibid.,

pp. 21-22. p. 22, note 37. p. 28. p. 326.

Theophanies" is, the 3rd

op. cit., p. 54.

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4 Fig. Ajant? XIX, j/?p^.

The Burgess, J. Cave Temples India, son, of London,

Fig. 6 N?sik, Gautamiputra

vih?ra, relief panel.

Fig. 5 Ajant? XVII, Buddha

Fig. 7 B?gh 2, antechamber, left side, Buddha

Fig. 8 B?gh 2, antechamber, right side, Buddha

^ . m I ^ ^^^^ fj^ ^jjj

Museum. Fig. 10NagarjunakondIa, drum Ndgdrjunakonda slab.

Fig. 14 Ajant? XIX, facade, left side.

^^^^ ^^^^^^^ 15 Fig.

fagade, right side.

facade gallery, left side,

facade gallery, right side,

Fig. Visvakarman, Ellor?, 21 st?pa. -