Recumbent Buddha statue: Soles of the Buddha's feet: Buddhapāda
Rating
Title
Recumbent Buddha statue : Soles of the Buddha's feet : Buddhapāda
Photographer
de Silva, Preethi
Built by
King Valagamba --Vattagāmani Abhaya (103 BCE and circa 89–77 BCE) and other later monarchs
Subject
Buddha Statues
Site Location
Sässēruwa (Räs vehera)
City/Region
North Central province, 11 km west of Avukana (location of famous Buddha statue).
Country
Sri Lanka
Year Established
1st century BCE , and later
Description
The soles of the feet of the recumbent Buddha are painted in a traditional manner , with circular lotus designs . The Buddhapāda (Buddha's footprint , i.e. , the feet sculpted in low relief on stone) were some of the earliest artworks associated with the Buddha and evolving from aniconic to iconic (anthropomorphic) representations of the Buddha used for purposes of veneration . The practice originated in India . Later , recumbent statues of the Buddha included painted soles of the feet , depicting as here, various designs of the lotus flower , which resemble the Dhammachakra wheel representing the turning of the 'Wheel of the law , ' the teachings of the Buddha ; other designs also included the symbolic 32 , 108 or 132 auspicious characteristics of the Buddha . While many other symbols , too , were depicted on the soles of the feet , in Sri Lanka mainly the Dhammachakra wheel is found after circa the 8th century .
Publisher
Claremont Colleges Library
Date
1999
Reference
For discussion of the Buddha's footprint in statues in Thailand and earlier history, see Claudio Cicuzza, A Mirror Reflecting the Entire World: The Pāli Buddhapādamaṅgala, or “Auspicious Signs on the Buddha’s Feet”. Bangkok and Lumbini, 2011. For extensive references on this topic, see https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Buddha_footprint
Collection
Ancient Buddhist Sites and Royal Residences in Sri Lanka - http://cdm15831.contentdm.oclc.org/cdm/landingpage/collection/p15831coll15
Rights
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License - http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/
Type
Image
Format
image/tiff;
Object File Name
acs00297.tif
Add tags for Recumbent Buddha statue: Soles of the Buddha's feet: Buddhapāda
Your comment:
Your Name:
...
Ancient Buddhist Sites and Royal Residences in Sri Lanka
