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| Amitabha Buddha and Attendants |
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Amitabha Buddha and Attendants
CHINA; Sui dynasty (581–618), dated 593; Commissioned by the Fan Clan; Bronze; H: 76.5 cm; Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, Massachusetts, USA |
This altarpiece portrays the beauty of the Western Pure Land, or Sukhavati. The layout is complex, lavish, and vivid, yet neatly arranged. The figure seated in half lotus position on a Sumeru lotus throne at the center is Amitabha Buddha. A flaming openwork nimbus surrounds the head. The Buddha wears a monastic robe that leaves the right shoulder bare. The hands form the abhaya (fearlessness) and varada (wish-granting) mudras.
The attendants flanking the Buddha, in order of proximity, are the Perfect Enlightenment Bodhisattvas with pointed headdresses; the disciples Mahakasyapa and Ananda; and the Bodhisattvas Avalokitesvara and Mahasthamaprapta. It is rare to find Perfect Enlightenment Bodhisattvas included in a composition.
Two trees located behind the Buddha are in bloom, and seven of the top blossoms are surmounted by seated Buddha images. A mountain censer, flanked by a pair of lions and Dharma protectors, is on the square stand at the bottom of the composition. |
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