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Kizil Cave 114: Ratnajaya Jataka
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Kizil Cave 114: Ratnajaya Jataka
CHINA, Xinjiang, Aksu; circa 4th–5th century
This mural is on the left side of the barrel-vaulted ceiling in the main chamber. The story is from the Sutra of the Wise and the Foolish. According to the Jataka, the merchant leader Ratnajaya went to sea with 500 merchants. A storm broke out while at sea and Ratnajaya’s ship was destroyed. Some merchants fell into the water but could not swim. Hearing their cries, Ratnajaya jumped into the sea and floated on the surface so that the others could hang on to his body to cross ashore.
The mural shows people clinging to the body of Ratnajaya, adrift at sea. His upper body is bare, and he has a nimbus. Four people cling to his body and above them, a fifth holds onto a wooden plank. |
