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The Indian Buddhist Iconography (Mainly Based on the Sadhanamālā and Other Cognate Tantric Texts of Rituals)

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The Indian Buddhist Iconography (Mainly Based on the Sadhanamālā and Other Cognate Tantric Texts of Rituals)

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	Publisher: D. K. Printworld Pvt. Ltd.
	Author Benoytosh Bhattacharyya
	Language: English
	Pages: 220 (B/W Illustrations)
	Cover: HARDCOVER
	9x11.5 inch
	Weight 1.36 kg
	Edition: 2025
	ISBN: 9788124613238
	HCC687

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Book Description

About the Book This volume presents a comprehensive study of Indian Buddhist iconography, primarily based on a Sanskrit text compiled from seven recensions of the Sadhanamala (also known as Sadhanamuccaya). The text is richly illustrated with images of Buddhist deities from various museums across India and abroad, as well as from the collections of numerous Nepalese monasteries. The central objective of this work is to identify Buddhist deities through the dhyanas (meditative visualizations) described in the Sadhanamala. Where actual images were been unavailable, have illustrations supplemented by sketches or drawings prepared by Nepalese citrakāras of Buddhist lineage, based on ancient family albums. In cases where neither images nor drawings could be found, only the original Sanskrit text has been provided with its English translation. The significance of this work lies not only in its status as one of the earliest authentic accounts of Buddhist iconography but also in its enduring value despite evolving scholarly perspectives and the emergence of new materials. Remaining out of print for long, this volume is now being reissued with appropriate enhancement of the images, using latest publishing technologies, to serve the needs of art historians, archaeologists, conservators, and general readers alike.

About the Author Dr Benoytosh Bhattacharyya (1897-1964), known as Bhattacharyya of Baroda, was a renowned scholar of Sanskrit, Tantra, and Buddhist iconography. A student of Haraprasad Shastri and Alfred Foucher, he earned the first PhD from Dacca University and led the Gaekwad's Oriental Series and Institute in Baroda. His major works include The Indian Buddhist Iconography and Sadhanamālā. Initially critical of Tantric practices, he later recognized their philosophical value. After retirement, he explored teletherapy and traditional healing. Revered globally for his erudition and humility, Bhattacharyya was esteemed not only as a scholar but also as a compassionate guide and healer.

Preface This volume represents part of the work done by me as a Government Research Scholar in Iconography for four years from 1920 to 1924. It is an attempt to write a comprehensive work on the Buddhist Iconography of India, and is mainly based on a Sanskrit text prepared from seven recensions of the Sadhanamälä aliar Sadhanasamuccaya in the libraries of the Asiatic Society of Bengal, Nepal, and Cambridge University. This text so collated I hope to publish as soon the opportunity presents itself. The text has been illustrated by pictures representing images in several museums in India and elsewhere and in the collections of numerous Nepalese monasteries. Where images could not be obtained or photographing was impossible or unsatisfactory the text has been illustrated with the help of drawings prepared by Nepalese Citrakaras of Buddhist origin from the ancient albums of their forefathers. Where no drawing could be obtained only the original text has been quoted with a translation. The publication of this work necessitated, on my part, a prolonged visit to Nepal whither my father, Mahamahopadhyaya Haraprasad Shastri, was proceeding on an invitation from His Highness the Maharaja of Nepal. It also necessitated a visit to the museums of Calcutta, Dacca, Patna, Sarnath, Lucknow, Mathura, and Ajmere, to the Cave-temples at Ellora and Ajanta, to the excavations at Nalanda, and to Vikrampur, the seat of Bengal Buddhism. In several ways I have been very fortunate in carrying out my researches. First, I have had the proud privilege of working under Professor A. Foucher, the accredited authority on Indian Buddhist images, during the period he was in charge of the Archæological Section, Indian Museum. Secondly, through the kindness of the Maharaja of Nepal I was able to secure a number of MSS. from the Durbar Library for collation and study. Thirdly, through the kindness of Mr. P. J. Hartog, M.A., C.I.E., Vice-Chancellor of the Dacca University, I secured the loan of one of the three Cambridge MSS. of the Sadhanamala which I had absolutely no chance of getting otherwise. Fourthly, during the first two years the most valuable library of the Asiatic Society of Bengal was thrown open for my use. Fifthly, the Dacca University gave me all facilities whenever applied for.

Foreword All the three great religious systems of India developed well-filled pan theons, and it is not always easy to decide, to which of these three systems a particular image should be assigned. The importance of the study of Iconography which primarily concerns itself with the proper recognition of images will thus become apparent. The difficulties of the investigator are again increased by the fact that free and frequent interchanges of deities took place among the three religious systems. Hindu deities Parvati and Indra are to be found among the Jainas; the latter, as well as Ganapati, Sarasvati, Mahakala, Nilakantha, and the like, are famous in the Buddhist Pantheon. The Hindus are indebted to the Buddhists for borrowing gods like Mahäcinatārā, Jänguli and Vajrayogini under the names of Tara, Manasa and Chhinnamastă respectively. Thus we have evidence that free interchanges of gods actually did take place first at the very outset of Buddhism and Jainism as well as in the more promiscuous Tantric age. The Jainas and the Buddhists alike borrowed Hindu gods in their earlier stages, † but in the Tantric age, the Buddhist gods were commonly exploited. The problem of correct identification of images, therefore, presents a real difficulty, and great scholars have, more than once, attempted solutions. Professors Waddel, Grünwedel, Foucher, Burgess, Miss Getty, and many others have written useful works and gathered together a considerable amount of information on Buddhist Iconography. But unfortunately the Pantheon of the Indian Vajrayānists has not been very much explored. Alice Getty and Deniker's work deals with Tibetan gods only, and the purely Indian gods seem to have attracted little notice from them. It is Professor Foucher who drew our attention first in 1900 and then five years later by the publication of his two parts of "Etude sur l'Icono-graphie Bouddhique de l'Inde," to a fruitful source of research in this direc tion. His curiosity was first aroused by a study of the illustrations given Indra appears in the Jalna Cave Temples at Ellora. For his image in Buddhist schools of sculptures, see Grünwedel: Buddhist Art in India p. 140 et sqq. † The Jainas borrowed early Hindu gods like Brahma, Kärttikeya, Kuvera, Gauri, and Ambikä, (See 1. A. Vol. XXXII, 159 et sqq.) and Buddhist Tantric deities, such as, Yakşeśvara, Vajraśrńkhalā, Gändhäri, Bhrkuti, Šyämä and Aparajitä.

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