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The ancient civilization of Gandhara was located
in
the region encompassing modern northeastern
Afghanistan and northwestern Pakistan. Situated
at a
confluence of trading paths along the Silk Route,
the
area was flooded in diverse cultural influences
ranging from Greece to China. Gandhara
flourished
under the Kushan Dynasty and their great king,
Kanishka, who is traditionally given credit for
spreading the philosophies of Buddhism
throughout
central Asia and into China. This period is viewed
as
the most important era in the history of
Buddhism.
After the conquests of Alexander the Great, the
creation of Greco-Bactrian kingdoms, and the
general
Hellenization of the subcontinent, Western
aesthetics
became prominent. Greek influence began
permeating
into Gandhara. Soon sculptors based the images
of the
Buddha on Greco-Roman models, depicting Him
as a
stocky and youthful Apollo, complete with
stretched
earlobes and loose monastic robes similar to a
Roman
toga. The extraordinary artistic creations of
Gandhara
reveal link between the different worlds of the
East
and West.
In the Buddhist religion, Bodhisattvas are souls
who
have attained enlightenment and no longer need
to
reincarnate, but forsake nirvana and choose to
come
back in order to alleviate the suffering of others.
This stunning Gandharan stucco sculpture of the
head
of a Bodhisattva reveals that these spiritual
beings
were celebrated even then, as Buddhism began
to spread
from India eastwards. This head was likely once
attached to a body, the whole of which probably
stood
in a niche on the exterior of a stupa or shrine.
These Bodhisattva sculptures are also thought to
be
depictions of Kushan kings and princes. Their
luxurious adornments, see here in the beaded
hair
ornament that covers his top knot, suggests their
wealth. The thin mustache is also typical of such
representations. The artists of Gandhara were
the
first to represent the Buddha in his human form,
as
opposed to a symbol such as his footprint. This
gorgeous head is a reminder of an ancient
civilization
that, although vanished, helped spread the
teachings
of enlightenment throughout the heart of Asia.
- (LO.606)
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