Manifestations of Buddhas

When Shakyamuni, the Historical Buddha, became silent and entered the unshackled state of existence or the final nirvana, the devotees wanted to adore and remember the enlightened being and this served as an inspiration for the creation of Buddha images. The followers could not accept that their teacher had completed his earthly sojourn and had departed forever. The devotee???s yearning was always for something evocative and visual of the Supreme Lord. And thus began a journey of representing Buddha from enshrined stupas to images of the Lord in human likeness. Buddhism started becoming a tradition of the visual, wherein the message of the sutras was translated through images and murals. With the passage of time, devotion combined with needs and aspirations of people gave way to creation of a variety of Buddhas manifested in various forms, attributes and characteristic features in different countries across the world. About The Author: Dr Shashibala, a specialist in art and culture of Asian countries, and a researcher at the International Academy of Indian Culture, has worked as an adjunct faculty at the National Museum Institute, New Delhi for fi fteen years. She has traveled widely to participate in international conferences, worked on the art treasures and manuscripts of Asian countries. She has to her credit many research projects and research papers and articles presented at various conferences or seminars held in India and abroad. Her doctoral thesis ???Hindu Deities in Japan??? was published by International Academy of Indian Culture. There are two editions of her post-doctoral thesis ???Comaparative Iconography of Vajradhatu-mandala and the Tattvasangraha???. Author of Buddhist Art (published in English and Dutch), Divine Art and Buddhist Art and Thought, she is also highly acclaimed for her photo exhibitions and radio broadcasts.