Images of Truth

    Buddhist art and iconography

    Buddhist art has always been more than just decorative, it is also used for reflection and contemplation. This series features images and a short text that may be used for personal reflection, a perfuming of Heart & Mind to quieten & uplift consciousness.

    Gandaran bust of Buddha

    © John Eskenazi

    Gandaran Bust of Buddha

    3rd Century
    The familiar image of the standing Buddha probably originated in Gandhara in the 1st/2nd century CE; from that region, straddling the present-day nations of...

    Seated Buddha (Tibet) 13th Century

    The golden body of the Buddha shines a spiritual light that points to the fact that the teachings must be realised in this very body, if they are to be...

    Seated Buddha (Cambodia) 6-8th Century

    The hard sandstone used to create this elegant Buddha rupa makes its formation an act of arduous devotion that accumulated great merit for sculptor and donor...

    Yakushi Nyorai

    (Medicine Buddha) Japan 12th Century
    The Buddha is called the Great Physician and his teachings medicine for body and mind. These Buddhas dispense medicine to alleviate the 'dis-ease'...

    Bodhisattva - Central Tibet

    13th/early 14th century
    Tibet became a refuge for Tantric teachings once persecution took hold in India. Bodhisattvas came to represent the function of the Buddha nature in the...

    Emaciated Buddha Frieze 3rd Century

    The high holidays can be a time of excess. This frieze of the Great Bodhisattva during his time of asceticism reminds us of the superhuman efforts he made to...

    Amida Buddha - Muromachi period

    Images of Buddha
    Amida Buddha is the Buddha of the Western Paradise who has vowed to rescue anyone who calls upon his name. It is one of the most popular Buddhist schools...

    The Buddha Listens to Bavari

    Images of Truth
    The Buddha spent much of his teaching life in discourse with those who sought Truth. Some asked questions, others sought to refute his teachings. Whatever...

    Buddha Head

    Images of Truth
    The surviving fragment of a statue of the Buddha reveals a serene face, apparently in a state of deep introspection.

    The Goddess Vasundhara, 11th century Nepal

    Images of Truth
    Magical powers, Devas and bodhisattvas expound the Dharma in this week's images of truth

    Maitreya Buddha: Thailand c. 8th century C.E

    Images of Truth
    On the border of Thailand and Cambodia, bodhisattvas rather than Buddhas seem to have been the focus of worship during the 7th-9th century CE.

    Portrait of a Lama: Tibet 15/16th Century

    Images of Truth
    This meditative Lama's portrait illustrates a wonderful story of a monk who is frightened by a giant spider that disturbs his meditation. His teacher...

    Bodhisattva (fragment) Gandhara 4th Century

    Images of Truth
    The Bodhisattvas vow to stay in this world of Samsara until every last sentient being is saved. While such ideals may seem distant from our own lives, at...

    Heian Buddha (11th Century)

    Images of Truth
    The Heian Period (794-1185) saw a number of schools of Buddhism developing in Japan - Tendai, Shingon and Pure Land. Zen arrived in Japan in the 12th Century...

    Buddhist Theophany

    Images of Truth
    When the godhead or deity appears this is known as a theophany. Although the Buddha was a man, was it the Buddha or the man that incarnated all those years ago?

    PRAJNAPARAMITA Cambodia - 12th Century

    Images of Truth
    Prajnaparamita is the mother of all Buddhas. She is a living embodiment of the Great Wisdom Sutras and points the way to the nameless insight of the Buddha.

    6th Century Gandharan Buddha

    Images of Truth
    One of the earliest iconographic depictions of the Buddha was Afghanistan, depicted in the Hellenic style of the Ancient Greeks.

    Standing Buddha - Afghanistan c. 6th Century CE

    Images of Truth
    This serene figure of the Buddha is a definitive image of Gandharan sculpture.

    Mon Buddha Head, 7/8th Century, Burma/Myanmar

    Images of Truth
    Let go of the past, let go of the future, let go of the present, and cross over to the farther shore of existence. With mind wholly liberated, you shall come...

    Frieze fragment of figures beside a chakra (wheel)

    Images of Truth
    A fragment relief from Southeast India, accompanied by an excerpt from Setting in Motion the Wheel of the Dhamma

    Standing Buddha, 7/9th Century from Sumatra or Southern Thailand

    Images of Truth
    The symbolism of the standing Buddha raises the question: If there is no ‘I’, then who am I doing this practice for?

    Bust of Padmapani 'Holder of the Lotus'

    Images of Truth
    The immovable lotus on which the Buddha sits can restore peace to any situation.

    Maitreya: Sumatra 9th Century

    Images of Truth
    The bodhisattva Maitreya is the Buddha in waiting who will teach the Buddha’s way once the Dharma has been forgotten again.

    Padmapāni

    Images of Truth
    Those who call upon this Buddha at the moment of death are promised rebirth in Amitābha’s Lotus Land where they will attain Buddhahood. 

    Seated Buddha, Java/Sumatra 9th Century

    Images of Truth
    A 9th Century Buddha from Sumatra, with an accompanying verse explaining how to directly see the Dharma.

    Standing Buddha:

    Images of Truth
    In this extract from a Zen text from the Dun Huang caves, Master Nyuri explains the supernormal powers of The Buddha.

    The Parinirvana of the Buddha

    Images of Truth
    Before the Buddha died he gave one last sermon. The 15th of February marks the passing of the Buddha into Parinirvana celebrated by as celebrated by the Zen...
    More from The Arts
    Miyazaki’s worldview, his love for the natural world spills over into his work, making each gust of wind feel ordained.

    Spirited Away

    A Reflection on Human Excess

    At a time when societies search big ideas to save the world, Adrian Mathews argues that the film 'Spirited Away' offers us a more local solution.

    None Whatsoever

    Zen Paintings from the Gitter-Yelen Collection

    Ponder over this enigmatic collection of paintings by Zen Master Hakuin, with accompanying verses.

    Carving the Divine: Buddhist Sculptors of Japan

    Film Review

    A documentary on the training of wood sculptors who create Buddhas, Bodhisattvas and deities for the thousands of shrines throughout Japan.

    Review; Buddhism - The British Library Exhibition