Sanchi Stupa 1: Life of the Buddha - Conversion of the Three Kasyapa Brothers

INDIA, Madhya Pradesh, Sanchi

The relief is featured on the inner side of the south column on the eastern gateway.
The Buddha encountered the fire-worshipping Kasyapa brothers at the start of his mission. The Kasyapa brothers and their disciples become his followers after the Buddha subdued a naga that lived in their shrine.
The fire shrine where the Buddha lodges for the night is at the center of the relief. The Buddha is represented by a throne. The sacred fire that the Kasyapa brothers worship burns before the throne while the five-headed naga rears above. Smoke spills from the windows on the roof of the shrine, while livestock mill frantically around the exterior. The figures standing next to the shrine are the bearded Kasyapa brothers and their followers who have their palms together in respect.
The scene is framed at the top by a forest where monkeys roam, and at the bottom by a river on which floats water fowls and lotuses. The new disciples, having renounced their former worship are cutting off their hair and setting it and their ritual implements adrift. The blazing fire altar reappears nearby on the side of the river.