Buddhist Cosmology

MYANMAR

These book illustrations from Myanmar are watercolor paintings that blend local and western styles to depict aspects of Buddhist cosmology including the human world, the heavenly realms, and hell.
In the painting of the heavenly realm, Mount Sumeru, portrayed as a large red stupa, is in the middle of the lower register. On each side, seven cubes of diminishing height flank Mount Sumeru to form a mountain range. The symmetrically organized small stupas above Mount Sumeru represent the Trayastrimsa Heaven. At the top of the painting, four curved lines symbolize the formless realms. Four illustrations on the bottom border depict the realms of the hungry ghosts, the asuras, the animals, and hell.
In the painting of hell, a large cauldron full of flames is shown in the center. There are four gates in the sides of the cauldron, and in front of each gate there are oval shaped layers of fire and ash. Beings are burned and tortured within the cauldron. Pavilions are painted in each of the four corners, and three Burmese inscriptions are written within squares on the sides of the picture.
The third illustration portrays the world as an egg-shaped object divided into three vertical sections. The Himalayas and the origin of the four major rivers are at the top. India is in the center, with Patna and Vaishali marked by labels. The ocean at the bottom is filled with egg-shaped islands such as Penang of Malaysia, Sri Lanka, and the land of the nagas. Burmese script is written in the corners.