Sarvastivada Vinaya - Discipline for Monks

CHINA; Western Liang dynasty

This vinaya was transcribed by monk Deyou at a location south of Dunhuang. It is one of the earliest extant scrolls among the volumes discovered in the area, and is the earliest extant Chinese translation of a portion of the Sarvastivada Vinaya. This significantly long vinaya was written on both sides of the scroll and although it is damaged at the front, it is otherwise intact. The Sarvastivada Vinaya includes a Buddhist monastic code comprising ten divisions and contains the rules and observances expected of monks.
Remnants of Han dynasty (206 BCE–220 CE), bamboo slip manuscript styles are seen in this work that follows the transformation of scripting style from clerical to regular. Elements of running script are also observable, and brush pressure, stroke thickness, dabs, angular turns, and curved sweeps were uniquely executed. Variety in the size, layout position, and canting of the characters add to the features of the calligraphy. There is visible freedom in the overall composition that results in an antiquated and unembellished style, as well as a strong sense of ineptness typical of secular calligraphy.