Sikri: Life of the Buddha - Sumagadha’s Invitation

PAKISTAN, Balochistan, Sikri; Kushan period

The sculpture was unearthed from Sikri and depicts the story of Sumagadha, who is recorded in the Ekottara Agama. Sumagadha, a devotee of the Buddha, was forced to marry a man who was a non-Buddhist from another town where newlywed brides were required to pay their respect to the six thousand local deities. Sumagadha refused to honor the local deities instead she invited the Buddha to teach the Dharma to the local citizens. Depictions of this were rare in the Gandharan period.
Sakyamuni Buddha is standing in the middle of the panel, while Sumagadha bows before him. She is again seen on the right, with her back turned toward the citizens on the other side in a show of defiance. The people of her new household are showing their anger on the right.