Sikri: Prophecy of Dipamkara Buddha

PAKISTAN, Balochistan, Sikri; Kushan period

This piece was once a panel on the base of a stupa excavated from 1888 to 1890, but has now disappeared along with the other narrative reliefs from Sikri. The scene is mentioned in the Sutra on the Collection of the Six Perfections as well as the Caryanidana Sutra. It is framed by Greek Corinthian columns, and is in the form of a composite narrative in which the main character appears four times.
Dipamkara is accompanied by a disciple and dominates the composition to the right. The young man named Megha stands beneath a balcony with the lotus flowers he has bought as an offering. He is next seen standing in front of the Buddha and showering him with the flowers, which can be seen encircling the Buddha’s nimbus. Megha appears again at his feet, spreading his hair on the ground for the Buddha to walk on. Dipamkara raises his right hand and predicts that Megha will become a Buddha named Sakyamuni after many eons. Megha, overjoyed on hearing this pronouncement, leaps into the air with palms joined in a final appearance.