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Buddha Niche

Limestone

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Buddha Niche (before restoration)

Buddha Niches

CHINA; Tang dynasty

This sculpture was originally a section of a Tang dynasty (618–907) pagoda. The niche contains three figures: a Buddha and two Bodhisattvas. The Buddha sits in full lotus position with the left hand in varada (wish-granting) mudra. The figure has a flame-patterned nimbus. The two Bodhisattvas are largely obscured from view after the restoration but they stand in the tribhanga posture on lotus pedestals. Two warriors stand guard outside the niche. The overshadowing pavilion roof is disgorged from the mouth of a creature that is flanked by dragons. The monk Fakong commissioned the sculpture in 724 as an offering to the Bodhisattvas Bhaisajyasamudgata and Bhaisajyaraja according to the inscription.

For more details, go to the Encyclopedia of Buddhist Arts: Sculpture A-F, page 198.

Cite this article:

Hsingyun, et al. "Buddha Niches." Encyclopedia of Buddhist Arts: Sculpture A-F, vol. 10, 2016, pp. 198.
Hsingyun, Youheng, Yann Lovelock, Yuan Chou, Susan Huntington, Gary Edson, and Robert Neather. 2016. "Buddha Niches" In Encyclopedia of Buddhist Arts: Sculpture A-F, 10:198.
Hsingyun, Youheng, Lovelock, Y., Chou, Y., Huntington, S., Edson, G., & Neather, R.. (2016). Buddha Niches. In Encyclopedia of Buddhist Arts: Sculpture A-F (Vol. 10, pp. 198).
@misc{Hsingyun2016,
author = Hsingyun and Youheng and Lovelock, Yann and Chou, Yuan and Huntington, Susan and Edson, Gary and Neather, Robert,
booktitle = {Encyclopedia of Buddhist Arts: Sculpture A-F},
pages = 198,
title = {{Buddha Niches}},
volume = 10,
year = {2016}}


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