Vikramasila Monastery: Illustrated Manuscript of the Astasahasrika Prajnaparamita Sutra

INDIA, Bihar

Discovered in Vikramasila Monastery in Bihar, India, this Sanskrit version of the Astasahasrika Prajnaparamita Sutra has a total of 337 pages, each 7 cm high and 41 cm long. Like many other illustrated manuscripts from the 11th and 12th centuries, the images are not related to the text.
The illustrations on the two pages shown here are depictions of Simhanada Avalokitesvara Bodhisattva and Maitreya Bodhisattva. The smiling Simhanada Avalokitesvara sits in relaxed posture on the back of a lion. Simhanada has a topknot and refined features. The upper body is bare and the lower body is wrapped in a tiger hide. A petal-shaped nimbus, square aureole, and flaming mandorla surround the figure. Maitreya Bodhisattva wears a golden crown around a high topknot. The Bodhisattva sits in relaxed posture on a lotus throne, forming a mudra with both hands. Maitreya is flanked by the smaller figures of Suyama and Sudhana. A palace is painted in the background.