Amaravati Art in the Context of Andhra Archaeology

by Sreyashi Ray chowdhuri | 2018 | 90,477 words

This page relates ‘Birth of Rahula’ of the study on Amaravati Art in the Context of Andhra Archaeology, including museum exhibitions of the major archeological antiquities. These pages show how the Buddhist establishment of Amaravati (Andhra Pradesh) survived from 4th century BCE to 14th century CE. It includes references and translations of episodes of Buddha’s life drawn from the Avadanas and Jatakas which are illustrated in Amaravati art.

[Full title: Depiction of scenes from the life of Buddha: Birth of Rāhula]

Story:-

When Siddhārtha attained the age of twenty-nine his wife Yasodhara gave birth to a son. The son was named Rāhula. To Siddhārtha the birth of Rāhula meant further bondage to worldly life. In order to avoid attachment to worldly bondage Siddhārtha decided to leave the palace. Thus on the day of Rāhula’s birth, Siddhārtha left his palace at night in search of truth.

Depiction:-

The illustration of birth of Rāhula is visible on a dome slab from Amarāvatī preserved in the Archaeological Museum, Amarāvatī. The scene shows Siddhārtha bidding good-bye to his wife and newly born Rāhula. Candaka, his charioteer is sculpted with a torch. The upper section contains two devotees and the lower section reveals two standing adorents. In between these two section the palace is sculpted[1].(Pl 21b)

Footnotes and references:

[1]:

Acc No. 876, Limestone, Measurement, 140 x 45 x 15 cm, Archaeological Museum, Amaravati, Archaeological Survey of Indian.

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