Sam Vazir Ancient World Ms.

Powell May 16, 2013

ETERNAL TRUTH: KNOWLEDGE IS SOUGHT OUT BY ALL BACKGROUNDS

Since the beginning of life there has been a quest for knowledge, whether it was consciously being searched for or not. The first types of humans, Homo erectus, were unconsciously gaining knowledge. They were discovering what rocks and plants were. For eons species of all kind were looking for knowledge. Fast-forward a few hundred million years to the Homo sapiens, modern day humans. We all knowingly search for knowledge, whether by buying a textbook or going on the Internet. Without knowledge there would be no way to communicate, no way to interact, and no way to succeed. The Metropolitan Museum of Art (MET) is one of the most credible, well known museums in the world. Thousands of scholars visit it everyday to learn. In the Asia exhibit, at the MET, there are many statues of Buddha, in different forms. All of these statues may have different devotional meanings, but there is a main understanding between all of statues, and that is that if you pray to/meditate to these you will eventually attain knowledge. In China during the Tang dynasty many sought out knowledge. One specific object, Buddha, Probably Amitabha, is an example of this search for knowledge. The

object known as Buddha, Probably Amitabha supports the eternal truth that knowledge is sought out by all backgrounds. The statue of Buddha, Probably Amitabha was created during a time in which China was evolving. The Sui dynasty had fallen in 618 and the Tang Dynasty had emerged as the leader of China1. The Tang dynasty was one that prospered; knowledge was valued highly. Buddha, Probably Amitabha is a clay sculpture with a wooden core covered in hemp and then bathed in lacquer to make it stone hard2. This technique is just one way that the sculpture shows how knowledge is valuable in the world. It

Figure 1

is 38 inches high, 27 inches wide, with a

diameter of 22.5 inches3. Although the Tang Dynasty lasted from 618-906 the statue was probably not made until at least 650 after the death of Emperor Taizong. The statue is related to Pure Land Buddhism, which did not become

Period, Time. "Tang Dynasty (618906) | Thematic Essay | Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History | The Metropolitan Museum of Art." The Metropolitan Museum of Art - Home. http://www.metmuseum.org/toah/hd/tang/hd_tang.htm (accessed May 20, 2013). 2 " The Metropolitan Museum of Art - Buddha, Probably Amitabha." The Metropolitan Museum of Art Home. http://www.metmuseum.org/Collections/search-thecollections/60009594?rpp=20&pg=1&ft=buddha%2c+probably+amitabha&pos=1 (accessed May 20, 2013). Figure 1: unknown. Buddha, Probably Amitabha. 618. Photograph. Asian Art, New York. 3 " The Metropolitan Museum of Art - Buddha, Probably Amitabha." The Metropolitan Museum of Art Home. http://www.metmuseum.org/Collections/search-thecollections/60009594?rpp=20&pg=1&ft=buddha%2c+probably+amitabha&pos=1 (accessed May 20, 2013).

influential in China until 6504. Pure Land Buddhism is a form of Buddhism started by a monk called Dharmakara. He promised any of those that had faith in him that they would be reborn in Sukhavati, a place in which it was easier to attain enlightenment. The main idea behind Pure Land is that if you cannot achieve enlightenment then you will be reborn in a better place where it is easier to reach Nirvana. So, the statue is meditating, under bad circumstances, to show how one can be reborn in a better place and how knowledge is always being sought out by all backgrounds. Looking at the geography in which the object was created one can notice that Buddhism was large in China and that it was the main religion in China, which would lead many to try to seek knowledge. For centuries China was influenced by philosophies. People such as Confucian and Laozi created philosophies, Confucianism and Taoism, which would sway the course of China. Buddhism had been in China since 150 C.E., but it was never large5. However, come the

Figure 2

Figure 2: unknown. Tang Dynasty Map. 2012. History and Maps, China. History and Maps. Web. 19 May 2013. 4 "Amitabha (Buddhism) -- Encyclopedia Britannica." Encyclopedia Britannica. http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/20850/Amitabha (accessed May 20, 2013). 5 "Buddhism in China | Asia Society." Asia Society. http://asiasociety.org/countries/religionsphilosophies/buddhism-china (accessed May 20, 2013).

Tang Dynasty, Buddhism began to flourish. The Tang Dynasty spread over most of the eastern side of China with a short strip spreading out to the western parts6. From the size of the empire it can be assumed that they had a large influence. From their this, Buddhism spread all over China, especially in the 600s. Buddhism is about gaining knowledge and reaching Nirvana. Even though the fall of the Sui dynasty had made many people poor they would still try to achieve knowledge. The Buddhist influence along with the geography of the Tang Dynasty swayed many people to try and gain knowledge, no matter their background. The Tang Dynasty is considered one of the greatest in the Medieval World, one with knowledge put on a pedestal, which lead to the creation of this sculpture and the representation of seeking knowledge. The Tang dynasty, as said before, was established in 618 after the fall of the Sui dynasty7. The dynasty valued knowledge and produced many smart minds, such as poets and mathematicians. Some of the more famous poets are Li Bo and Du Fu. Li Bo was a poet that lives in 700-7628. Du Fu was a poet that lived from 722-7709. Both of these men are revered in the liberal arts, specifically

"Tang Dynasty Map - The Art of Asia - History and Maps." Inspiring wonder through the power of art. http://www.artsmia.org/art-of-asia/history/tang-dynasty-map.cfm (accessed May 20, 2013). 7 Period, Time. "Tang Dynasty (618906) | Thematic Essay | Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History | The Metropolitan Museum of Art." The Metropolitan Museum of Art - Home. http://www.metmuseum.org/toah/hd/tang/hd_tang.htm (accessed May 20, 2013). 8 Period, Time. "Tang Dynasty (618906) | Thematic Essay | Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History | The Metropolitan Museum of Art." The Metropolitan Museum of Art - Home. http://www.metmuseum.org/toah/hd/tang/hd_tang.htm (accessed May 20, 2013). 9 Period, Time. "Tang Dynasty (618906) | Thematic Essay | Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History | The Metropolitan Museum of Art." The Metropolitan Museum of Art - Home. http://www.metmuseum.org/toah/hd/tang/hd_tang.htm (accessed May 20, 2013).

poetry, part of the education spectrum. Seeing these two highly educated people it is easy to infer that knowledge was highly valued in the Tang Dynasty, all of the citizens were trying to gain it. The Buddha, Probably Amitabha is an example of how everyone is searching knowledge. It represents how everyone, even if you are in a bad environment, can gain knowledge. The decomposing statue was made with an advanced technique, yet is supposed to represent the quest for knowledge, which shows not just the poor and uneducated, but also those rich and educated. Buddha, Probably Amitabha was created with a skill not known to common man during the Tang Dynasty. It starts with a hard wooden core. After the core is shaved down and carved it is covered in clay. The next step is to take hemp and imprint it in the clay before the clay dries too much. The final step is to cover the clay and hemp in lacquer10. This makes the clay more than hard, it makes the clay and hemp as strong as a rock. The statue is an example of how even someone who has knowledge understands the struggle that others have when they try and achieve. They understood that meditation would be a way to reach Nirvana and ultimately gain knowledge.

" The Metropolitan Museum of Art - Buddha, Probably Amitabha." The Metropolitan Museum of Art - Home. http://www.metmuseum.org/Collections/search-thecollections/60009594?rpp=20&pg=1&ft=buddha%2c+probably+amitabha&pos=1 (accessed May 20, 2013).
10

Buddha, Probably Amitabha is a sculpture that represents everyones quest for knowledge. It comes from China, where a large majority of the population became Buddhist, tried to reach Nirvana, and gain knowledge. It is comes from a culture, the Tang Dynasty, that valued education and made it know that it was essential for a good life. It is made with an advanced technique that only someone educated could know, yet tries to represent the struggle that everyone faces trying to gain knowledge. The Buddha, Probably Amitabha is an example of how everyone, throughout the millennia, are always searching for knowledge. Without education we would have no good leaders, we would have no such thing as electricity, we would have no such thing as cake because without education people would not have been able to adventure off and learn new things about the world in which we live in.

Bibliography
"Amitabha (Buddhism) -- Encyclopedia Britannica." Encyclopedia Britannica. http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/20850/Amitabha (accessed May 20, 2013). "Buddhism in China | Asia Society." Asia Society. http://asiasociety.org/countries/religions-philosophies/buddhism-china (accessed May 20, 2013). Figure 1: unknown. Buddha, Probably Amitabha. 618. Photograph. Asian Art, New York. Figure 2: unknown. Tang Dynasty Map. 2012. History and Maps, China. History and Maps. Web. 19 May 2013. " The Metropolitan Museum of Art - Buddha, Probably Amitabha." The Metropolitan Museum of Art -Home. http://www.metmuseum.org/Collections/search-thecollections/60009594?rpp=20&pg=1&ft=buddha%2c+probably+amitabha&pos=1 (accessed May 20, 2013). Period, Time. "Tang Dynasty (618906) | Thematic Essay | Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History | The Metropolitan Museum of Art." The Metropolitan Museum of Art - Home. http://www.metmuseum.org/toah/hd/tang/hd_tang.htm (accessed May 20, 2013). "Tang Dynasty Map - The Art of Asia - History and Maps." Inspiring wonder through the power of art. http://www.artsmia.org/art-of-asia/history/tang-dynasty-map.cfm (accessed May 20, 2013).