Surviving Nirvana: Death of the Buddha in Chinese Visual Culture

373 Pages·2010·11.05 MB·English

by  Sonya Lee

Surviving Nirvana

Surviving Nirvana

Death of the Buddha in Chinese Visual Culture
Sonya S. Lee
Surviving Nirvana is published with the assistance of the Office of the Provost at
the University of Southern California.
The book also received generous support from the Metropolitan Center for
Far Eastern Art Studies and from the Chiang Ching-kuo Foundation.
Hong Kong University Press
14/F Hing Wai Centre
7 Tin Wan Praya Road
Aberdeen
Hong Kong
© Hong Kong University Press 2010
First Published 2010
Reprinted 2010
ISBN 978-962-209-125-2
All rights reserved. No portion of this publication may be reproduced or
transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical,
including photocopy, recording, or any information storage or
retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher.
Secure On-line Ordering
http://www.hkupress.org
British Library Cataloguing-in-Publication Data
A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library.
Printed and bound by United League Graphic & Printing Co. Ltd., Hong Kong, China
To Paul and Shao Bing Lee

Contents
List of Maps and Tables ix
Acknowledgements xi
Conventions xv
InTroduCTIon 3
ChAPTer 1 doubles: Stone Implements 25
ChAPTer 2 Transformation: Pictorial narratives 83
ChAPTer 3 Family Matters: nirvana Caves 139
ChAPTer 4 Impermanent Burials: relic deposits 203
ePILogue 265
APPendICeS Chinese Texts of Inscriptional Materials 271
1 The Chicago Stele 273
2 The Shanxi Stele 275
3 The Shengli Stele from Mogao Cave 332 278
4 The dali Stele from Mogao Cave 148 282
5 From the Jingzhi Monastery Pagoda Crypt 284
6 From the Jingzhong Cloister Pagoda Crypt 288
Abbreviations 291
notes 293
Character List 321
Bibliography 325
Index 347
vii

Acknowledgements
Maps and Tables
Map 1 Geographic distribution of nirvana images in medieval 20
China and other parts of Asia.
Map 2 Sites related to the development of the nirvana image 29
before the sixth century.
Map 3 Location of Li family caves and other related caves at Mogao. 139
Map 4 Northeastern China in the tenth century. 204

Table 1 Nirvana-related texts in medieval Chinese Buddhist canon. 89
Table 2 Major episodes in textual narratives on the Buddha’s nirvana. 91
Table 3 Comparison of narrative structure between textual and 98
pictorial nirvana narratives.
Table 4 The five relic deposits at Jingzhi Monastery. 211
ix