Download Martin Jerrell Martin Peter Barr Contemplation and Action 27

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Jerrell Martin
Peter Barr
Contemplation and Action
27 January 2015
Compare and Contrast
The two figures of the Shiva as Lord of Dance and the Wheel of Life have many
similarities and they also differ from each other as well. The term Hindu comes from a secular
word that is rooted in the language of the ancient Persians. The word Buddhism comes from the
word “Budhi” which means to awaken. The similarities of both figures are the relation to life and
the shape. With minimal similarities, there are many differences such as the type of material they
use for the two figures, the religions they represent, the Gods that they stood for, values, time
and place, and the size of the two figures and the identification. Though the relation each of
these figures has to life is very similar, they each serve their religions very differently.
The times that each of these figures were originated differ greatly, but where they were
originated and are 1500 miles away. The Hindu sculpture, Shiva as Lord of Dance, was
originated during the Chola period which is a part of the Indian history. The time span it was
brought into the religion is 860-1279. The Wheel of Life comes from the history of the Buddhist
religion dating back to 1800. That gives a very large difference in the time spans that each of
these figures were created. As said earlier, though the ages of these figures is very different, they
were originated in very close locations. The Shiva as Lord of Dance comes from India, and the
Wheel of Life comes from Tibet. That gives a location difference of nine hundred and eighty
three miles.
The Hindu sculpture is made out of copper allow, with each body part of the sculpture
having different meanings to them. The upper right hand is called the Damaru, being the hand
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drum which issued the sound of creation. The lower right hand is the Abjaya, which is meant for
removing fear, protection, and preservation. The upper left hand, the Agni, is for the
consumption of fire of destruction. Apasmara purusha, the right foot, is the illusion of leading
humankind astray. The left leg, called the Gaja hasta, is represents the refuge of the troubled
soul. Lastly, and most importantly, the flaming body halo, Prabhamandala, stands for the
surrounding that establishes the limits of the composition but also symbolizes its boundaries.
This sculpture is very small in size and only stand two feet tall.
Bhavachakra, Wheel of Life, is the textile that represents the Buddhist religion. It is
made out of nine feet of silk applique. Similar to the Hindu sculpture, the textile also has many
parts to it that all mean something different to the religion. The Buddha in the top right corner is
pointing at Yama, the figure holding the wheel, to teach his followers the true nature of living.
Inside of the wheel are the six domains of the desire realm. They are deva, asura, manussa,
tiryagyoni, preta, naraka. There are three roots of evil within the wheel; greed, ignorance, and
hatred. This textile is much larger than the Nataraja, being nine feet tall and seven feet wide.
Only one figure stands for not only its’ religious background, but it also stands for the
higher God of its religion. The Shiva as Lord of Dance, the Hindu sculpture, does not represent
any one God. It represents three different aspects of the universal God symbolizing the entire
circle of Hinduism. Also Hinduism has not agreed set of teachings. The creator is Brahma,
Vishnu is the protector, and Shiva is the destroyer. The Wheel of Life on the other hand does not
represent any one God. That is because the Buddhist people do not believe in the existence of a
God. They have higher beings that have no certain power. With that being said, Hinduism is not
founded by any one person, but Buddhism is founded by the Buddha; meaning that the Buddha is
a higher being in their religion. There are four stages of the Hindu tradition and they are
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Brahmacharga,which is focused on knowledge, Grastha, which is focused pleasure of life,
Vanapraastha, which focus on spiritual things, and Sanngasu which focus of the whole world for
the life of contemplation.
Both Hindus and Buddhist both believe in eternal life. That means that they both believe
that it is possible for one’s self to be born again, and regenerated; possibly coming back with a
different soul. For example, the life of a person does not end at death. There is an after-life for
everyone. Whether it is reincarnation or rebirth, the soul still goes on after death. Both religions
stress to their people not to fear death because of the belief of the after-life. This is large part due
to the fact that both religions believe in karma. Karma is the belief that what goes around comes
around. So if you do badly to others, eventually bad will happen to you. If you do good to
others, eventually good will happen to you. Those who believe in these religions know that after
death, they will live eternally either being treated badly, or treated good due to karma.
Sadly, Buddhist do not believe in the idea of salvation. Buddhist believe that suffering is
eternal. There is no being happy, or truly and completely satisfied with life. The suffering
emerges from the three fires or roots of evil; greed, ignorance, and hatred. On the other end,
Hindus believe in suffering and salvation. That for every pain, you will be healed and eventually
be happy. The whole Hindu sculpture is one example of this, with all of its parts meaning
something positive.
With minimal similarities, there are many differences such as the type of material they
use for the two figures, the religions they represent, the Gods that they stood for, values, time
and place, and the size of the two figures and the identification. Though the relation each of
these figures has to life is very similar, they each serve their religions very differently. The
Buddhist textile has a lot to do with the darkness of the religion, pointing out the evil in its
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beliefs. The Hindu sculpture of Nataraja points out the positives of the religion, giving the
people of it hope and strength to move forward. Both sum up their religions in very much detail,
as long as one knows the meanings of the parts that come along with them.
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Reference
"Hindu Rituals and Practices." - ReligionFacts. N.p., 17 Mar. 2004. Web. 30 Jan. 2015.