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The Cosmic Mountain – Art and Architecture in Southeast Asia World History/E. Napp Name: _________________ Historical Context: “Art historians once considered the art of Southeast Asia an extension of Indian civilization. Because of the Indian character of many Southeast Asian monuments, scholars hypothesized that Indian artists had constructed and decorated them and that Indians had colonized Southeast Asia. Today, researchers have concluded that no Indian colonization occurred. The expansion of Indian culture to Southeast Asia during the first millennium CE was peaceful and non-imperialistic, a by-product of trade. In the early centuries CE, ships bringing trade goods from India and China to Rome passed through Southeast Asia on the monsoon winds. The local tribal chieftains quickly saw an opportunity to participate, mainly with their own forest products, such as aromatic woods, bird feathers, and spices. Accompanying the trade goods from India were Sanskrit, Buddhism, and Hinduism – and Buddhist and Hindu art. But the Southeast Asian peoples soon modified Indian art to make it their own. Art historians now recognize Southeast Asian art and architecture as a distinctive and important tradition.” ~ Gardner’s Art through the Ages 1- What lands participated in Indian Ocean trade? _____________ _____________ _____________ _____________ 2- Where is Southeast Asia located on the map? _____________ _____________ 3- How did monsoon winds benefit traders? _____________ _____________ 4- Why did many art historians consider Southeast Asia an extension of Indian civilization? ______________________________________________________________________________ 5- What have researchers recently concluded about India’s role in Southeast Asia? ______________________________________________________________________________ 6- Why did ships pass through Southeast Asia? ______________________________________________________________________________ 7- What accompanied trade goods in Southeast Asia? ______________________________________________________________________________ 8- Define cultural syncretism. ____________________________________________________ Borobudur: The Cosmic Mountain “On the island of Java, part of the modern nation of Indonesia, the period from the 8th to the 10th centuries witnessed the erection of both Hindu and Buddhist monuments. Borobudur, a Buddhist monument unique in both form and meaning, is colossal in size, measuring about 400 feet per side at the base and about 98 feet tall. Built over a small hill on nine terraces accessed by four stairways aligned with the cardinal points, the structure contains literally millions of blocks of volcanic stone. Visitors ascending the massive monument on their way to the summit encounter more than 500 life-size Buddha images, at least 1,000 relief panels, and some 1,500 stupas of various sizes. Scholars debate the intended meaning of Borobudur. Most think the structure is a constructed cosmic mountain, a three-dimensional mandala where worshippers pass through various realms on their way to ultimate enlightenment. As they circumambulate Borobudur, pilgrims first see reliefs illustrating the karmic effects of various kinds of human behavior, then reliefs depicting jatakas of the Buddha’s earlier lives, and, farther up, events from the life of Shakyamuni. On the circular terraces near the summit, each stupa is hollow and houses a statue of the seated Buddha, who has achieved spiritual enlightenment and preaches using the Wheel-turning mudra. At the very top is the largest, sealed stupa. It may once have contained another Buddha image, but some think it was left empty to symbolize the formlessness of true enlightenment. Although scholars have interpreted the iconographic program in different ways, all agree on two essential points: the dependence of Borobudur on Indian art, literature, and religion, and the fact that nothing comparable exists in India itself. Borobudur’s sophistication, complexity, and originality underline how completely Southeast Asians had absorbed, rethought, and reformulated Indian religion and art by 800.” ~ Gardner’s Art through the Ages 1- Where is Java located? ________________________________________________________________________ 2- Describe Borobudur. ________________________________________________________________________ 3- What do most scholars believe was the intended meaning of Borobudur? ________________________________________________________________________ 4- How and why does Borobudur reveal how thoroughly Southeast Asians had absorbed yet reformulated Indian religion and art by 800? _____________________ A review of Buddhism: Siddhartha Gautama, the founder of Buddhism, was an Indian prince who discovered the existence of suffering: old age, sickness, and death. Upon learning of the existence of suffering, he became determined to understand the reasons for human suffering and how to eliminate human suffering. Although he had initially joined Hindu ascetics or individuals who practiced strict self-denial in order to achieve spiritual states of consciousness, he did not find the causation or cessation of suffering among the Hindu ascetics. Leaving the ascetic path, Siddhartha meditated under a Bodhi tree – vowing to achieve enlightenment. Upon achieving enlightenment, Siddhartha became the Buddha or the enlightened one. The Buddha formulated his ideas on the causation and cessation of suffering in The Four Noble Truths. The Four Noble Truths: The Eightfold Path: Nirvana: The end of suffering 1- Suffering exists. 2- Desire causes suffering. * Wanting other than what is… 3- Suffering can end. * The end of suffering 4- Follow the Eightfold Path. * A path to end suffering “Just as heat displaces cold, light eliminates darkness. We will not overcome suffering just by making prayers or engaging in thoughtless meditation, but by understanding reality. The third noble truth, cessation, refers to the elimination of suffering and the way to it is the path of the fourth noble truth. The ultimate method to overcome ignorance is wisdom understanding reality.” ~ The Fourteenth Dalai Lama Buddhists accept the Hindu concepts of karma and reincarnation but reject caste. For Buddhists, dharma refers to the Buddha’s teachings. 1. The Buddha’s name comes from a Sanskrit word meaning (A) Spirit warrior. (B) Middle path. (C) The enlightened one. (D) To wake up. 8. A shrine, usually in the shape of a dome, used to mark Buddhist relics or sacred sites. (A) sutra (B) stupa (C) vajra (D) mudra 2. The Buddha's first disciples were (A) His wife and child. (B) His five former ascetic companions. (C) The great King Ashoka. (D) Members of the warrior-noble caste. 9. The totality of Buddhist teaching. (A) Satori (B) Sangha (C) Arhat (D) Dharma 3. According to the Buddha, his teachings must be (A) Accepted on faith. (B) Experienced in order to be worthwhile. (C) Memorized and chanted. (D) Spread by missionaries. 10. Constant rebirth and the attendant suffering; the everyday world of change. (A) samsara (B) bodhisattva (C) mandala (D) shunyata 4. The Buddha was silent on questions about (A) Suffering. (B) Violence. (C) Inner peace. (D) Topics that were unanswerable. 11. A Tibetan Buddhist teacher, often a monk. (A) lama (B) stupa (C) sutra (D) mudra 5. Once a person reaches nirvana, (A) Suffering continues only for this life. (B) Samsara is attained. (C) Rebirth is finished. (D) The Pure Land is entered. 6. Which did the Buddha not oppose? (A) strong devotion to a guru (B) the power of a priestly class (C) detachment (D) rituals for the gods 7. “Enlightenment being”; in Mahayana, a person of deep compassion, especially one who does not enter nirvana but is constantly reborn to help others (A) mandala (B) shunyata (C) bodhisattva (D) lama 12. Sorrow, misery. (A) dukkha (B) sutra (C) lama (D) mudra 13. A circular design containing deities, geometrical forms, symbols and so on that represents totality, the self, or the universe. (A) lama (B) maitreya (C) bodhisattva (D) mandala 14. In Zen Buddhism, a question that cannot be answered logically; a technique used to test consciousness and bring awakening. (A) dharma (B) koan Angkor Wat: Divinity’s Temple “In 802, at about the same time the Javanese built Borobudur, the Khmer King Jayavarman II (r. 802 – 805) founded the Angkor dynasty, which ruled Cambodia for the next 400 years and sponsored the construction of hundreds of monuments, including gigantic Buddhist monasteries (wats). For at least two centuries before the founding of Angkor, the Khmer (the predominant ethnic group in Cambodia) produced Indian-related sculpture of exceptional quality. Images of Vishnu were particularly important during the pre-Angkorian period… For more than four centuries, successive kings worked on the construction of the site of Angkor. Founded by Indravarman (r. 877-889), Angkor is an engineering marvel, a grand complex of temples and palaces within a rectangular grid of canals and reservoirs fed by local rivers. Each of the Khmer kings built a temple mountain at Angkor and installed his personal god – Shiva, Vishnu, or the Buddha – on top and gave the god part of his own royal name, implying that the king was a manifestation of the deity. When the king died, the Khmer believed that the god reabsorbed him, because he had been the earthly portion of the deity during his lifetime, so they worshipped the king’s image as the god. This concept of kingship approaches an actual deification of the ruler, familiar in many other societies, such as pharaonic Egypt. Of all the monuments the Khmer kings erected, Angkor War is the most spectacular. Built by Suryavarman II, it is the largest of the many Khmer temple complexes. Angkor Wat rises from a huge rectangle of land delineated by a moat measuring about 5,000 by 4,000 feet. Like the other Khmer temples, its purpose was to associate the king with his personal god, in this case Vishnu. The centerpiece of the complex is a tall stepped tower surrounded by four smaller towers connected by covered galleries. The five towers symbolize the five peaks of Mount Meru, the sacred mountain at the center of the universe. Two more circuit walls with galleries, towers, and gates enclose the central block. Thus, as one progresses inward through the complex, the towers rise ever higher, in similar manner as the towers of Khajuraho’s Vishvanatha Temple but in a more complex sequence and on a much grander scale. Throughout Angkor War, stone reliefs glorify both Vishnu in his various avatars and Suryavarman II. A detail of a relief on the inner wall of the lowest gallery shows the king holding court. Suryavarman II sits on an elaborate wooden throne, its bronze legs rising as cobra heads. Kneeling retainers, smaller than the king because they are lesser figures in the Khmer hierarchy, hold a forest of umbrellas and fans, emblems of Suryavarman’s exalted rank. In the reliefs of Angkor Wat, religion and politics are united.” ~ Gardner’s Art through the Ages 1- Identify two facts about the Khmer dynasty. _________________________________ 2- What did each Khmer king build? ________________________________________________________________________ 3- How did Khmer subjects view their king? ________________________________________________________________________ 4- Why was Angkor Wat particularly spectacular? ________________________________________________________________________ Using the reading and this aerial view of Angkor Wat, what can you conclude about the temple complex? ______________ ______________ ______________ ______________ ______________ ______________ ______________ ______________ A Review of Key Concepts in Hinduism: Reincarnation: the soul is reborn Karma: all actions have consequences Caste: A fixed social class system that lacks social mobility Dharma: the duties of caste Moksha: An end of reincarnation and a realization of the god-self Multiple-Choice Questions: 1. The second-ranking caste consisted of (A) Priests. (B) Merchants. (C) Nobles and warriors. (D) Artisans. 2. The earliest sacred texts of Hinduism are the (A) Upanishads. (B) Brahmanas. (C) Aranyakas. (D) Vedas. 3. According to Hinduism, what is the ultimate goal of existence? (A) to obey one’s dharma (B) to become a priest (C)to be reincarnated (D) to achieve union with Brahman 4. Both Hindus and Buddhists believe in (A) Caste (B) Samsara (C) Monotheism (D) Moksha 5. A sacred river in Hindu thought is (A) the Indus River (B) the Brahmaputra River (C) the Ganges River (D) the Yamuna River 6. The word Dalit means (A) “the leaders” (B) “the seers” (C) “the enlightened ones” (D) “the oppressed”