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honjou-zu@–{Ά}
KEY WORD :@art history / iconography
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Lit. Illustrations of original lives. The original lives; honjou –{Ά or honshou, or former lives of the historical Buddha *Shaka Žί‰ή, which constitute the subject matter of a genre of Buddhist literature known as honjoutan –{Άζ also read honshoutan (Sk:jataka) or tales of original lives. The jataka stories as transmitted in the Pali Canon today number 547, and similar tales are also found in the closely related branch of Buddhist literature called avadana (Jp:hiyu 栚g) or allegorical tales. These tales, which are generally based on stories that were current in India at the time of the Buddha's earthly existence, have their origin in the belief that Shaka's enlightenment would not have been possible for an ordinary human being, but was the result of various practices performed in his past lives. The enormous popularity of these tales is attested to by the fact that they provided the subject matter for some of the earliest productions of Indian art, and they have remained favourite topics for sculpture and paintings throughout the centuries in all Buddhist countries. Examples of such honjou-zu are found in India at Bharhut and Sanci (2c BC), Amaravati (2c), and later in the caves of Ajanta; in the murals of Kizil and Dunhuang (Jp:Tonkou “ΦΰŠ) in Central Asia; in the bas-reliefs of temples at Borobudur in Java (9c), Pagan in Burma (13c), and Sukhothai in Thailand (14c); and in the caves at Longmen (Jp:Ryuumon —΄–ε) in China. There are, however, relatively few examples in Japan: the most famous are the two scenes from Shaka's past lives depicted on the pedestal of a household shrine dating from the mid 7c known as the *Tamamushi no zushi ‹Κ’Ž~Žq and preserved at Houryuuji –@—²Ž›. One of these panels shows the story in which Prince Mahasattva shows his courage and selflessness by sacrificing his life to a tigress and her starving cubs: the second shows the legend of a young ascetic who willingly forfeits his life in exchange for information about the truth of human existence. The first part of the Illustrated Scripture of Cause and Effect *e-ingakyou ŠGˆφ‰ΚŒo is also included in this genre.
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REFERENCES:
*butsuden-zu •§“`}@
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NOTES
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(C)2001 Japanese Architecture and Art Net Users System.@No reproduction or republication without written permission.
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