A LARGE COPPER ALLOY FIGURE OF MAHAKATYAYANA


THAILAND, 19TH CENTURYHimalayan Art Resources item no.61649 58.5 cm (23 in.) high
|泰國 十九世紀 迦旃延銅坐像Theravada Buddhism maintains there are a finite number of buddhas possible for our current age, with Shakyamuni being the penultimate. The spiritual goal for ordinary beings is to perfect Shakyamuni's teachings over many lifetimes, which will result in becoming an arhat, an enlightened being who will finally transcend rebirth (parinirvana). Shakyamuni's original disciples represent Theravada's perfected ideal of the arhat. Mahakatyayana, here, is renown for his ability to elaborate on the Shakyamuni's terse instructions. His fat appearance is almost certainly co-opted from Chinese images of Budai. However, according to Thai folklore, Mahakatyayana (Thai: Sangkajai) was extremely sought after for his looks, so he transformed himself into a fat monk to avoid distraction from the arhat path. Greatly revered in Thailand, a similar, monumental sculpture of Mahakatyayana is built in Wat Bang Nam Phueng Nok, in Samut Prakan province.ProvenanceMorris Bennett, London, 1980