Shifting Stones, Shaping the Past

Sculpture from the Buddhist Stupas of Andhra Pradesh

Nonfiction, Art & Architecture, Art History, Asian, Religion & Spirituality, Eastern Religions, Buddhism
Cover of the book Shifting Stones, Shaping the Past by Catherine Becker, Oxford University Press
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Author: Catherine Becker ISBN: 9780190202156
Publisher: Oxford University Press Publication: September 1, 2014
Imprint: Oxford University Press Language: English
Author: Catherine Becker
ISBN: 9780190202156
Publisher: Oxford University Press
Publication: September 1, 2014
Imprint: Oxford University Press
Language: English

In this wide-ranging exploration of the creation and use of Buddhist art in Andhra Pradesh, India, Catherine Becker examines how material remains and visual experiences shape and reveal essential human concerns. Shifting Stones, Shaping the Past addresses the fundamental Buddhist question of how humanity progresses centuries after the passing of its teacher, the Buddha Sakyamuni. How might the Buddha's distant teachings be made immediate and accessible? Beginning with an analysis of the spectacular relief sculptures that once adorned the stupas. Over a period of almost two millennia, many of these stupas have fallen into disrepair. While it is tempting to view these monuments as ruins, they are by no means "dead." Turning to the 20th and 21st centuries, Becker analyzes examples of new Buddhist imagery, recent state-sponsored tourism campaigns, and new devotional activities at the sites in order to demonstrate that the stupas of Andhra Pradesh and their sculptural adornments continue to engage the human imagination and are even ascribed innate power and agency. Shifting Stones, Shaping the Past reveals intriguing parallels between ancient uses of imagery and the new social, political, and religious functions of these objects and spaces.

View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart

In this wide-ranging exploration of the creation and use of Buddhist art in Andhra Pradesh, India, Catherine Becker examines how material remains and visual experiences shape and reveal essential human concerns. Shifting Stones, Shaping the Past addresses the fundamental Buddhist question of how humanity progresses centuries after the passing of its teacher, the Buddha Sakyamuni. How might the Buddha's distant teachings be made immediate and accessible? Beginning with an analysis of the spectacular relief sculptures that once adorned the stupas. Over a period of almost two millennia, many of these stupas have fallen into disrepair. While it is tempting to view these monuments as ruins, they are by no means "dead." Turning to the 20th and 21st centuries, Becker analyzes examples of new Buddhist imagery, recent state-sponsored tourism campaigns, and new devotional activities at the sites in order to demonstrate that the stupas of Andhra Pradesh and their sculptural adornments continue to engage the human imagination and are even ascribed innate power and agency. Shifting Stones, Shaping the Past reveals intriguing parallels between ancient uses of imagery and the new social, political, and religious functions of these objects and spaces.

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