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Painting of Nepal
The earliest paintings appeared in 11th century AD. and consisted of illustrated manuscripts on palm leaf or rice paper. Thangkas, a more predominant form of painting, are popular among Buddhists in Nepal as well as in Tibet and date back to the late 14th century. These paintings on cotton are rectangular in shape and usually longer than they are wide. They are framed with three stripes of Chinese brocade of blue, yellow and red which represent the rainbow which separates sacred objects from the material world. Older Thangkas consisted of mineral-based colors, while current Thangkas are produced with vegetable-based or chemical colors. Frequent themes of Thangkas include images of Buddhist figures, mandala designs, the wheel of life design, or depiction of scenes or stories.
Mandalas are geometrical patterns which assist in the practice of meditation, as well as symbolize the nature of the universe. The symmetrical pattern reflects the development of the cosmos from an essential Principle and its rotation around a central axis.
Other Buddhist symbols are common to Thangkas and wall paintings. A picture of four guardians may adorn the entrance to a monastery; two images are benevolent to greet worshippers, and two are fierce looking to protect against evil spirits. Other symbols are the wheel of moral law, the umbrella to protect against evil, the victory banner of Buddha's doctrine, two golden fish which represent wealth, the endless knot of eternal re-birth of everything, the flower-vase holding eternal bliss, the conch-shell proclaiming the benefits of enlightenment, and the lotus flower which symbolizes purity and the release of spirituality from earthly roots.
The fable of the four unanimous brothers involves an elephant standing near a fruit-bearing tree with a monkey on its back. The monkey holds a rabbit on its shoulder and a bird perches on the rabbit. All hold a piece of fruit. The bird maintained that while enjoying the shade and fruit of the tree, they owe gratitude to him since he planted the seed of the tree. The rabbit replied that while the bird sprinkles seed without regard, he watered the seed daily and conscientiously. The monkey stated that it was his dung, not the planting or the watering which was essential to the seed's growth. The elephant acknowledged their contributions, but said that it was his protection of the plant from other animals which made the tree's growth possible. The moral of the story is that cooperation causes fruitfulness.
The wheel of life symbolizes the endless cycle of reincarnations. A demon holds the wheel with fangs and claws to symbolize how repulsive it can be to participate in life. Buddha is portrayed outside of the wheel standing erect since he reached enlightenment and escaped the cycle of rebirth. The center of the image is a circle which contains the three vices; the rooster symbolizes lust, the snake symbolizes hatred, and the boar symbolizes ignorance. A ring around this circle shows the six stages of reincarnation; at the bottom is hell for the doomed, followed by the world of the pretas which are greedy and slaves to their desires, the last inferior world of the animals portrayed with a pastoral scene, the human world of towns and villages, the world of the Titans which wage war against the gods, and the world of the gods portraying beauty and serenity. Another ring illustrates small images to teach a lesson; a blind woman using a stick to walk symbolizes impulses created from ignorance, the potter manifests these impulses with the focus on feeling, a monkey picking up fruit represents the consciousness of acting on impulses, men in a boat symbolize that consciousness can create individuality but also separation, an empty house with an open door represents sensory perceptions translated into action by the mind (perceptions enter through windows but leave as actions out the door), a couple embracing shows how sensory perception creates physical desires, a man hit by an arrow demonstrates that touch excites the senses with pain or pleasure, a woman filling a man's cup shows that excitement of the senses creates a thirst for more, a monkey grabbing for fruit shows desire becoming a demand for more, the expecting mother shows that such eagerness for more is part of existence, the child's birth demonstrates birth as a necessary condition, and a man carrying a body shows death as a necessary condition of existence.
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