동서 문화 교류에 의해 탄생된 인도 불상 고사 고찰—『대당서역기』를 통해서

초록

Xuan Zang, the intrepid and devout Buddhist monk and pilgrim, brought from India 657 copies of Buddhist Scriptures, 150 Buddha relic pieces and 7 Buddha statues. In Da-Tang-Xi-Yu-Ji (records of the Western regions of the Great Tang Dynasty), it is recorded that Buddha statues there were images of Walking-Buddha, Teaching-Buddha, Laying-Buddha and Standing-Buddha, as well as a statue of Sitting-Buddha, which is easily found in common temples nowadays. In addition, the book reports that the statue subjects were not only Shakamuni-Buddha, but Kasyapa-Buddha, Maitreya, the four Buddhas in the past world and the seven Buddhas in the past world. Various materials, including gold, silver, stone, brass, wood, and different types of gems were used for the statues. The statues are such elaborate sculptures that it is hard to conceive of human creation in their brilliant artistic and technical expression. In the discipline of Oriental culture, including India, the figure of a holy man or saint, was not originally depicted directly by its shape, but was symbolically substituted with a tree of Buddha or a stone statue of Buddha’s footstep. However, as the catalyst for the expedition of Alexander the Great to the East, India started to interact with Greece. And with this exchange, the first Buddha statue appeared, stemming from the influence of Hellenism in the areas of Gandhara and Mathura of India. Moreover, due to commercial development and the resulting accumulation of wealth, the cultural exchange between East and West flourished in those two regions, where Mahayana Buddhism is presumed to have originated. In the 7th century, when Xuan Zang visited India, all Buddha statues that existed in India reflected the style of Gandhara and Mathura statues. Since many relics were missing, it is impossible to see Buddha statues from that era in India and other surrounding nations of the Silk Road. Nevertheless, the supposition of Indian Buddha statues from that epoch was made possible by the benefit of Da-Tang-Xi-Yu-Ji. Indian Buddha statue stories in Da-Tang-Xi-Yu-Ji are closely associated with the construction of Buddhist temples.

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