CHAPTER SEVEN

SANCHI : THE VISUAL EVIDENCE

Great nations write their autobiogr<:tphies in three manuscripts;the book of their deeds, the book of their words and the book of their art. Not one of these books can be understood unless we read the two others. But of the three the ')nly quite trustworthy one is the last. (John Ruskin, quoted in Haskell 1993).

I

Historians have relied largely on literate traditions for undersanding the past. This

understanding condemns into silence the ex;periences of the larger s~gment ofhumanity.

The larger part of humanity organised its life around the act of seeing. Their gods and

demons, dreams and fantasies, war and peace, verily the entire gamut of their cultural

universe, did not require the written word. However, historians have largely relied on the

written word for understauding the past. This effectively shuts out vast multitudes from

the scope ofhist()ry. The homo-historicus of our part of the world is never shown to have

ever laughed or dreamt. This situation contrasts strangely with the depiction in art of

every form of social activity. This is because our training encourages us to privilege the

written word above everything else. The standard approach of historians to visual

evidence has been that of merely adding a section on the arts to an essentially political

narrative. Art historians, literary critics, and plain historians did not have much to say to

one another (Burke 1987:4). There is a need to incorporate art into the very structure of

the historical narrative.

If historians have been blind to the social milieu, art historians have rarely looked

212 t\

beyond the ouvre to the social milieu Absorbed in the internal analysis of the iconographv

and influences, they have commonly forgotten to ask who saw these pictures and what

impact they had. Perhaps there is a need for visual history to understand what they saw

In a largely preliterate context, a picture transmitted messages of power relations, religion,

morality and status. Next to the spoken language it was ~he most effective form of

communication and every sculpture carried with it a set ofmeanings An attempt to see

what people saw is long overdue. Perhaps there is a need for visual hi:;tOiy (Roy Porter

1988) The Sanchi inscriptions and friezes give us an opportunity to create an interfan·

bct\veen historv and art history This is because the in\criptions are cngr<l\ed on tlh.' Sttlpii

r.e. the visual e,·idence <~nd the written word have been conveniently put together

Works of art have been used for an understanding ofthe past in many cases l·or

example, a lot of our understanding of the Harappan or the Egyptian civilization dcnve:-,

from their art works. Similarly, the invention of the idea of the European Renaissance

owes much to the feeling for art. The idea of Renaissance as primarily the rebirth of arb

and letters to one that embraced every aspect of human history represents a broadenmg

of the idea of art history to cover all aspects ofhuma;1 endeavour (Haskell 1993 274-277 l

There is alv.ays the danger that the general impression that works of art give us of an

epoch is far more happy and serene than that which we discover from other sources. The

vision of an epoch resulting from the contemplation of works of art is always incomplet ·:

and always too favourable (ibid:490).

What is crucial to our argument is that we cannot understand the historic value of

Sanchi ifwe look only at Lhe manifest intentions ofthe artists who produced the Sanchi

friezes. 1

There is a need to understand the San chi friezes in the background of the cultural

tradition which defines the boundaries of what can be depicted and said. It is the cultural

universe which makes it possible for the artists at Sanchi to communicate with the patrons

and the viewers. What we are broadly hinting, at a distance of about 2000 years from

Sanchi, is that to be able to understand Sanchi we have to to understand the attitudes of

the creators of the message and the receivers of the message. In short, we have to try to

understand the world view of those times which bound the patrons as well as the clients.

It is difficult to understand the world view thrm~gh the study of art. However some

elementary exercises can be done. This can be based on the theoretical assumptions of

Bourdieu (1977). He has shown that one can understand a world view by a study of

1 Commenting on the artists of a different epoch Burke (1987:2) says , "Renaissance artists generally did more or less what they were told." Commenting on the famous painter Botticelli he says, "The role of painter which he played was the one defined by (or at any rate in) his own culture. In a sense this social definition of a role is a ~nd of constraint; we are all as the French historian Femard Braude! liked to put it, "imprisoned' by our assumptions, our mentalities.It is not possible to think all kinds of thoughts at all times as another French historian Lucien Febvre, used to say".

214!\

attitudes encoded in daily life. The local conventions of eating, drinking, walking, talking,

or even falling ill can act as keys to understanding the cultural universe of a particular

society.

Cultural historians nowadays use a linguistic model for understanding the past.

This method starts with the assumption that culture is a form of communication. So the

research strategy involves an attempt to understand who is saying what to whom, in what

situations and through what channels and codes in a wide range of communicative evcnh

which between them make up a culture (Burke 1987 8) ; or our research purpose-. 11

would mean that we shall have to distinguish between different kinds of senders and

recipients of messages. The Stlider of the message would be the Buddhist church, and lb

repertoire comprised pictures of kings, priests and the pious, fabulous beasts and men !'he

recipients are as yet a vaguely understood class of Buddhist laity. We shall have to tl) and

understand the different purposes ofthe communicative events: to obtain obedience tu

spread the· truth'. The communication model also involves the stdc1:,· of hov. the spec tat o1 ·,

perceived or interpreted the messages !'heir minds \\Ul~ not like shc,.h ofhlank papl'I :'u:

\\ere tllled with stereotypes, assumptions, and habib l•fthought This 'Viii heir us tt• :-.tuth

both the form as \\ell as the contents ofthc message (Burke 1987 9) and avoid the pittalb

of earlier works which either studied the form or the content of the art work Nov. \\ e

know that forms are as culture specific as content and both are intrinsic parts of culture

as communication.

We shall also use statistical methods. This means that we shall break down the

details given in the panels to see whether they show any pattern of regularity It has been

said tha! statistics are speciously precise because the exact relation ofthe sample .:malysed

215

to the world outside is uncertain. However, it will help us bring in various generalisations

about 3-ncient India into the realm of verifiable hypotheses. In any case historians,

implicitly use quantitative terms like more or less, rise and decline (Burke 1987: 1 0). So

it is better to explicate these terms and methods.

II

The most secret beliefs and ideals (of an age) are transmitted to posterity perhaps only through the medium of art and this transmission is all the more trustworthy because it is unintended. Jacob Burckhardt (Haskell 1993· 332)

Studies of ea.rly Buddhism have been dominated by rationalist interpretation. Early

Buddhism according to this view was a collection of moral and ethical principles. In the

later phases of its development it was encrusted with myths and legends. However, some

scholars have pointed out that even the earliest Buddhist texts carry a heavy load of

mythology. Buddhism did not negate myths and legends, rather, it created its own

hierarchy of.gods and demons with the Buddha at its (lpex. This part of Buddhism co-

existed with thaLwhich emphasised ethical and moral behaviour.

The study of the Gateways of San chi can. provide insjghts into the reljgious beliefs

of the early Buddhists. A study of these friezes shows that the cult of Stupa which was a

non monastic institution, and the cult of tree worship which was not associated with

Buddhism either, were more pop'ular themes than any of the ethical or moral teachings of

the Buddha. The Sanchi art was applied art with apracticalpurpose in mind. It was

probably meant to overwhelm the spectator through an extravagant display of pomp. Who

chose the scenes to be depicted?

It is believed that the Pali canon was written down in the First century B. C.

216

(Dehejial997:6l ). The Pali canon is likeiy to have represented the codit!cation of a variety

of middle Ganga valley traditions. The Sanchi friezes \vould be roughly contemporar; with

the Pali canon available to us. It is likely that the artist at Sanchi was following au oral

tradition. This would make it easier to assimilate local traditions of worship. Alsa oral

traditions generally follow the "Great man theory of history" meaning that many people

and personalities are fused into one (Yansina 1985: 108). In other words, important

changes are believed to have been caused by a single heroic individual. In such a milieu

heroic lore could easily be assimilated into the Buddhist tradition, and the Bodhi~;at.t vas

become the carriers of the floating mass of popular nistory This view is supported bv the

fact that the earliest versians of the life of the Buddha do not mention many symbols

which we associate with Buddhism. The most remarkable factor in this recital is the entire

absence of any temptation by Mara. There is no mention of the famous tree under which

enlightenment was attained (Thomas, E.J. 1949:68). Obviously, Buddhism had latched on

to the rich repertoire of folk tradition. Since the Buddhism of the tarly centuries oft he

Christian era had already a vast repenoire of folk tales, we need to understand wh\ some

stories were depicted and not others. The friezes have a directness of appeaL a comcptl\•Il

of joy in very cleat cut earthy categories The Buddhist way of considering all '' orldh

pleasures as forms of suffering is simply not to be found Here are people smiling and

larking. Despair and dejection are completely missing. How do we explain it'' One

explanation could be that the San chi friezes are pictures of ideal worlds: the world of the

supernatural with its panoply of gods and the world of the past inhabited by ideal kings

and pious believers. Naturally, they had no reason to suffer The presentation of the past

as the ideal and the present as decadent and degenerate is a standard method of en::Orcing

norms of religion in many societies.

Agrawal believes that the reason for the depiction of celebration and gaiety on the

panels is that the Stupas symbolised the incarnation and release of the Buddha (Agrawal

1987: 136). However, the most likely explanation is that the pre-Buddhist cult ofYaksha

worship was appropriated by early Buddhism. The presence of Yaksha and Yakshini

figures in the early monuments is proof. People of various castes used to gather at the

Y aksha cult celebrations. Y akshas were worshipped with music, dance, lamps, flowers and

eatables (ibid.l27-129). Similarly, the Nagas, Kinnaras, Devas, Supamas, Lokapalas and 0

trees in Sanchi and Bharhut testify the assimilation of many anterior traditions (ibid.63)

Many of these traditions would have derived from local cult practices. Some of these

traditions would have celebratory modes of worship. It was probably the overwhelming

presence ofthese elements which explains the mood of joy and celebration at Sanchi.

The early Buddhist literature gives us some idea of how the Buddhist preachers

spread their message. This could give us some idea about the selection of the themes for

the Sanchi friezt::s. A tradition about the propagation ofBuddhism says:

If the Master was preaching to those who had left household life, he would emphasise such concepts as transitoriness of life and stress clearly the need for repentence. If the audience consisted of kings, princes and householders, then he would allude copiously to the secular literature and present it in beautiful literary language. If on the other hand the audience consisted of common people and country bumpkins, then he would use straight forward language based on experience; better still, he should resort to local terminology and just describe good or bad Karma. (Chen 1973:243)

Tht:: Sanchi evidence seems to be following some similar idea.

Along with Bharhut these were probably the earliest attempLs at planting

218

Buddhism in a society where miracle was a better medium of communication than ethical

teachings. Talk ofthc misery of worldly existence could ill suit the prevailing mood of

gaiety and celebration.

We shall examine the Sanchi friezes for some specific details. In the preceding

chapters we tried to understand the process of emergence ofurba!' centres in the l\1ah\a

region. Now we shall examine the Sanchi tl-iezes to understand hm\ the artist visualised

physical space. This entails understanding the three major units of settlement - Cit~·.

Village and Forest. Since these physical units arc themselves representations of J sucial

universe, we shall begin by attempting to understand the world view of the art ish the

social order they visualised, and their conception of social power')

Ill

The Visual Evidence of Sanchi: A brief history

Sanchi presents us with rich visual evidence This probably explains why the \ 1sual

evidence was utilised from the earliest publication of books on Sanchi to understand ll and

its remains (Fergusson 1868). It was Sir John Marshall's (1940) monumental volumes

which systematically analysed the entire visual evidence found in the Stupas of Sanch1

These volumes tried to collate the visual evidence and located its parallels in the Jatakas

Many scholars have used the visual evidence to give us a picture of society in those times

(Dhavalikar 1965, Dehejia 1997).

Scholars like N.R.Ray ( 1975) have used the term, , popular art', for the Sanci1i

friezes He contrasted it with the imperial art of Asoka. This idea needs to be e)~amincd

Popular culture has been defined as the culture and tradition of the non-learned, the

unlettered, the non elite (Burke 1978:24). True the gathering in Sanchi was not imperial,

219

but it was a distinguished gathering nevertheless. Ifthe testimony of the inscriptions is to

be believed the donors at Sanchi were members of a highly stratified society. Monks and

merchants, Greeks and residents ofDaktinapatha, imperial officers and manufacturers, all

came here. Nor is the art one of"artless simplicity" which c0uld be created by everyone

from the local community. It is complex, and created by a highly specialized set of

artisans. Also, the broader unity in theme and presentation with other, faraway Buddhist

sites requires a reformulation ofRay's understanding.

The Evidence ofRockArt

If any art form of early historic times qualifies to be called local and popular art,

it is the rock paintings of central India. This paintiQg tradition dates back to the

chalcolithic period and continues well into the historical period. Indian art is believed to

have been bifurcated in the early historic period. One was urban-centred art which was

open to outside influences and was patronised by courts and trading magnates. This art

was an expression of power and prestige. The rock pictures on the other hand belong to

a very autochthonOt!S world. It seems that the emergence of centralised polities and the

' coming ofBuddhism had little or no impact on the stylistic make up of this art (Neumayer

1993:211).

Many rock painting Site are located in the same areas as the early Buddhist caves

and Stupas. Sanchi and Virlisha have yielded rock paintii1gs (Misra 1982:3). Similarly the

famous Bhimbetka caves have yielded inscriptions indicating the presence of Buddhist

mendicants (Neumayer 1993: 17). At Narsinghgarh in the ~garh district several rock art

depictions of the Stu pas vrere found (Neumayer 1993: 18). What is interesting is that

despite their geographical proximity, the rock art and Sanchi art seem to have very little

220

influence on each other in stylistic tenns. This is all the more intri!:,ruing when we consider

the fact that rock painting is an anterior tradition. Normally one would expect the later

artists to copy the style and motifs from the earlier tradition. The rock paintings do shovi

technological details paralleling those ofthe early historic period. For example, people are

shown wearing clothes with long tassels and c1ps Similarly, there are depictions of

domesticated anitnals, chariots etc. (ibid.:39, 156). In the early Buddhist reliefs there was

an attempt to create tht illusion of three dimensionality, something which was nev~r

attempted in rock art. The Sanchi reliefs are caparisoned with tree and leaf patterns

something which is rare in i·ock at1. Probably, urban ar1 created an opportunity to look at

nature as an observed fact. To the creators ofrock art trees a11d flowers did not constitute

a novelty since they were part of it. Similarly none of the l~1bulous anin:als and motif~

depicted in Sanchi can be said to have been derived from the anterior rock an tradir10n

The discussion on the rock art of centra! India suggests that it was fashionco1n a

social environment not directly influenced by urban prestige art. Probably, in many case".

it was practised by communities on the periphery of urban ..;ociety. Comparisons betv\een

the ancient rock pictures and modern house wall pictures in Malwa show strono stvlist1c b -

and thematic analogies (NeLunayer 1993:270 - 71) Such analog;ies and compari~otb

suggest that the rock art was the true folk art in the period 200 B' ' - 1 00 A [)

The l~1ct that the Sanchi reliefs present a ditTcrent style compared to the antenor

rock art tradition suggests that the Sanchi art \vas not derived Jrqm local art tradrtions All

of Sanchi's mythical animals are missing in the rock art. Budd~~ist mythology and most of

the Buddhist art tradition arrived at Sanchi in finished form The fuct that the Sanchi art

did not pick up many things from the local art tradition ties in with our observation that

22l

Buddhism seems to have ignored the autochthonous p()pulation. Our study of the

inscriptions has shown that the donors at Sanchi were mostly people linked to an urban

environment.

Vidya Dehejia (1997) has studied the Sanchi friezes in the context of early

Buddhist art. She has shown that the artists at Sanchi and Bharhut used various methods

of presenting their visuals. There was the mono scenic mode in which a single scene from

the Buddha's or a Bodhisattva's life was supposed to represent an entire episode. Other

narrative styles were also used. The famous Vessantara Jataka is shown in a series of

twenty one scenes at Sanchi. The same Vessantara Jataka story is shown in one small

panel at Bharhut. What needs to be kept in mind is that these ways of representing the

Buddha or Buddhism seem to have depended on the preferences of the artists. The

different conventions of representation do not follow any chronological order. Dehejia has

pointed out that :.;tatic representations were regularly used where theological concerns

were predominant. The overwhelming presence of static monoscenic representation in

Sanchi points to the influence of monks on the visual narratives. The Sanchi friezes

provide us a privileged observatory. It is a world of social contrasts where various levels

of social reality met.

IV

The Stupas

Stu pas were funerary monuments. The evidence for the presence of the Stu pas is to be

found even in Vedic literature. The tumulus was built outside the inhabited area and was

quadrangular for those who accepted the Veda and circular for those who were of Asura

nature (Guiseppe De Marco 1987). It is believed to have been the earliest visual

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representation of the Buddha. in the Mahaparinibb3na Sutta the Buddha insi.FlCts his

followers that his funeral rites should be like those of a universal monarch. After the

cremation his bones were to deposited in a golden um and placed in a mound built at the

crossing of four roads. OtTerings of t1owers and garlands, banners, incense and music

characterised both the funeral rites themselves and the continuing worship of th~ Stupa

(ibid.). It is in this sense that the Stupa seems to have a magico-ritual value2 A pilgrim

visited the Stupa because it called to his mind the Buddha, whose remains were interred

in it With these relics mystery established its presence in the midst of the visible universe

The Stupa became a medium through which the Buddha was perceived. The Later

literature says that the Stupa is worthy of worship and reverence not only IJecause rt

contains relics but because its form symbolises the enlightened state of a Buddha Eacn

of its layers was believed to represent certain meanings (Eiiade 1987) Our main concern

is the study of the friezes around the Stopa of Sanchi Although the Buddha is identifit·d

with the Stupa, he is not represented in human form. The rich imagery of the tfiezes

suggests that at this time organised Buddhism may have been evolving methods of

assimilating and handling diverse local traditions. Probably, Buddhism was richer tn tts

practice than in its doctr~nal understanding

THE JATAKA STORIES

The Jatakas are part of the BGddhist lore. They tell stories of the Buddha's past

births. The representation ofthe Buddhist birth stories at Sanchi indicates that Buddhism

was appropriating the popular tradition of heroic tales. Every popular god or hero became

a Bodhisattva. But if Buddhism was appropriating popular stories, it was also being

. 2

We kno~ that in medieval Europe images were h::lieved to prevent plague, bring ram or prevent ram See B~lfke( 198 7 125)

223

appropriated to the popular tradition. That is how numerous demigods and demons made

their entry into the friezes of Sanchi. The visual representation of the Jataka stories would

take the imagination of the viewer to the edge of wonderland. The friezes offered a

glimpse ofthe divine. The events depicted at Sanchi are mostly connected with the life of

the Buddha and the Bodhisattvas. These events depicted not so much their individual

achievements as social achievements. It represented some kind of a struggle not for

personal gain but for people's highest ideals. We shall examine the Sanchi friezes to find

out about the col!ective ideals ofthose times.

Who Selected The Stories To be.Shown on The Friezes

Modern examples from studies in Srilanka show that the pictures which are to be

exihibited are selected by the monks of the monastery (Margaret and Gombrich

1977:XXVI). Ins,~riptions at Bharhut describe a monk as a sculptor and another as a

superintendant of construction (Lamotte 1988:94). Dehejia believes that the scenes were

selected by the donors. This, according to her, is proved by the absence of any pattern in

the presentation of the stories. Similarly, the repetition of some stories on many

architraves also indicates that it was the donors who decided what was to be shown. The

donors had fluid capital which they could donate. This itself is related to a urban situation.

Sanchi is a celebration of emergent urbanism. We can assume that these friezes were the

product of the combined efforts of monks, artists and donors. The absence of planning can

be related to the fact that the resources for creating these art works were not available at

one time. Static presentation of events is believed to be related to the predominance of

theological concerns (Dehejia 1997: 12). Such concerns would inform the art works where

monks have a greater inf1uence compared to patrons or artists. The Sanchi gateways

224

provide many examples of monoscenic and static friezes, indicating that many of the

stories were selected by monks. That artists too had an important role in the creation of

these friezes is evident from the fact there is considerable variation in tht quali~y of

treatment of subjects at San chi. The artists had to decide how to portray the actors, how

to represent the space in which the story occurs, and how to shape the time during which

the story unfolds (ibid.l 0). Variations in the treatment of the same story indicate that

artists had considerable freedom in making choices about the mode of narration The

tigures of Kumbhandas at San chi might have been a Central Indian contribution to the ., -

Buddhist art tradition. While the gods at Sanchi are stereo-typed and dull. tlw

Kumbhandas are dynamic and volatile Mara's army for example, i~ a collection of' i\ 1dh ••

portrayed Kwnbha~11a figures. This powerful representation of thE' :aces of evil represenh

one of the high points of San chi art. Buddhist mythologv b.:lieves that Kumbh~mdas \\ L'lc - .. residents oft he South (Malalasekera) Was, the South of early i~uddhist mytholog\. the

Avanti region'J' The ewer used by prince Vessantara is very Central Indian in shape \\ e

do not tind such vessels in the archaeology of the heartland of Buddhism All these !~tct"

suggest that the Sanchi friezes were the pmduct of a complex interaction hew cu1 r ih

lll\lllastery, patrons and artists

Who Received The Message of The Friezes ?

... and there will come Anand a, to such spots, believers, brethren and sisters

3 We shall discuss this problem in the chapter on literatary references to Malwa

225

of the order or devout men and devout women (Mahaparinibbana Sutta) (Dehejia 1997:38)

The inscriptions from donors at Sanchi show that the pilgrims covered a whole

range of social categories and classes. The visuals showing kings, merchants and other

people praying at the Stupa also support this evidence. The quotation above speaks of

those who are already Buddhist, and others, devout men and women who are _presumably

not Buddhist, visiting these shrines. Examples of patronage of different religious groups

by the same royal family are common. It seems to us that the creators of the friezes had

a large non - Buddhist audience also in mind. While the monoscenic presentations would

require familiarity with Buddhist mythology, the narrative ones could be more_generally

understood. In such cases these friezes were an instrument of proselytizing. In fact, the

numerous fabulous animals and supernatural beings can be understood as an attempt to

incorporate diverse traditions in Buddhism. This would attract the potential viewer who

saw some of his gods honoured in the Buddhist pantheon. Monk guides are also

meutioned in some inscriptions (Dehejia 1997:33 ).

v

The Hierarchical Conception of the Universe

Power of any !<ind must be clothed in effective means of displaying it, and will have different efTects depending upon how it is dramatized (Goffman 1971 :241). ·

To the pilgrims who visited Sanchi the world was neatly divided along hierarchical

lines. The Buddha was ~eated on the summit of this hierarchy followed by monks,

monarchs, merchanl:s and people of all hues. It was not only humanity which was part of

this ladder-like arrangement; the natural and super-natural worlds too hinged on this

226

principle of organisation. The seven heavens atop each other, the seven trees of wisdom

which sheltered the seven Buddhas, and numerous other things seem to have followed this

arrangement. To the viewers of the Sanchi friezes, the world was peopled by various

categories of b~ings like Devas, Lokapalas, Y akshas, Suparnas and Kumbhandas who ~. ., 0

could be graded along a vertical scale. These notions of hierarchy permeated and informed

the world view of the creators of these friezes to such an extent that when they

represented the Bodhisattva as an elephant or a monkey, he was shown as having some

special attributes (see for example pl.64a1 S) Every event, every action was given a

solemn form Incidents like journey or visits were attended by a thousand formalities and

ceremonies. Kings moved about with glorious displays of arms, announct'd by

processions, and music (see for example pl.Il.2L). In a largely non-literate world, religion

was essentially a matter of rites, gestures and formulae Birth, death, and \var. had all

assumed the character of a spectacle. All actions, mirth am1 sorrow were theatricallv made

up. Life had the colours of a fairy tale with the omnipresent Yakshas, Gandharvas and

Rakshasas. The depictions cf processions with their ordereJ lines of participants, m rank

one after the other, served well to express differences in st e1tus (Trainor 1996 J

Processions of powerful kinsmen and allies represent lhe influence that an individual had

over the rest of society. The way people prayed, the way they howed, walked, and talked

were related to exercise of symbolic power.

The Sanchi fi·iezes shO\v a variety of dresses It is clear tL<:t the artists knc\\ th<!l

dresses or turbans could define a person fen the viev\ers We !.!.Ct similar referenccs i11 - .

Patanjali (Agnihotri 1965:203) Unf011unately,·, we do not have clues to such distinctions

Some things are obvious. There is a marked difference in the treatment of the rovaltv - 0 '

227

aristocracy and peasants on the one side, and tile foresters, Brahmanas and Sramanas on

the other. While the dresses are more or less similar, some people wear turbans and many

kinds of ornaments. Presumably they represented the aristocracy.

The Sanchi fi iez~s are peopled by males. Women are less visible. Also, the village

scenes from Uruvilva gama and the Vessantara Jataka clearly define the role ofwomen

(see pl.23a.l, 25.1,29.3, 31.1, 52.a2,a3). They are shown engaged injobs like husking

and winnowing grain, and fetching water - in short, household activities which still

constitute the world of Indian women. However, when women are depicted alongside

men, they are not shown in subservient postures. The North Indian Brahmanical

conventions would describe women following men while walking. They would be seated

to the left of their husbands while performing rituals (Kane 1963:302). At Sanchi no such . .

pattern in walking or sitting is visible. This would indicate that the artists had not

internalised the north Indian tradition. Alternatively, this might indicate the relatively

better condition of women in these areas. Men are shown performing sacrifices and

preaching, performing asceticism, hunting and fighting battles. The male and female

worlds were thus clearly demarcated. This bifurcation was connected to the emergence

of state society. Thus, the Sanchi friezes represented a world of hierarchies. It was within

this world of contrasts that the political structure was located. Let us see how the artists

at Sanchi viewed royalty.

The Depktion of Royalty at San chi

At Sanchi, gods and goddesses seem to outnumber human bei~gs. If we were to

grade the r0le3 and beings depicted on the Sanchi friezes, the representations of the

Buddha top the list. Next come gods of various kinds followed by kings. There is a

228

remarkable assymetry between the visual evidence and the inscript:onal evidence. While

royal patronage is completely missing in the inscriptional evidence of this period, friezes

are full of royalty. To us it proves that in the Buddhist ideology monarchy was an

accepted fact by this period. In the depiction of the Shadhanta Jataka, Shadhanta, the

elephant king, is shown with royal insignia like Chauri and umbrella-bearer. Kings always

seem to be served by a Chauri bearer and a person with weapons.

In order to understand the character and role of kingship at Sanchi \'. c \\ill

c:-.:amine the instances \vhere the arti~t has chosen to depict royalty Om as~ti:nplJorh ~uc

based on the identifications made by \1arshall ( 1940) They identified the Sand11 panels

on the basis of parallels found at Bharhut, where the contents of the panels arc e:-.:plained

by inscriptions. They supplemented this information by finding parallel deta1ls fi·om

Buddhist mythology One handicap we face in these identifications is that king:-, <end gods

are depicted in the same mode. Their dresses, turbans, umbrellas and tly wh1sk~ arc the

same. On the one hand it shows how important monarchy was in the Buddhi~l _,l·hcnK· ul

things. On the other hand, it ~reates problems of identification in the smaller par;cb \\her~..·

the figure might be a supernatural being. The larger panels do not present such problems

of identification. We shall therefore rely on the larger panels for our generalis<1tions I .:t

us list the scenes in which kings and divinities are depicted. We shall also enlist the

accompanying entities. We shall leave out all depictions where gods and heavens <lre

unambiguously identified. Nor will we consider such portrayals as the elephant king in the

Shadfanta Jataka who has been shown with umbrella and fly whisk, the monkey king

shown as being much larger than the other monkeys, or the Naga king with multiple

hoods

229

PLATE

NO.&

SIZE

11.2 L

12.2 s

12.6 s

115.3 L

16.3

17.3

DEPICTION OF KINGSHIP AT SANCHI

LEGEND MARKS OF ROYALTY

ASOKA'S. TURBAN, EWER, FLY-WHISK, BAND PLAYERS

VISIT INFANTRY, CAVALRY, ELEPHANTS, CHARIOTS AN

TO UP ARAJA. ON THE LEFT THE NAGA KING SPORTS A

- - -RAMAGAMA ROYAL TURBAN AND FIVE HOODS, UP ARAJA HAS

UNKNOWN

UNKNO\VN

WAR

RELICS

THREE HOODS WHILE THE QUEENS AND SERVANTS

HAVE ONE HOOD ONLY.

TURBAN,FL Y WHISK, ELEPHANT,A PALACE IN THE

BACKGROUND.(COULD BE A KING OR DIVINITY.)

TURBAN, HORSE, STAGS

OF CHARIOT, ELEPHANT, CAVALRY, INFANTRY, TURBAN,

UMBRELLA, STANDARD BEARERS, DWARF, CITY.

230

18.a2 S ASOKA VISITS TURBAN, CHARTOT, ELEPHANT, VICEROY, HERALD

BODI-II-TREE WITH A CLUB, SUITE, PERSON HOLDING A PITCHER.

18.b2 s ASOKA VISITS TURBAN, UMBRELLA, QUEENS, PITCHER

THE BODHI

TREE

11-----1-------+----------------------

23.al 25 1 VESSANTARA QuEENS, VICEROY (UPARAJA), ELEPHANT, CHARIOT, I I

29.3 31.1 JATAKA HORSE, UMBRELLA_ TURBAN, FLY - WHISK EWER

33.1 L CITY, SENIOR CITIZENS, MUSICIANS_

1----··--------+----------4------------------ ---- -----· --------------

3·1 a I S THF- PRODIGY TLRBA~. VICEROY. Ci< )()S

/ ~ -ATSRAVASTI

I I II I

I

--------r---------lr------------------------- ----

34.a3 S THE PRODIGY TURBAN, COURTIERS_

/- -ATSRAVASTI

34.bl s VISIT OF VICEROY. TURBAN. HORSE, CITY, RO'r'AL

PRASENAJIT A PROCESSION_

231

35.a2 s BUDDHA ALL THE ARISTOCRATS SHOWN WEARING ROYAL '

VISITS TURBAN.

KAPILVASTU

..

-35.b2 s AJATSATRU TURBAN, UMBRELLA, CHARIOT,MUSICIANS,

LEAVING IDS STANDARD BEARERS, ELEPHANT, FOOTMEN, '

CAPITAL

35.b3 s AJATSATRU'S TURBAN, FEMALE ATTENDANTS, SOME

VISIT SUPERNATURAL BEINGS.

36.c3 S RETURN TO TURBAN, UMBRELLA, FLY WHISK, FEMALE

KAPILVASTU ATTENDANTS, COURTIERS

40.3 L ASOKA VISITS UMBRELLA, FLY WHISK, BAND OF MUSICIANS,

THE BODHI INFANTRY, WAR CHARIOT, ELEPHANT,DWARFS.

TREE

50.al L RETURN TO TURBAN, CHARIOT, ELEPHANT, HORSE, INFANTRY,

KAPIL VASTU MUSICIANS, PROCESSION, CITY

232

Sl.b S A ROYAL I FLY WHISK, CHARIOT, ELEPHANT, COURTIERS, CITY.

VISIT

611 L I TRANSPORT I ELEPHANT, FLY WHISK, UMBRELLA, MUSICIANS,

62.1 631 I OF THE I STANDARD BEARERS, CAVALRY. INFANTRY,

RELICS PROCESSION, CITY.

I --- ------,

61.2 L THE wAR OF I TURBAN, UMBRELLA, FLy WHISK, ELEPHANT' EWER, I RELICS CHARIOT, CAVALRY, INFANTRY, CITY, MUSICIANS

lr----------~--------------+---------------------------------------------------

62.2 s UNKNOWN TURBAN, UMBRELLA, CHARIOT, CAVA~BY. lr'\F \NTRY

I ------- ------

63.2 s UNKNOW\i TURBAN. UMBRtJ .LA. FLY-WHISK, PALACE. ARM-

CHAIR, EWER FEMALE ATTENDANTS

I ----

64.al S

65.al S

MAHAKAPI

JATAKA

TURBAN, HORSE, SWORD BEARER, MUSICIANS,

SERVANTS.

THE SY AMA I KING DRESSED AS A HlJNTER IN ONE SCE\!E WEARING

-JATAKA TURBAN IN ANOTHER.

SAND L STAND FOR SMALL AND LARGE FRfEZES

233

The table presented above gives us some idea of the way the artist visualised

kingship. True, the artist would be limited by the contents of the story and the space

available to him. However, the very limitation of space would force him to select motifs

which could easily communicate the idea of kingship to the spectators. The depicted

motifs may thus be assumed to have been those which were considered the essence of

royalty. It is significant from our point of view that of the 23 representations of royalty,

seven are large iE size, meaning that they covered an architrave and sometimes spread to

the reverse side 1oo. In all seven the king is accompanied by an army. While some

represent all four constituents of the army, i.e., elephant corp, cavalry, chariots, and

infantry, others represent some of them. One can argue that some of the representations

are necessitated by the theme ofthe story. For example, in 'The War of Relics' the artist

is likely to show the army. However, we find that there are variations in the

representations of' The War ofRelics.' The variations in thepresentation have a lot to do

with artistic quality. However, it also indicates that artists consciously introduced

significant variations. Instead of showing a war in progress, they chose to show kings

going to the city ofKusinagara or coming from it. Significantly, every scene had its own

compliment of armed retainers. Even in depictions of Asoka's visit to Ramagama or the

Bodhi tree (themes which did not require the presence of an army) armed retainers are

. I conspicuous. The story of the Buddha's return to Kapilvastu also shows king Suddhodana

followed by the four limbs of the army. Nor does the Vessantara Jataka fail to show

horses, chariots and elephants when the king comes to the forest. The smaller panels are

too small to tell stories. So, the artists prefer to show genre pieces like praying figures.

Even among the shorter pieces depicting royalty we find that in 8 out of 16 cases warriors,

234

horses or elephants are shown in association. Elephants or horses w~re status symbols but

we also know that they were used in wars. To us this evidence su&gests that in the minds

of the sculptors of San chi instruments of coercion and aggress:on were an indispensable

part of kingship. War scenes and conflict are a recurrent theme ;,1 the it·iezes

King And Political Power: The Violent Tenor of Life

The turban. Chauri, umbrella and ewer are personaL ritt~al marks of kingship

These however, are almost universally supplemented by the army which symtolises the

coercive machinery of state power. Interestingly, in a religion given to non vi olE nee_ the

"battle of relics'' became one ofthe most important symbols. "The battle of relics" 1s not

part of the Buddha's teachings or of his previous lives It is the story of an event

subsequent to the death of the Buddha. Apparently, numerous kings fought fnr the

remains ofthe Buddha. The idea was to impress the laity by emphasising the value of the

Buddha's remains even to kings. It is interesting these kings could not settle their

differences by peaceful negotiation as would be expected of ardent Buddhists Seize and

warfare became the central motif for the relics of the person who stood for a:1 ideal E 1

exact opposition to war. Such a contrast needs explanation. What seems to have been at

work was the hijacking of the peaceful monastic ideal by the power centred royal idrai

In the limited space of the architraves available to him the sculpwr had to depict

something meant for propaganda purposes. It was meant to be witnessed by a largely n0 ,1-

literate laity. So, when t!~c artist had to depict rcoyalty, he chose such motifs as he belie·;ed

the observer would understand readily.

There has been for sometime a debate on the nature of political power in Indian

history. Some scholars have emasculated royal authority of its coercive power altogethe;-

23S

(Burton Stein 1977). They have replaced it with the idea of ritual authori.ty. One way of . .

examining this notion would be to try and understand how an average artist perceived

kingship. An?-lysis of contem.porary writi~gs and perceptions aboat the nature of political

power would give us a better understanding of the nature of early Indian polity. The

essence of r9yalty for the artists in Sanchi, and by extension. to the myriad viewers, was

war and army. Some scholars seem to be confusing the issues of power and the ability to

wield power. Questions like how the_ political authority would control faraway portions

of its domain, are valid questions. They can be examined empirically because the political

authority would have found different ways of enforcin~ its dictat dependin~ upon the

geographical and historical . . 4

SituatiOn.

4 We get some idea about the functioning of royal power from the better documented caseof medieval Europe. The authority of the king was based on a permanent state of war and a small group of nobles related to each other by kinship ties. Yet at the end of the season for warfare, when each of the nobles went back to his territory he was the absolute master with the king exercising little or no control (Duby 1982:5). Nobles will maintain their nominal allegiance. This balance of power between the king and his governors shou'd not be mistaken for the absence of coercion as a mode of control.

236

If the perception of political po·wer of the artist from San chi is anything to go by,

coercion and force seem to represent the essence of royalty. The king i:; also depicted as

protector in the case of the Mahakapi Ja:taka. There are numerous depictions of roy&!

figures praying to the Stupa. Whether he is praying for himself or acting as the mediat0r

between the sacred world and the human society, is not clear to us. However, the image

of the king as protector and religious benefactor of his people needs to be understood as

a strate.!;,ry of power. Such an image represented the most economic forms of control in a

world where direct application of overt physical violence was very expensive ( Bourdieu

1977: 192). The depiction of what follows 'the war of relics' reveals to us the pov.er of the

invisible presence of the Buddha. The kings are shown seated on elephants and chariots,

carrying caskets containing the relics of the Buddha The royal ensign of umbrella is used

more for the casket than for the kings (plate 15) Some of the kings are shtm '' ..:arrYing

the casket on their heads. What is being shown rs that not one but seven kings \vere

willing to risk every thing tor the sake of the relics of the Buddha. The worshiptl.il stan~..:c

of the powerful and prosperous kings was bound to overawe the viewer The gesture of

prayer was as much a depiction of olden times when saints were given due importance.

as a message to the laity abPut following the path of piety. After all, Sanchj also contamed

relics of Buddhist saints

VI

City , Village And The Forest

In a senes of a11icles written in the thirties ('(h>marswanw ( \Ieister ]992)

published an exhaustive survey of buildings associated with citie~ It was a pioneering

attempt at combining insights fro;n literature with the evidence available from

archa~ology. A lot of this information was derived from Sanchi. He devoted another

article to the study of huts in ancient India. He tried to show how many of the larger

buildings and religious structures were derived from the basic shape of the hut In the

prese:1t section we shall not be concerned with the visible structures associated with cities.

Rather we shall try to understand the association between buildings and the human

activities associated with them.

Built environments are governed by the ideology of the age, the composition and

organisation of the society, religious beliefs and world view. Environments are thought

before they are built. There is a close correspondence between the built form and its socio­

cultural organisation (Singh and Khan1993). This means that the built environment can

give us clues about social status, power and spatial forms of ordering society. We shall try

to understand the Sanchi sculptors' ways of seeing Let us see how cities villages and

fm·ests are depicted in the friezes. We have excluded very small panels because in most

cases it is difficult to understand. their context.

CITIES

PLATE EPISODE CHARACTERISTICS I

NO

238

15 3 WAR OF RELICS STOREYED TOWERS AND BASTIONS, PL\ STEREO

16 3

17.3

-16.1 MAHABHI-

NISKRAMANA &

GATEWAYS, TIJ\11BERED SUPERSTRUCTURE, VAULTED

ROOF, PILLARED BALCONIES,DITCH, WALLS MADE OF

BIG BRICKS OR STONES BATTLEivlENTS ARMIES AND ' '

KINGS RANGED IN BATTLE.

KAPILVASTU GATE SHOWN AS A SINGLE TORAT\JA

WITH TWO LINTELS ARCHED AND CURLED TO THE I FORM OF VOLUTES AT BOTH ENDS, ARISTOCRATIC

FIGURES.

11----+----------1------------------------------

-23.al VESSANTARA

3 1.1 JATAKA

ROYALTY,ARISTOCRACY. WOMEN FILLING WATER

JARS FROM THE MOAT OUTSIDE THE RAMPART,

EVERY li'-:CH OF SPACE FILLED WITH PEOPL.F

lr----t--------+ ---------------------·-------

34.al THE GREAT KING, COURTIERS.

PRODIGY AT

/- -SRAVASTI

239

34.a2 GIFT

JETAVANA

OF ANATHAPINDAKA, PRINCE lETA, PARK, OTHER

FOLLOWERS, COINS.

34.a3 . THE GREAT KING, COURTIERS, OPEN HALL OF OBLONG SHAPE.

PRODIGY AT

! /

' SRAVASTI

34.bl PRASENAJITA'S KING, COURTIERS, MULTI STORIED BUILDINGS,

VISIT GATEWAY, FORTIFICATION.

35.al FOUR DRIVES MULTI STORIED BUILDINGS, CITY GATE,

AND THE GREAT, FORTIFICATION, PEOPLE, ARISTOCRATIC LOOKING

DEPARTURE ONLOOKERS.

35.a2 RETURN TO ARISTOCRATS.

KAPILAVASTU

35.b2 BIMBISARA'S MULTI STORIED BUILDINGS, FORTIFICATION,

VISIT GATEWAY, PROCESSION, ONLOOKERS

240

36.cl THE FOURTH MALLAS DANCING AROUND A STUPA WITH BAND

GREAT MIRACLE PLAYING.

36.c2 MONKEY'S MONKEYS, PRA YlNG FIGURES,

OFFERING AT

VAISHALI

36.c3 RETURN TO KING, ATTENDANTS, COURTIERS

KAPILA V ASTU

If----+-------+-------------------··-·---

40.2 THE GREAT LOGGIAS OF AIRY HOUSES_TOWERS,BATTLEMET'<TS I I

DEPARTURE AND GATES, INHABITANTS TAKiNG AIR '" THEIR

BALCONIES OR GOING ABOUT THE STREETS ON FOOT

OR ON ELEPHANTS, WOMEN DRAWING WATER FROM

MOAT

SO.al RETURN TO MULTI STORIED BL'ILDINGS ON T\VO SIDES ()F THr·:

I I STREET_ CITY GATE_ PROCESSIOT\ R0\'~\-1 TY. ;\JI

~===-==~==========~=L=A=R=G='E='=N=L=I'vl=B=E=R=(=)f=·=o=N=L=O=O=K=E=R=S=.=======

KAPIL\ \'ASTU

241

51.b ROYAL VISIT PALACES, CITY GATE, FORTIFICATION, KING AND

PROCESSION.

61.1 PROCESSIONAL PALACES ON TWO SIDES OF THE ROAD, GATEWAY~

TRANSPORTATI FORTIFICATION, KING, SOLDIERS, PROCESSION,

161.2

il

ON OF RELICS ONLOOKERS.

WAR OF RELICS PALACE, FORTIFICATION, GATEWAY, KINGS, ARMY,

PROCESSION.

65.b2 CONVERSION OF ARISTOCRATS WITH ROYAL TURBAN

/_ THE SAKYAS

Cities are identified primarily by their fortifications. This notion about the nature

of cities is important to us. In the imagination of the carver, the city was, not so much a

centre of luxury and palaces, as of defence. A town did not lose itself in the surrounding

wilderness. It stood as a compact whole bristling with towers. Town walls symbolised

security and human r.chievement. This is in consonance with archaelogical finds which

show that almost all early historic cities were were fortified. In Malwa itself we have the

examples ofUjjain, N~gda and Eran being fortified in early historic times. The fact that

archaeologists working on early urban centres have noticed the paucity of evidence of

242

luxuries inside the early historic cities (Erdosy 1988: 113) is of particular inte:-est to us.

Two and three storied houses along the street are vividly portrayed. Also the

artists fill in every inch of space with human beings when they depict cities. Thus, cit1es

are associated \\~th density of population and buildings rising up to the skies. Primary food

production activities and shopkeepers' lanes are completely missing from the depiction of

cities. Specially arranged parks, avenues and gardens were characteristically urban

features. It represented :1ature, domesticated and owned by the rich and the powerful of

the city. It was probably the same set of people who are depicted walking about in fuil

splendour, relaying messages of power. Festivals seem to have been manifestations ofthe

power and money ofurban centres.

When the artists thought of heayen they envisaged it as a city. Thev imag!ned

events related to the Buddha or the Bodhisattva most often against an urban backgdrop

I -Whether it is the repeated portrayal of the miracle at Sravasti, or the grand narrative of

the Vessantara Jataka, the venue is a city. If the world has to be renounced. the artist

selects a grand view of Kapilavastu to annouce the greatness of the Buddh;:t If prince

Vessantara gives away every thing demanded of him, the artist chose the Sibi capital as

his venue. Obviously, the towers and palaces of the cities were envisioned not simplv as

impressive buildings but to highlight the glorious stories of renunciation and conquest

Our table shows that towns are associated with kings ,,,,d aristocrats in almost all the

cases. Such images of the sity confirm it as a place of power and privilege Signiticantly.

the images seem to ha·;e excluded the poor and the \vTetched from the urban spaces

because they are nowhere visible.

VILLAGE Al\0 THE FOREST

243

PLATE, EPISODE CHARACTERISTICS

NO.

11.2 ASOKA VISITS FOREST HAD RECLAIMED THE STUPA. FOREST SHOWN

RAMAGAMA AS FILLED WITH THE NAGA PEOPLE

25.1 VESSANTARA VILLAGE PEOPLE, TWO PEASANT WOMEN SITTING

-JATAKA WITH THEIR CHILDREN, TWO PEASANTS

SHOULDERING SPEAR AND BOW. TWO PEASANTS

RETURNING AFTER A HUNT CARRYING HAUNCHES OF

ANTELOPE.

33.1 VESSANTARA ZONE BETWEEN VILLAGE AND THE FOREST.MANGO

-JATAKA TREE SHOWN. WILD ANIMALS SHOWN SEPARATELY.

29.3 VESSANTARA FOREST FULL OF MANGOES, PLAINT AIN, WILD

-JATAKA ANIMALS WHERE VESSANT ARA AND HIS FAMILY

WEAR BARK DRESS AND LIVE IN LEAF HU'" J.

27.1 EKASRINGA LEAF HUT IN THE FOREST. BRAHMAN ANCHORITE,

-JATAKA ANIMALS.

244

46.2 BUDDHA GOES LARGE NUMBER OF ANIMALS.

TO FOREST

43.3 RAMA GAMA LARGE NUMBER OF ELEPHANTS.

STUPA

~----+------------r-- ---------------------------------~1

52.Al URUVILVA HERDS OF CATTLE, BUFFALOES AND GOATS AMONG

THE HOUSES. WOMEN ARE GRINDTNG CURRY POWDER,

WINNOWING RICE. HUSKING RJCE, ROLLING DOUGH

FETCHING WATER IN A PITCHER MEN ALSO SHOWN

CARRYING BURDE'\JS 0'\J GA\1!800 ?OLE

!••••. -·~-----------·-t--------------·----------- -- ...... ·-ll 52:\2 ! l~Rl 1\'IL\ .. \ TEI\:lPLF CTPOL:\ R-\ISUJ ON PILL-\R. Ill.,. \\TI'll

A3 LEAFY ROOF, ANCHORITES IN BARK DRESS. HLARTHS

AND SPOON FOR VEDIC SACRIFICE, ELFPHANT.

ANTELOPES, BUFFALOES, MONKEYS AND GEESE

- -65.A I SY AMA JATAKA FOREST, HUTS , TREES AND BEASTS OF THE

HERMITAGE.

245

Villages At Sanchi

The visual evidence is largely architectural in its presentation. Villages are typified

by round huts (in the scenes from the Vessantara Jataka and the Uruvela grama). In the

representation ofthe Uruvela grama two types of houses are shown- rectangular, with

wagon headed roofs, and circular with hemispherical roofs. Probably, they were the

houses of the rich and poor people respectively- a supposition supported by inscriptional

material from Sanchi and the writings of the contemporary grammarian Patanjali (Agrawal

1996:201). At least some of the villages had protective walls (platel5).

In the scene depicting the Uruvila village various kinds of domestic activities are

shown. It shows women filling water jars, husking corn, winnowing com, preparing food

and grinding spices. Occupations related to the processing and cooking of food seem to

be th~ province of women. Many of these activities are performed inside the house in

modem villages. The chores related to cooking are taken special care of because there is

fear of ritual i~purity by the touch or sight of people of other castes. These activities

depicted as being performed in the open lead to some intersting questions. Possibly these

areas were less influenced by Brahmanical ideology which fostered the idea of the ritual

pollution offood. Even more interesting could be the issue relating to people's lives within

the house. Is it possible that people spent a considerably larger part of their lives outdoors

than they do at present?

In the scene from the V essantara Jataka, people are shown returning to the village

with hunted deer. According to Marshall, it is meant to indicate the proximity of the

forest: However, the people carrying deer are dressed like villagers. To us it indicates a

246

very important preoccupation of the pre-modern villagers- that ofhunting and foraging

in the forest. The archaeological remains from settlements like Navdatoli attest to the

presence of a large me as Pre of forest food in the form of bones of v,.iJd animals and seeds

of wild fmits. Possibly, the entire tradition of renouncing the world and retinng to the

forest owes something to the plentiful availabili ry of food in the forest.

Forest people are clearly distinguished from ':he people of the agricultural

societies. Forest huts were made with leaves (pi 29, 27, 52). The forest people sport

beards and a topknot rising in a bush on the head. Along with ascetics, thev are shown

wearing bark dresses. The other attendar,t features of the forest are wild animals and

many fmit laden trees. The depiction of the forest and its denizens at Sanchi shows that

it was not a hostile place. The general attitude to nature and animals is suffi.ised with ideas

of peace and harmony. In the Vessantara Jataka the forest is shown as nourishing \vith

food and shelter. It is also the place of meditation and prayer. The people inhabiting it arc

as devoted to the Buddha as those of the cities. It is believed to be an enduring human

tendency to project upon the natural world categories and values derived !'rum human

society and then to serve them back as a critique or reinforcment of the human society

(Thomas, K. 1983 61 ). The Huddhist notion of the forest is different from the dominant

Brahmanical tradition which visualises the forest as the abode of e\ il demons thouoh also =-

of hermits.

Conclusion

Our study ofthe Sanchi triezes gives us an idea of how the artist di' idL'd the "P<KL'

into city,\ illage and forest .\stud) of the architecture shm\s that, itil"s \\l'I"L' associated

with fortification and palaces while villages had humble d\vellings r·orests were associated

247

with huts made with leaves. Cities seem to have been bustling with people; villages less

so and forests were almost bare of human beings. Patanjali ditferentiated towns and cities

simply in terms of the ilumber of people, however the exa~~t numbers should be left to the

local tradition (Agrawal l996:vi). 5 Although the artists depict village areas by portraying

food processing and procurement they ignore such activities for the towns. Patanjali said

that all the economic activities performed in the cities are found in villages too

(Agnihotri 1965: 115). To the artist at Sanchi, the most visible sign of the urban landscape

w~.s kings and nobility. This category is absent in the depictions of villages and forests. As

such, concentration of power and density of relationships seem to differentiate a city from

a village in the mind of the San chi artists.

We have to visualise Sanchi and its environs as part of a landscape where villages

and cities dotted vast forest tracts inhabited by people beyond the pale of state and

urbanism. This notion is supported by the observations ofPatanjali. He mentions different

ways of demarcating the village boundary. These could be signs proclaiming the village

5 According to a tradition, Patanjali, the famous grammarian of the second century B.C., belonged to Gonarda in Malwa (Agnihotri1965:55). This view is also substantiated by the fact that he picks up many examples from Malwa to illustrate rules of grammar. Thus, his observations about towns and villages could give us insights into the roughly contemporary towns and villages.

248

boundary, rivers, monutains, scrub or forest. However, the forest was an ever present

reality for the village. It can be concluded from examples where villages are shown as

surrounded by forests (Agnihotri 1963: 186). Illustrating a grammatical rule Patanjali says

that crops could be destroyed by thieves, domestic dnir.Ja!s, birds and wild animals

(ibid.258). Even more revealing is the information that people used to accompany their

friends and relatives to the margins of the forest when they were going away The forest

was also the arena t(x sp011s and games (ibid 27:)) Oh,:iously. the itr.mediacy of the f(m:st

/ \Vas taken for granted. Similarly, the route connecting Kausambi and Pratisthana ts

• 0

believed to have passed through forests (Agrawal ]l)l)() :233)

In the Sanchi reliefs, the very number of people depicted as filling vatious social

roles is remarkable. If we compare it to the pre urban paintings in the caves the . ariety of

subjects will be apparent. For that matter it can be compared with the site finds of pre

urban centres like Navdatoli where the number of objects used by the populace very

... -~;-':'.";_~~-~--1_1~ <1_\/~,~~c~n~ ~~b- ~~~~i_o~.!~e society seems to be divided among various groups

with kings, nobles, merchants, monks etc. at one end and ascetics, villagers. fort-. " and

beggars at the other. On a horizontal plane the canvass is even bigger. Events "vhich were

believed to have taken p!ace in faraway Magadha, Kapilavastu etc. are brought within tl1e

canvass of the sculptor. Motifs like double humped camel might be derivt:d from far away

Bactria. It speaks of the contacts between the artistic traditions of Central Indian ar.d

Central Asia.

There has been some discussion on the role of monasteries le~itimising political

power. Legitimation is defined as the means by which ideology is blended \Vith power. It

is used to justif}r the existence of concentrated social power in the hands of a fev.. s~1 ch

249

a fcrmulation presumes that the political elite juggled with Buddhist ideology to

strengthen its claims. It seems to be a simplistic formulation. The post-Mauryan period

was one of breakdown of centralised polities. 6 Interestingly, the religious structure seems

to encompass a larger area than the political structure. Also, it is more vivid in the mind

of the artists. A comparison of the friezes and a study of the inscriptions gives us an

understanding ofthe levels of religious integration in those times. This seems to contradict

the notion that poiities extended patronage to monasteries for gaining legitimacy. What

comes as a surprise is that the level of political integration is the weakest and area covered

by it is perhaps the smallest All the stories in the friezes look north. This could have

provided very little opportuni~y for the local polities to tailor the mythologies to their own

ends. Also, the Buddhist ~hurch did not have a unitary structure. All the monasteries were

virtually independent of each other. As such, Buddhi <;m did not have the large-scale

network which could act as mediator between polity and populace.

on· the other hand, the depictions do present a hierarchical society. Even the heavens have

tiers indicating superior and inferior heavens. The universe was seen to be organised in a

hierarchical manner thus resembling and justifying the social structure. The supernatural

figures represented in the friezes were viewed as part of the population of the universe and

not as mere figments of imagination. This hierarchy in religion would make hierarchy in

real life more acceptable. So it did act as a legitimiser of the hierarchical society.

The emergence of urban society also affected the ways of understanding the

passage oftime. From an abundant undifferentiated flow time had changed into a finite,

directional entity in the service ofBuddhism. The Buddhists had organised the history of

6 In the previous chapter we discussed the inscription2.l and numismatic evidences for the presence of many local rulers.

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Buddhism in a chronological framework. Here was a conceptualisation oftime beyond the

cycle of seasons where an endless number of Bodhisattvas preceded the historical Buddha.

This reorganisation of the religious universe was part of a radical reorganisation of the

social order where some people's lives became more important than those of the rest.

A study of the Sanchi friezes also indicates that the emeregence ofurban centres

had affected the perspective of the artist. The pre-urban world was a universe of

disorganised anarchy. An artist in such a situation would draw things relating to his village

and surroundings. He would not draw the buildings of a distant city The emergence of

urban centres meant the emergence of groups having intluence far exceeding their physical

locale. The artist at Sanchi would not paint the scenes cl· the Sanchi village or for that /

matter, of thousands of s~ttlements falling between San chi and Sravasti.

If we visualise power as more diffuse - as something that informs relationships

economic, political and social - in short the entire cultural universt. we can have a better

understanding of the situation. The areas east of Vidisa \Vere still beyond 1 he pale of

urbanisation We haYe to imagine the Na:!!a populations of th' surTotmdin.':' l!L'<h The

<lrtists of Sa11Chi were relating tales of power In v. itntssing c-ue+ professions utp1ct\. the

people of the surrounding areas \Vere absorbing the' a lues of a highly strati tied soctct\ -

a society where greatness was defined by the ability to donate wealth for decorating the

Stupa or the abilty to wield political power like the kings in the friezes, or. best of all the

ability to renounce a kingdom, once you have it. All these friezes were created in the

context ofthe early centuries ofthc Christian era when many local rulers were struggling

to establish their authority. We have mentioned in the previous chapter that the coins :!Tom

7Even in the time of Samudragupta the areas east of Vidisha were considered

forest kingdoms.

? .. 1 - :J .C

many cities in A vanti have yielded the names of many local rulers. These rulers with shaky

political bases would have found support from these visions of the world order.

Urbanisation made economic and social privileges more visible. The exaltation

of virtues of gift giving, personal loyalty (all those serried ranks of aristocrats), generosity

for ones subject were part of" an operation of the social alchemy where overt physical or

economic violence" was negatively sanctioned (Bourdieu 1977: 192). Power in this society

depended on a son of religious awe which the ruler inspired. It made itself felt by pomp

and grandeur or 2. train of faithful followers.

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