Eunjung Shin continues her survey of the treasures in the Korean gallery in the British Museum
Stone Buddha statue in the British Museum, 7th century, Kyongju
As you enter the Korean gallery in the British Museum you might easily overlook the small stone Buddha at the entrance, his face turned modestly to the ground. If you want to see his expression, you have to sit down on the floor and look up. Then, you will realize that he is smiling, though the contours of his face have sadly been eroded by the elements over the centuries. Like most Korean Buddhas, this one has a gentle facial expression. The child-like body represents the purity of the Buddha. This Buddha will listen to your devotions and not intimidate you. You can pray anything you like without fear.
The Buddha is likely to have stood on the sacred Mount Namsan in Kyongju, which was the capital of the Silla and Unified Silla kingdoms (57 BCE-935 CE). After Silla adopted Buddhism in the sixth century, local craftsmen carved a lot of stone Buddhist images in the open air on Mount Namsan because devotees wanted to have ‘earthly heaven’ in their lifetime.
A group of stone Buddhist images in Mt. Namsan
Buddhism is still a major religion in Korea, but its relative importance has declined over the centuries. When this Buddha statue was made in the seventh century, Buddhism was the dominant religion in Korea. For example, the King of Silla, Jinpyeong (r. 579-632) was given the title “father of Siddhartha” (the birth name of the Buddha). His wife was named Maya puin (the mother of Siddhartha). Many temples were built near the palaces in Kyongju.
The type of Buddhism in Korea is Mahayana (the Great Vehicle). Salvation is important in this tradition, so statues of Buddha are usually depicted with Bodhisattvas who assist mortals to achieve enlightenment. Usually a Buddha is accompanied by two Bodhisattvas.
Silla Buddha triad in 7th century, Kyongju (from Buddhist Sculpture of Korea)
Korean Buddhist images were influenced by Chinese and Indian art because many Korean monks traveled not only to China but also to India to learn the various teachings of the Buddha, and they brought Buddhist images back to Korea with them. If you look at the body of the Buddha carefully, you can see the natural depiction of his legs and robe. This is similar to the realistic depiction you find in Indian and Chinese Buddhist sculpture. The frontal view and the flaring edges of the robe are characteristics of Buddhist images in the Northern Wei dynasty (386-534), China. However the Buddha in the British Museum has more simplified drapery folds, halo and setting. Also his face is much more Korean looking than the Chinese and Indian Buddhas. Korean Buddhists could therefore pay their devotions in front of a Buddha with a gentle, familiar face.
Bibliography
1. Kim Lena, Buddhist Sculpture of Korea, Seoul, 2007
2. Pak Young-sook, Buddhist sculpture, London, 2003
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