![]() Alexander founded several cities in his new territories in the areas of the Oxus and Bactria, and Greek settlements further extended to the Khyber Pass, Gandhara and the Punjab. We know that the interaction between Hellenistic Greece and Buddhism in India started with Alexander’s expedition during 334 BCE. At the same time as Greco-Buddhist art and Mahayana schools of thought were transmitted to East Asia, central concepts of Hellenic culture such as virtue, excellence or quality were being adopted by the cultures of Korea and Japan after a long diffusion among the Hellenized cities of Central Asia, to become a key player of their warrior and work ethics. Through art and religion, the influence of Greco-Buddhism in East Asian countries, especially China, Korea and Japan, may have extended further into the intellectual area. ![]() From China the Graeco- Buddhist influences spread to Korea and gave rise in the sixth century CE to Japanese art. ![]() “Until this time, Chinese reliefs had been merely incised drawings with a flat surface to the figures, but suddenly figures in high relief became common, and the paintings have an appearance of depth. This artistic style also went on to influence neighboring cultures, specifically the Chinese. “…in the Punjab, five hundred years after Alexander, Indian Buddhists still carved the tale of the Trojan Horse alongside the life of their Buddha…”. The Buddha also appears in a multitude of Greek Corinthian-style columns that have been found in the area, some of which have the Buddha standing alongside traditional Greek mythological characters such as Heracles. Statues and other depictions of the Buddha at the time show him wearing a Greek-style toga and having curly Mediterranean hair. The Greek artisans of the Bactrian Kingdom brought about an artistic renaissance that led to the creation of Greco-Buddhist art. “As a result of Alexander, Greek athletics would come to be performed in the burning heat of the Persian Gulf the tale of the Trojan horse would be told on the Oxus and among the natives of the Punjab …Greeks would practice as Buddhists and Homer would be translated into an Indian language… ”. Buddhist art originated in the Indian subcontinent following the historical life of Siddhartha Gautama around 6 th to 5 th century BCE, and thereafter evolve by contact with other cultures as it spread throughout Asia and the world.Īlexander’s conquests laid the foundation for the spread of Hellenism, a common cultural and philosophical background that would not be seen again until the spread of Christianity centuries later. It includes art media which depict Buddhas, bodhisattvas and other entities notable Buddhist figures, both historical and mythical narrative scenes from the lives of all of these mandalas and other graphic aids to practice as well as physical objects associated with Buddhist practice, such as vajras, bells, stupas and Buddhist temple architecture. (Scroll down for plates after the endnotes)īuddhist art is the artistic practices that are influenced by Buddhism.
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