|
|
Maitreya
Maitreya is painted red, his face is gilded, and he has four arms. A four-headed Vairocana is depicted in the central point of his five-Buddha crown. The image has a height of 463 cm and its dhoti is decorated with the life of a Buddha (Fig. 1 in Orientations).
AlchiSTS JP81 0003.jpg
|
|
|
|
|
Life of the Buddha
When standing in front of the image, Maitreya’s knees are approximately at eye-level and most scenes on the dhoti are easily visible.
AlchiSTS JP81 0002.jpg
|
|
|
|
|
Life of the Buddha
The scenes on Maitreya’s dhoti are inscribed within a basic textile pattern consisting of red circular medallions with a diameter of 15 centimetres on a blue background.
AlchiSTS JP81 0043.jpg
|
|
|
|
|
Life of the Buddha
In principle the scenes of the Buddha’s life are arranged in horizontal groups of medallions, reading from left to right, then right to left. The chronological sequence on the dhoti begins below the belt of Maitreya’s right leg and progresse downwards, continuing in the opposite direction on the left leg and ending at the top. The scenes are numbered according their presumed narrative sequence.
MaitreyaDhoti.eps
|
|
|
|
|
Life of the Buddha
The scenes incorporated in the space between the legs are to be read from top to bottom and precede the two last scenes on the left leg.
AlchiSTS JP91 0010.jpg
|
|
|
|
|
Life of the Buddha
The scenes on the right leg of Maitreya.
MDhoti1.eps
|
|
|
|
|
Life of the Buddha
Upper edge of the dhoti on Maitreya's proper right leg.
AlchiSTS JP91 0014.jpg
|
|
|
|
|
Life of the Buddha
Upper part of the dhoti on Maitreya's proper right leg. The circles have a silver border forming figure-of-eight-shaped loops where the medallions touch each other. In the space between the medallions, red, more or less square shapes are painted with three deers, their ears forming a triangle at the centre.
AlchiSTS JP90.jpg
|
|
|
|
|
Life of the Buddha
The story probably begins with the representation of three stupa in the topmost partial roundels.
AlchiSTS JP90 0016.jpg
|
|
|
