Ancient China Research Paper

China during the classical period, a span of time stretching from 1000 B.C.E.-500 C.E., was ruled by many families, each having their own dynasty. The very first dynasty of this period was the Zhou, coming into power after overthrowing the Shang. The last Shang emperor, Di Xin, had essentially abandoned matters of the state in favor of hedonistic activities, using tax money to fund them and therefore becoming very unpopular. This caused the Zhou uprising which led to the establishment of the Mandate of Heaven, a concept that not only allowed the Zhou to gain and maintain cultural power of the Chinese people, but led to widespread notions in Chinese society of the validity of autocracy and a need for extremely centralized government that would

The Buddha’s of Bamiyan were the center of attention in Bamiyan Valley and the most prominent statues ever carved into the cliffs. The bodies of the two statues were well thought out. The details of the statues were modeled by mud mixed with

The Next piece is an image form Guo Xi who was a master from the Northern

The Great Wall of Ancient China: Did the Benefits Outweigh the Cost? The Great Wall was built by the Qin and Han Dynasty in order to protect China from the Mongols. However, the benefits of building the Great Wall of China did not outweigh the costs for building the Great Wall. In accordance to Document C, the soldiers had to leave their homes and families in order to work on building the Great Wall. This supports the claim because the soldiers had to sacrifice their families when they had already been sacrificing their lives to fight for China.

Usually you would hear of hundreds of people being killed by terrorist attacks, airplane crashes, or war, but in Ancient China, the Great Wall of China killed hundreds of peasants in the makings through forced labor. The benefits didn't outweigh the costs because through the makings of the wall, it separated families, killed soldiers, and families/ loved ones sacrificed their lives and lifestyle.

Located at the Horyu-ji temple, the Shaka Triad, also known as the Shaka Trinity, stands 3.82 meters high from the base of the pedestal to the tip of the mandorla. The stature was created out of gilded bronze in several pieces before being put together, and consists of the historical Buddha, Shakyamuni, bordered by two bodhisattvas. Each bodhisattva is 0.91 m high, while the central figure, measures out to be 0.86 m. The three figures are situated on a wooden pedestal, backed by a bronze mandorla, decorated with smaller seated Buddha’s cast in relief. The sculpture has been beautifully preserved, although the gilding on the bodhisattvas has become slightly blackened.

The world's longest man made structure started out as the world's biggest cemetery. In 221 BC Emperor Qin Shi Huang ordered for the construction of a great wall to protect, impress, and glorify Ancient China (history.com). His labour force was mostly made up of soldiers, peasants, convicts, and volunteers and it is estimated that 400,000 died during the construction (background essay). While the Great Wall costed Ancient China lots, it gave them protected from their biggest threats, protected merchants trading on the Silk Road, and opened China up to the rest of the world.

In both Rathnasambhava, the Transcendent Buddha of the South and Madonna Enthroned, the format suggests a depiction of a transcendent reality. Transcendent can be defined as a state of being or existence above and beyond the limits of material experience. The notion of transcendence is suggested through a flattened appearance typical of the 13th Century. Both paintings have a

Bodhisattva Avalokitesvara and Mahasthamaprapta are repeatedly referred to in the Amitayurdhyana Sutra (The Buddha Speaks of Amitabha Sutra), which was translated from Sanskrit into Chinese in the third century A.D. According to the Contemplation of Mahasthamaprapta, the 11th Chapter of the Amitayurdhyana Sutra, the crown of the Mahasthamaprapta is described as follows: His heavenly crown has five hundred jewel-flowers; each jewel-flower has five hundred jewel-towers, in each tower are seen manifested all the pure and excellent features of the far-stretching Buddha countries in the ten quarters. The turban on his head is like a lotus-flower; on the top of the turban there is a jewel pitcher, which is filled with various brilliant rays fully manifesting the state of Buddha. Whereas in front of his headdress Avalokitesvara usually displays a small standing image of Amida, from whom he emanates , the iconography of Mahasthamaprapta's is a small water vase, which symbolizes wisdom. All the elements for a crown of Mahasthamaprapta can be seen from the picture of C111’s on the right. The Sutra also says: All his other bodily signs are quite equal to those of Avalokitesvara, which is proved by the similarities between C111 and C112, if we assume C112 is the image of Avalokitesvara though his crown is

“Amida Buddha” (Figure 1) is a bronze figure created during the Kamakura Period, dated 1185-1333. The work is a figurative representation of Amida, who was highly worshipped during the Kamakura Period. The figure “Amida Buddha” is currently on exhibition at the Kimbell Art Museum (2018) in Fort Worth, Texas as part of the Sam and Myrna Myers Collection, Lands of Asia Exhibition.

Between the second century BCE and the early first century CE, buddhist art was not represented as human form rather than symbols. Symbols were represented by the buddha's footprints, or a stupa. The Great Stupa is located in Sanchi, Madhya Pradesh, India and was founded in the 3rd century BCE. The stupa is derived as burial mounds for buddhas, holding the remains of their cremation. The main body of the stupa or dome represents the world mountains, which rises through the center of the buddha universe. The railing encloses the top of mast bearing three stone disks or “umbrellas” represent the three jewels of buddhism: Siddhartha Gautama, sangha, and dharma.

These 2 statues depict the Buddhist deity whose name is Bodhisattva Avalokitesvara. The other names for this deity is Guanyin Bodhisattva, and the goddess of mercy. This deity is worshipped by all schools of Buddhism, but is mostly associated with Mahayana Buddhism, which is a school of Buddhism which states that anyone can become a Buddha with practice. The purpose of Bodhisattvas is to guide those seeking to

Although the scroll has a small picture, the painting has a vast sense of space and is considered to be a representative masterpiece of the “study-retreat picture.” This painting is another example of depicting the natural world and seclusion, which for Zen monks it was important to the belief of hermit seclusion for inner reflection. In a majority of Shubun’s work, the common theme is the inclusion of a recluse which explains why the building and the figure can barely be seen. Recluse poetry and paintings became common among Japanese Zen Buddhist monks around 1400. There were those whom philosophically identified with the “pure” form of this practice and diligently meditated while living in huts or small temples that were secluded in the mountains far from the Japanese court society. However, a majority of artists that created these masterpieces, like Shubun, did not reside in mountain hermitages far from the court society

defined as the Buddha of the pure land where is only peace and joy. People believe after death the

Buddhism was introduced into Japan in Nara Period through Korea, with only some scripts in Chinese writing. At the time, Japanese find their country in lack of civilization like writing and cultural religion. By sending people to China to accept more doctrine from foreign countries, different Buddhism schools are developed later in time. During the end of Heian Period, one of the popular sect is dedicated to Shingon, which is established by a monk named “Kukai”. Buddha Vairocana is one of many Buddhas revered by this particular sects of esoteric Buddhism, also among the Chinese school of Hua-Yen(华严). This essay will be focusing on the Buddha Vairocana, the meaning behind this Sanskrit name, his wisdom and doctrine and his characteristic Mudra (hand gesture, a major practice in esoteric Buddhism) will be explained. The essence on how this Buddha is introduced into Japan, along with traditions and activities that are relevant to Buddhism in general will be also stated in this essay.