Violence and Serenity
Late Buddhist Sculpture from Indonesia
Natasha Reichle
Violence and Serenity offers a close examination of some of the impressive works from East Java and Sumatra and explores their political and religious roles. The number of clearly identifiable Buddhist works from the Singasari and Majapahit dynasties (1222?ca. 1520) is limited, yet existing examples are impressive. They demonstrate a remarkable level of craftsmanship and are exceptionally expressive, exhibiting a range of emotions from the ferocious to the serene. Following a brief discussion of the early history of Buddhism in Indonesia, Natasha Reichle focuses each chapter on a specific statue or group of statues and considers the larger issues evoked by the images. Through a rarely examined depiction of the last Singasari king, she explores the nature of religion in Java in the late thirteenth century and what we know about tantric practices and the syncretism of Hinduism and Buddhism. She reassesses the question of portraiture in ancient Javanese art while contemplating the famous Prajñ?p?ramit? from Singasari. Notions of kingship are discussed in light of a number of statues depicting the Buddhist deity Amoghap??a and his attendants and the meanings of the Amoghap??a ma??ala. The final chapter examines the origins and significance of one of Indonesia?s most spectacular sculptures, a four-meter-high Buddhist bhairava (demon) discovered in West Sumatra.

Price: Bht 2,195.00