NARRATOR:
A man meditates under a tree, but this is not a scene of the Buddha’s enlightenment. His mustache, jewelry and clothing, including his turban, indicate that he is a prince: Siddhartha, the future Buddha, who has not yet left home to seek enlightenment.
STORYTELLER:
Walking outside his palace, Siddhartha has come across some men plowing a field. He has been moved by the sight of insects dead in the broken grass, and by the exhaustion of the men and beasts who labor in dust, wind and hot sun. Now, sitting beneath a tree covered in blossoms, he begins to meditate on their suffering. Then, according to an ancient text:
ACTOR:
“… through the power of the love and pity which these reflections produced in his heart, he was wrapt into a state of unconscious ecstasy.”
NARRATOR:
Here, the story has been condensed into a single powerful image, intended for worship in a shrine or temple. Notice how the young man, his eyes half shut in concentration, expands his chest and draws in his abdomen to practice intense yogic breathing. The halo behind his head clearly indicates the sacred nature of this very human moment.
The sculptor has shown impressive skill in the details here—from the prince’s lion earrings, symbolizing his princely status, to the graceful folds of the shawl draped over his arm.
Siddhartha Meditating Below the Jambu Tree
3rd century
Asia: Pakistan; Asia: Gandhara
On View
As a young prince, Siddhartha (the given name of Buddha) was taken into the fields to witness a plowing contest. He observed men sweating and exerting themselves as well as birds swooping down from the sky devouring insects. He soon became overwhelmed by these events, as they reflected the misery of human life and the inevitability of death. He left the contest and wandered until he found a wood apple (jambu) tree. He sat beneath this tree and entered into a trance. This event was a precursor to his subsequent meditation under the bodhi tree.
Details
- Title: Siddhartha Meditating Below the Jambu Tree
- Date: 3rd century
- Medium: Schist
- Dimensions: 23 x 17 x 5 in. (58.4 x 43.2 x 12.7 cm)
- Credit Line: The Norton Simon Foundation
- Accession Number: F.1975.17.29.S
- Copyright: © The Norton Simon Foundation
Object Information
- Knoke, Christine, Arts of Asia, p. 60
- Pal, Pratapaditya, Asian Art at the Norton Simon Museum, Volume 1: Art from the Indian Subcontinent, 2003, no. 25 p. 57
- Campbell, Sara, Collector Without Walls: Norton Simon and His Hunt for the Best, 2010, cat. 1267 p. 388
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