The State Hermitage Museum: Exhibitions

Buddha Maravijaya - the"Buddha who vanquished Mara" - a name given in Siam to the episode in which Gautama called upon the Earth goddess to bear witness and gained victory over Mara, the lord of evil forces.
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Siamese sculpture in the Hermitage

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Crowned Buddha in meditation

17th century

Bronze, gilding

Height: 54 cm

Pieces in which the crowned Buddha is presented in the true attire of an earthly ruler without the slightest hints at the presence of monastic attire are very rare. This is one of those and it poses a range of questions to which answers have yet to be found. Most significant of all - who is depicted in the sculpture? Some scholars believe that Siamese depictions of the crowned Buddha with adornments but without monastic attire may be posthumous depictions of Ayutthaya rulers. Could this sculpture too be a posthumous image of some member of the Ayutthaya royal family?

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About the Site

Crowned Buddha in meditation
Larger view

The "royal" attire of the Buddha
Larger view

Crowned Buddha - the Buddha wearing a crown and jewellery in combination with a monk's clothing. This image became very common in the countries of Indochina. In Ayutthaya art it took on a special, truly state significance. This was connected with the particular conception of the legitimization of royal power that developed in Ayutthaya: the image of the ruler, sovereign, that formed there was highly original for countries with a Buddhist culture.
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Meditation - a state of deepened contemplation, detachment from external objects and some inner feelings; one of the chief means of attaining religious liberation.
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Ayutthaya - the capital of a Siamese state of the same name (1350-1767) that united the whole of Siam with the exception of the Far North.
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