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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Buddhism and the life of the Buddha

Buddha in the Palileyyaka Forest

Bangkok

Second half of the 19th century

Bronze, gilding, red paint

Height: 15.5 cm

This episode is one of the cycle of eight highly important events in the life of the Buddha. While the Buddha and his disciples were resting close to the town of Vaishali, a monkey took wild honeycombs from a tree and brought them to the Buddha. Delighted at having done this, she began to dance and jump all over a tree, but slipped and fell to her death in a well. In reward for her behaviour, the monkey was immediately reincarnated as the son of a virtuous man. In Indian art only the monkey features in this scene of worship of the Buddha.

Elephant and monkey
Larger view

Buddha - "the enlightened one" - an epithet given to Prince Siddhartha of the Shakya tribe after he attained a state of boddhi, "Enlightenment", when he grasped the Sublime Wisdom. The founder of Buddhism, one of the three ancient Indian religions.
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Vaishali (Vaisali) - the capital of an ancient principality in northern India. Nearby, according to legend, a monkey brought the Buddha honey. One of the eight sacred places of Buddhism.
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