light and Greco-Roman artistic forms. Buddha gave warrant (varan) to his
“ministers,” the bodhisattvas.
Iconography
Invaidikasettings, early forms were probably in wood and other non-
permanent materials, but became permanent by the late Gupta period. The
icon was the embodiment of the divine, equated to king and cosmos, and
the center of worship. Iconic representations of the deities often emulated
Buddhist and Jain poses, gestures, etc.
In the Buddhist case, until the first century CE, Buddha was depicted
aniconically (e.g., as the “bo” tree, lotus, throne, caitya), then anthropomor-
phically by the first century CE. By the third century CE, one finds depictions
of the “life” of the Buddha reflecting folk tales adapted for his “life.” Iconic
representations were viewed as embodying buddhahood now non-distinct
from the realm of matter and samsa ̄ra.
Sacred spaces
Vaidikareligion was now usually housed in a temple (though none have
survived from before the fifth century CE). The temple was congruent to the
palace, cosmos, and human torso. Its tower (s ́ikhara) may have been inti-
mated in the form of the stu ̄pa, and its assembly hall (man.d.apa), may have
been congruent to the Buddhist viha ̄ra(living quarters); the inner sanctum
(garbhagr.ha, “womb house”), housing the icon like an embryo, emulated
early cave sanctuaries and the caves where Buddhists and Jains dwelt.
Buddhist structures included the stu ̄pato be used as memorial housings
for ashes or relics. The stu ̄ pasincluded an “egg” (an.d.a) representing the
cosmos, topped by a caityaor representation of Buddha atop the cosmos;
walkways and doorways around the stu ̄paby the second century BCEincluded
carvings reflecting the landscape – e.g., totemic animals, yaks. ̄sı (buxom
female attendants equated to vegetation, etc.); the viha ̄rawas the living
quarters for monks and could include sculpting drawn from the Buddha’s
life,caityas, etc.
Even though brahmanically informed expressions of religion were prolific
and often responded to Buddhism, the latter flourished as well. Given pat-
ronage by As ́oka, the Kus.a ̄n.as, and such other dynasties as the Sa ̄tava ̄hanas
in the Southern Deccan, Buddhist settlements were numerous and their
influence in certain settings considerable. In some Buddhist centers, for
example, Na ̄ga ̄rjunakonda and Amara ̄vatı ̄ in the Southern Deccan, monastic
communities were established and schools or colleges supported. In
80 The Urban Period