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After the collapse of the Tang Dynasty (906 AD),
there was a succession of short-lived
governments (known as the Five Dynasties). This
period of unrest came to an end with the
establishment of the Northern Song Dynasty in
960 AD. Renewed political stability helped to
usher in a period of economic prosperity and a
massive rise in population. Amongst the many
cultural achievements of the Song Dynasty, the
re- invigoration of the examination system and
the invention of movable type rank highly.
Intellectually the greatest achievement was the
development of Neo-Confucianism- a
philosophical movement heavily influenced by
Buddhist teachings. Although Buddhism had
reached China from India during the Han
Dynasty, it took time for the new faith to make
progress. This was partly because it had to
compete with native ideologies, namely
Confucianism and Daoism. It was possible,
however, to find common ground between these
belief systems and by the Tang Dynasty
Buddhism was experiencing a golden age in
China.
This head of Buddha is an exquisite example of
the trend toward simplistic renderings of
Buddhist images as a result of the expansion of
Ch'an school teachings during the Sung period.
The face is rounded and carved with a sense of
fluidity as the facial expressions convey the
blissful, serene sensation of enlightenment. The
lips of the mouth are upturned, giving the
impression of a "smiling Buddha," and the eyes
are half closed in meditation, accentuating the
Buddha's transcendence of all states of
existence. Elegantly arched eyebrows and the
delicately sculpted nose create a fluid line that
extends beyond both corners of the mouth to the
undefined area of the chin, giving the face a
rather supple feel. The hair is twisted into tight
curls incised with spirals forming an usnisa, a
swelling on the top of the head signifying the
Buddha's enlightenment. Though the swelling is
usually covered with hair, in this image, it is
bare, boldly protruding from the summit of the
head. The pendant earlobes curve upward at the
tips, unadorned and rounded. Buddhist
sculpture of the Sung period is characterized by
sentimentalism, expressed through the grace
and feminine refinements of the features. This
sculpture captures the artistic as well as spiritual
sentiments of the period.
- (H.551)
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