
This paper aims to outline and explore the development of iconographic forms and metaphysical grounding of one of the most venerable and distinguished Buddhist female deities, Prajсāpāramitā. The Buddhist female pantheon gained a paramount pre-eminence with the idolization of Prajñāpāramitā, establishing the significance of female figure and, especially, mother symbolism during the early medieval period under the liberal patronage of the Pala dynasty of Eastern India. The religious imageries and practices of this deity gradually disseminated to the adjoining Himalayan kingdoms of Nepal and Tibet through pedagogic and religious linkages, and became an integral part of their society. To understand the factors of cross-cultural assimilation through the study of representational forms and its metaphysical grounding, the paper explores and shows the metaphorical meaning of ‘prajсā’ propounded in the Prajñāpāramitā discourse, and its representation in cultic icons of the goddess Prajñāpāramitā and the manuscript. This thematic narrative opens up new avenues of interpretations on gender-subjectivity in Buddhist cosmology and pantheistic belief system which are touched upon in this paper. The idea of pronouncement and expansion of female-oriented texts and icons is highlighted through a study of select devotional icons of this deity, Prajсāpāramitā, from the collection of the National Museum, Delhi.
СИМВОЛ МАТЕРИ, COLOUR SYMBOLISM, iconographic forms; mother symbolism; cultural linkages; cultic icons; colour symbolism; gender-subjectivity; Buddhist cosmology, культурные связи, MOTHER SYMBOLISM, GENDER-SUBJECTIVITY, БУДДИЙСКАЯ КОСМОЛОГИЯ, символ матери, CULTIC ICONS, гендерная субъективность, D, BUDDHIST COSMOLOGY, буддийская космология, ГЕНДЕРНАЯ СУБЪЕКТИВНОСТЬ, Language and Literature, ICONOGRAPHIC FORMS, цветовая символика, изобразительное искусство; история искусства, CULTURAL LINKAGES, ЦВЕТОВАЯ СИМВОЛИКА, P, ИКОНОГРАФИЧЕСКИЕ ФОРМЫ, КУЛЬТУРНЫЕ СВЯЗИ, КУЛЬТОВЫЕ ИЗОБРАЖЕНИЯ, иконографические формы, иконографические формы; символ матери; культурные связи; культовые изображения; цветовая символика; гендерная субъективность; буддийская космология, History (General) and history of Europe, Fine Arts; History of Art, культовые изображения
СИМВОЛ МАТЕРИ, COLOUR SYMBOLISM, iconographic forms; mother symbolism; cultural linkages; cultic icons; colour symbolism; gender-subjectivity; Buddhist cosmology, культурные связи, MOTHER SYMBOLISM, GENDER-SUBJECTIVITY, БУДДИЙСКАЯ КОСМОЛОГИЯ, символ матери, CULTIC ICONS, гендерная субъективность, D, BUDDHIST COSMOLOGY, буддийская космология, ГЕНДЕРНАЯ СУБЪЕКТИВНОСТЬ, Language and Literature, ICONOGRAPHIC FORMS, цветовая символика, изобразительное искусство; история искусства, CULTURAL LINKAGES, ЦВЕТОВАЯ СИМВОЛИКА, P, ИКОНОГРАФИЧЕСКИЕ ФОРМЫ, КУЛЬТУРНЫЕ СВЯЗИ, КУЛЬТОВЫЕ ИЗОБРАЖЕНИЯ, иконографические формы, иконографические формы; символ матери; культурные связи; культовые изображения; цветовая символика; гендерная субъективность; буддийская космология, History (General) and history of Europe, Fine Arts; History of Art, культовые изображения
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