Buddha Meditating Under the Bodhi Tree

ca. 900 C.E.

This image of Shakyamuni depicts him meditating. Above him are the heart-shape leaves of the bodhi tree, a reference to the site where he gained enlightenment, at Bodh Gaya in northern India. This sculpture is made of granite, typically used by carvers in the South Indian state of Tamil Nadu. By the time it was made, there were few Buddhists in South India, and monasteries in the area relied on patronage from Sri Lanka and Southeast Asia. Foreign influence is evident in the flame on the Buddha’s cranial bump (ushnisha), a trait not typically found on Indian Buddhas.