Indian and East Asian Art and Iconography

Contents: Preface. I: 1. Chinese Painting--a study in its history. 2. Iconography in Early Buddhist Art in China. 3. Buddhist Iconography in Korea. II: 1. Social, religious and political background of Japanese Paintings. 2. Iconography of Fukukensaku Kannon (Amoghapasa) in Japanese Art. 3. Iconography of an image of a defied ascetic - priest in Early Japan. 4. Iconography of Cintamanicakra (Nyoirin Kannon). 5. Concept and iconography of Ganesa and Vaisravana (Kubera) in India and East Asia. 6. Iconography of Senju Kannon (Sahasrabhuja Avalokiteswara) in Japan. 7. Iconography of Mahakala in India and East Asian Art. 8. Study of a Nepalese Buddhist image of Sukhavati Lokeswara. 9. Concept and iconography of Vasudhara  (Jap. Vasudhara Bosatsu) in India and East Asia. 10. Iconography of Bato Kannon (Hayagriva) in India and Japan. 11. A brief prelude to Buddhist Iconography. III: 1. An introduction to Jaina Iconography. 2. Symbols and symbolism in Jaina Art. 3. Concept of Yaksa in Jainism: a study in art and literature. 4. Iconography of the Jaina Sasanadevata Ambika. 5. Some Brahmanic deities in Jaina Art. 6. Jaina Canonical Literature and the concept of Tirthankara with a brief study of pedestals of Jaina images. IV: 1. Art of Islamic Numismatics of India. 2. Art of Islamic Calligraphy in India. 3. Minars of Bengal : work of Muslim Structural Art. V: 1. Maurya and Post-Maurya Art. 2. Medieval Art of Temple Terracotta in West Bengal. 3. Dated and datable stone sculptures on Medieval Temples of West Bengal. 4. A note on the Terracotta Slabs on Medieval Temples of West Bengal depicting Rama\'s birth-story. 5. An iconographic study on a few Sculptures of Medieval West Bengal. 6. Epigraphs on Medieval West Bengal Temples and their religious contents. 7. Figure of Anantasayi Visnu on a coin and in sculptures from medieval West Bengal. 8. Amatory trends in religious icons in India. 9. Ucchista--Ganapati in Sculpture and painting and literary tradition. 10. Nudity and eroticism in Indian and Trans-Indian Art. Index.

"The collection of studies in Indian and East Asian Art and Iconography is a considerable assemblage of essays. Though it deals with selected topics relating to iconographic and archaeological art, it touches, sporadically though, almost the entire range of Indian art history and salient periods of East Asia. Nonetheless, the treatment although can claim to be distinctly thorough and documented. Though by character the studies are not an all-inclusive one, they afford a glimpse of the art endeavours of most regions covered. With thirty and odd essays, appelled as chapters classed under sections, the subjects are surely as varied as they are interesting. Though art is known to be mostly inspired by religion, these essays reveal often a transcending trend over all bounds of cults and faiths. They have touched upon art and iconography equally as they have mused on epigraphy and numismatics. And, all are aided by appropriate illustrations in which excellence and fineness of details have been kept as the primary aim. Further, these illustrations are not confined to the specific instances always as dealt with in the text, but they also include, as thought expedient, outside the immediate discussion, those that are considered useful, as expanded and comparable material, specially to help researches ahead whenever possible.

With a readable and lucid style in the treatment of the subjects taken up, the wide spread-out of the topics and the problems set are marked by a promiscuity of arrangement which is deli-berate. Deliberate so as to infuse an element of relief from the boredom that might be engendered often by the inherent dryness of the themes." (jacket)