Bronzes from Nalanda

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It is indeed a great pleasure to write foreword to a book authored by a dear friend and a scholar of repute Dr. S.S Biswas, who has picked up for study the art specimens in bronze from Nalanda Mahavihara, something like a university known throughout the Buddhist world for its philosophical contribution and ideal mode of conduct of its inmates and liberal Impartment of knowledge irrespective of recipient's faith and creed. Nalanda has come up as a very important settlement of Buddhist monks in the late Gupta period. It is known that the contemporary royal patronage had given in grant revenue yield of more than 250 villages around Nalanda. That it was the birth place of Sariputta, and here itself Lord Buddha had initiated this Brahmin boy shows antiquity and sacredness of place. The monastery has become a subject of study right from the time of Sir Alexander Cunningham who visited this famous place which had become a place of residence for the illustrious Chinese traveler monk Hiuen Tsang, who lived here for about five years to study in detail the doctrine of ap-matra of the Yogicara School. The ancient site of Nalanda was excavated several times and the monuments and antiquities retrieved became subject of many important monographs and reports. A stalwart like H.D. Sankalia was tempted in his young age to write a monograph on Nalanda (The University of Nalanda, 1972) as a part of his dissertation submitted for M.A. degree. Dr. Debjani Paul of the University of Leiden submitted her thesis for Ph.D. on the Art of Nalanda Development of Buddhist Sculpture AD 600-1200 (1995). The Eastern Indian sculpture has been a topic that fascinated many intelligent minds including Frederick M. Asher (The Art of Eastern India, 300-800, 1980). Prof. Nihar Ranjan Ray, Karl Khandalavala and Sadashiv Gorakshakar (Eastern Indian Bronzes, 1986), A. J. Bernet Kempers (The Bronzes of Nalanda and Hindu-Javanese Art. 1933), and S.K. Mitra (ed) (East Indian Bronzes, 1979) that discussed specifically the style and development of the bronze sculpture of Eastern India. The Art of Nalanda not only tries to trace the religious back ground of this unique historical Buddhist art but also shed to light on the schools of sculpture that might have influenced the Nalanda artist in its formative state.

I am quite aware of the enormous quantity of literary works on Nalanda available from renowned scholars of different areas of indological studies Nevertheless, I have had a desire since long to study the bronze sculptures belonging to Nalanda which is one of the largest hoards ever discovered from any Indian archaeological site Moreover, these bronzes have significant iconographic variety having artistic distinction, the tradition of which influenced even the art of the Asian countries.

Fortunately, my service tenure as Head, Museums Branch), Archaeological Survey of India, Director, Indian Museum, Kolkata and Director General, National Museum, New Delhi provided me the opportunity to examine and study the bronzes discovered at Nalanda, now preserved in these institutions. I have had also an opportunity to examine and study a part collection of these bronzes now preserved in Patna Museum, Bihar I am also able to study the bronzes from Nalanda now located in the foreign museums through various publications In this connection, while appreciating the authors of these publications for their critical appreciation on those bronzes, I sincerely feel sad as many of these bronzes stored/displayed in those museums are unfortunately stolen from Archaeological in/museum, Nalanda, a regrettable situation indeed.

The antiquary of Nalanda has been amply described in the sculptures of Buddhist and Jain texts. As recorded therein Buddha and Mahavira stayed here many a times during their journey to and from Rajagnha (present Rar). However, nothing in great details is recorded about Nalanda of those early days, for it was possibly only a prosperous suburb of the city of Rajanha Tibetan historian Taranath stated that the Emperor Asoka raised a stupa and worshiped here. Fahien, a Chinese traveller closely associated with Sanputra also corroborated the fact. From a small Vihara to a great Monastery, Nalanda developed as a renowned university in the early part of c 5th century CE During the first half of c. 7th century CE, Hien Tang, a Chinese scholar lived in Nalanda for many years and left a graphic account of the university inhabited by about 3 to 4 thousand students and teachers. Besides providing detail records including various activities of Nalanda University in those days, Hiuen Tsang mentioned a six story high building, a copper image of Buddha, 80 feet (2438 cm) in height installed by the King Purna Varman of Maurya lineage in the c. early 6th century CE. King Harsha Vardhana also erected here a great monastery covered with copper sheets It thus appears that metal had been in use at Nalanda for various purposes. Further, the discovery of a metal smelting furnace with metal pieces and slag in it at Temple No. 13 corroborates that Nalanda was a great atelier for metal casting It was therefore likely that the metallurgy and metal casting had been taught in the university and was also in practice as is evident from the plethora of miniature bronze images for personal worship as well as carrying them to distant countries.

**Contents and Sample Pages**