page_title: Abeyadana temple
section_title: Paintings
hierarchical_section_title: Abeyadana temple / Paintings
caption_attribution_description: English: The inside of the temple is fully painted. This Bodhisattva stands high up on the wall, surrounded in typical iconography by long, curling lotus stems and flowers. It was not possible to photograph elsewhere in the temple at the time of our visit (2004).
context_page_description: Abeyadana temple is a 12th century Buddhist temple in Bagan, Myanmar. The temple complex has a large central temple, which has a rectangular plan.
context_section_description: The main idol of the temple is a brick image of Gautama Buddha. On the west side of the Buddha image, a portrait-figure shows Abeydana praying to him. The north side of entrance hall features eight rows of Jataka frescos, with titles in Pali language and descriptions in Mon language (and often, the number of the Jataka tale). A subsidiary panel shows the Buddha delivering his first sermon (the Dhammacakkappavattana Sutta). He is sitting cross-legged on a lotus throne, and his hands are in Dharmachakra mudra pose. He is surrounded by people paying obeisance to him: two celestial beings showering lotus flowers at the top, and two kings at the bottom. There is also an image of the goddess Tara, who is shown with a curvy body, dressed in royal attire. On her left side, there is a padma lotus, and on her right side, there is a blue lotus. These flowers are said to signify her purity.
  Besides the orthodox Buddhist frescos, the temple walls also feature Tantric and Brahmanic elements. The inner walls of the temple feature frescos of Hindu gods such as Brahma, Vishnu, Shiva and Indra. In addition, there are paintings of deities specific to Burmese Buddhism, such as that of a cross-legged goddess.
caption: Bodhisattva painting in Abeyadana temple
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