(5-1, p. 4)

Marylin Martin Rhie

Plate 11. Venerable Huirang, (Koryo dynasty; ca. mid tenth century); painted wood; approximately life-size. Located at Haeinsa, Mt. Kaya, Hapch'on Prefecture, South Kyongsang Province. Huirang (889-967?), was the third abbot of Haeinsa, and founder of the Pukak branch of the Hwa Om sect. In his distant gaze and slight smile, the monk seems to express an inner awareness beyond the ordinary.

(5-1, p. 5)

Every Buddhist image has its own way of expressing the Buddha's teaching. Each speaks with an immediacy and concreteness that penetrates the mind of the viewer by means of the spirit of its particular time. Through the force of special qualities within the image which attract, hold and inspire, the beholder is brought to open his mind to the true meaning and nature of the Buddhas and bodhisattvas—those exalted beings on the threshold of Buddhahood. Beyond its aesthetic significance or its status as a reflection of a particular culture, then, each Buddhist image is important as a bearer of spiritual inspiration. The material form of the image—influenced by both aesthetics and culture—becomes fused with spiritual essence, creating a link between the Buddha and the beholder. This link, metaphorically speaking, stretches from the realm of the Buddha to that of sentient beings—from nirvana to samsara. In the Buddhist view, however, these are actually one and the same. The Buddhist image, in its sublimest intention, seeks to show that the Buddha and sentient beings are entirely the same. The compassion manifested in images of Buddhas and bodhisattvas expresses the enlightened one's awareness of 'no distinction'—of no barrier between all beings and the Buddha. The works discussed here—primarily sculptures from the Three Kingdoms period (first century B.C.-A.D. 668), the Unified Silla Kingdom (668-918), and the Koryo dynasty (918-1392)—are but a few examples selected to illustrate the major artistic developments in Korean Buddhist art, as well as to reveal the heart of the Korean interpretation of the profound Buddhist truth.

Despite the interrelation of Chinese and Japanese art with that of Korea, the Korean Buddhist image has always remained unique in its stylistic emphases and in many points of iconography. This is especially evident in its expression of the Korean perception of the ultimate beauty which reflects spiritual truth. Generally speaking, an initial analysis of Korean images reveals a striving for harmony through the merging of opposites. In Chinese art, by contrast, opposites such as form and line, body and drapery, the abstract and the natural, are clearly defined, and retain an independent life within the whole. (5-1, p. 6) Although one might expect the Korean image to display a stronger harmony or unity, this is not the case. Instead, the more closely one analyzes the Korean image, the more does its harmonious whole become ungraspable. If one searches for it, it seems to dissolve and vanish into nothingness. The material substance of the image seems to dissipate, and the beholder is drawn irrevocably into the realm of the immaterial—not as an opposite of form, but as its foundation. The major artistic statement becomes the view of nothingness, an infinite void manifested in this world through the refined aspect of the image—appearing like a tesseract of the transcendent dimension.

Illusory Phenomena

The special power of the Korean image lies in its ability to transform the viewer's consciousness and draw him into the transcendent realm, while also expressing the Buddhist view that material phenomena are ultimately illusory, and that the foundation of nirvana and samsara lies in their emptiness (sunya). This is the most real power of the Korean Buddhist image, conveyed subtly through its beautifully delicate refinements. One should not mistake the lack of obvious physical power in many of these images for either weakness or lack of substance, for the incredible strength of the Buddhist emptiness lies at their essence. By contrast, the Chinese Buddhist image maintains a strong grip on a beautiful and deeply satisfying unity of clearly defined opposites—creating thereby an impelling emphasis on a positive oneness which envelopes the viewer. The Japanese Buddhist image creates a similar impact, in that it generally imparts a forceful materiality and positivity to its form.

Plate 1. Standing Buddha (Three Kingdoms period; probably 539); gilt bronze; 19.2 cm. in height. Inscribed 'Koguryo,' this figure was discovered at Uriyong, South Kyongsang Province; it is now in the collction of the National Museum of Korea, Seoul.

Most of the earliest Buddhist images in Korea seem like particles of light from the transcendent reaches. Usually small and shimmering with gold, they are iconic and pure with a gentle simplicity and tender softness. They are marvels of contrasting surfaces, without the distinctly segmented patterns apparent in the corresponding Chinese style. The Koguryo standing Buddha, generally dated to the year 539 (pl. 1), presents a figure of such contrasts: its chunky, fractured drapery folds which supplant any sign of body form, contrast with the powerful cubic masses of head, hands, and the sleek volumes of the lotus petals. The entire figure is then set against an amazingly thin halo which reflects the Buddha's radiance in its delicately etched lines of dissolving light. While the image seems to be projected from the transcendent realms of light and pure form into the phenomenal world of samsara, through its unworldly beauty and tender reassurances—generated by its soft forms and symbolic hand gestures that bestow generosity and betoken 'have no fear'—it gently but surely attracts the viewer toward the realm from whence it seems to come.

Supernatural Aura

Among the images dating from the late sixth to mid seventh century—the latter part of the Three Kingdoms period—are many of the Bodhisattva Maitreya, who waits in the Tushita heaven to become the next Buddha. Although the identification of these figures is not always certain, in Korea those contemplative bodhisattvas in a panga (one leg crossed) pose are generally thought to represent Maitreya. The relative abundance of such Korean images dating to this period no doubt reflects the fervor of Maitreya worship, which is also known from the popularity of the Maitreya sutras (texts) at this time. One of the earliest of the panga images is a bronze whose style suggests a probable date of roughly 580-600; though its provenance is not certain, some consider it to have originated in the Paekche Kingdom (pl. 2). Despite its apparent artlessness, this bronze image is a marvel of intricacies. Beginning at its square base, the eye of the viewer moves step-by-step up the pyramidal structure of the statue from one changing geometric shape to another. As if in contradiction, even while the patterns become progressively richer and more complex, they simultaneously become thinner (5-1, p. 7) and less solid, until the whole purposeful build-up culminates in the firm rectangular mass of the head, where the complete dissolution of concrete form—originally provided by a now-lost crown and halo—can only be imagined.

Plate 2. Seated Maitreya (Three Kingdoms period); gilt bronze; 28.6 cm. in height. Collection of the National Museum of Korea, Seoul. This image, seemingly remote from human naturalness and apparently completely self-contained in contemplation, appears almost totally iconic in nature and abstract in form. But a rare and beauti ful aspect issuggested by the fanciful distortions of form and by the lyrical rhythms of line and plane.

The loveliest portions of the image appear in its body, where long, graceful curves and open spaces echo and re-echo one another. Thin scarves and double lines of dotted jewel chains play upon the smooth surfaces of the unnaturally thin and elongated trunk and arms, the contours of which restate again and again the gentle vertical motions leading to the solid head wrapped in its samadhic contemplation. Yet amidst the dominant vertical rhythms there is another, more subtle, factor at work a kind of counter-point of smaller details: the arched lilt of tassels from the jewelled chains; the strange loop of the scarf at the left wrist; the stretched crook of the right elbow; the curved backward slope of the left hand, which counterbalances the inward curve of the right hand. These startling and unreal points of motion allow a kind of supernatural electricity to emanate from the body. Despite the calmness of the image's meditation, these signs reveal the being's inner

Certain major elements of this style also appear in Chinese sculpture of the mid sixth century from Lianhuadong (Lien-hua tung) in Shandong (Shantung) Province—a point of close communication with Korea which suggests a more widespread occurrence of the style than previously thought. A superlative expression, nevertheless, is that found in Korean art; even among early Japanese images this fanciful, unworldly style is called the 'Korean style.' In Korea this style attained a special potency and meaning, possibly because of the appeal of its shamanistic-like mysteriousness, as well as its appearance as part of an iconic phase in Korean art. Unlike the Chinese style of this time, the (5-1, p. 8) Korean style is basically devoid of strong elements of idealism or naturalism, so the concentrated power of its abstraction—which allows the suitability and believability of its distortions—is not dissipated by other factors.

Plate 3. Buddha Triad (Old Silla Kingdom; ca. first quarter of the seventh century); granite; Buddha measures 2.77 m. in height. Located at Paeri, Kyongju, North Kyongsang Province. The bodhisattvas which flank the Buddha are notably individualistic in their portrayal: the somber and heavy character of the right-hand attendant contrasts sharply with the lighter, uplifting, and more cheerful appearance of the attendant to the Buddha's left. Each of the figures of this triad was carved from a single granite boulder; the pedestals of the Buddha and its left-hand attendant are later replacements.

Monumental Style

Among the Three Kingdoms, Silla, located in the southeast of the Korean peninsula, was the last to adopt Buddhism. Once it had done so, however, its imperial family assumed Sanskrit names, reckoned its lineage from the family of Shakyamuni (the historic Buddha), and built many magnificent monuments in and around the capital of Kumsong (Kyongju). Recent excavations of the imperial Silla temple of Hwangyongsa have unearthed its remains, including the foundations of its famed nine-story wooden pagoda and two great shrine halls. The Samguk yusa, (Chronicles of the Three Kingdoms), drawn from ancient sources, recounts some of the wonderous events regarding the founding of this temple—including the casting of its great golden Buddha out of metal said to have been sent from India. Regrettably, the original main images of the temple have not survived. Stone socles for the images have survived, however, and together with the discovery of a bronze fragment of the Buddha's hair, these indicate the enormous size of the images.

Not far from Kyongju, near the small village of Paeri on the western slope of Namsan—a sacred mountain on which are the remains of numerous ancient Buddhist temples—survives a relatively large stone triad from the ancient site of Sonbangsa. This triad reveals the special Silla style of monumental image from the early decades of the seventh century (pl. 3). Each image, a Buddha and two bodhisattvas, is carved from a single large boulder of the coarse, light-colored granite which is (5-1, p. 9) prevalent in Korea. Difficult as it may be to carve delicate or precise lines on this coarse stone, the style of these images does not depend upon delicacies, but draws its power and life-giving force directly from the stone itself. Although all stone carvers know their stone, the Korean sculptor seems to have a particular affinity for recognizing the essential life of the stone and for letting its magnetism work upon the form he creates. In this case, the blocky shape of the images is not far removed from the boulder from which each is fashioned, and their bodies are afforded only minimal definition within the secure limits of this solid mass. This monumental style imparts a deep sense of security, which is reinforced by the stocky proportions of the bodies, the large size of the heads, and the generally thick and weighty drapery, which is particularly heavy and beautifully creased as it falls across the Buddha's arms and body (pl. 4). Within this bastion of solidity, what need is there for embellishment or refined detail? The core of seen and unseen power in these bodies of massive stone creates such a forceful reality that there is no need for superficial physical reminders of proportions and details. Like magnanimous parents, these images seem to draw the viewer to them without any apparent barrier, through the mere magnetism and reality of their dignified presence and compassionate gaze. Although the appeal of this force is universal, its appearance in a country whose Confucian roots are strong is especially meaningful and compelling.

From a stylistic point of view the Paeri triad has some apparent connections with Chinese sculpture of the Sui dynasty (581-618), and especially with sculptures from the imperial cave temples of Longmen (Lung-men) near Loyang, which was the eastern capital during part of the dynasty. Similarities of style are evident in the use of asymmetrical masses, the generally serious and heavy tone in the sculptures, and the use which they make of styles derived from both Northern Zhou (Chou; 557-581) and Northern Qi (Ch'i; 550-577) art. In the Paeri triad, the bodhisattva to the right of the Buddha reflects the influence of Northern Zhou styles, while the left-hand attendant is related to Northern Qi styles. This complexity of stylistic lineages—in which inspiration may be borrowed not only from a diversity of Korean regional styles, but also from various Chinese regional styles—is characteristic of Buddhist sculpture during the Three Kingdoms period. Generally speaking, however, the Korean sculptural style of this period maintained a powerful reality based on an iconic and abstract form. Although the later decades of the period witnessed a gradual incorporation of naturalistic elements into Buddhist images, it was not until after the unification of the Korean peninsula by Silla that the true flowering of the natural ideal came to fruition.

Plate 4. Detail of the Buddha at Paeri. The soft, round contours of the Buddha's smiling face assures the viewer that the Buddhist way is peaceful and that his power is compassionate.

Korean Naturalism Many of the stylistic developments found in Buddhist sculpture of the Unified Silla Kingdom (668-918) correspond closely to those in the art of the Tang (T'ang) dynasty (618-906) in China. For Buddhism and Buddhist art, this period of three hundred years is a generally splendid time in both countries. Especially active communications among the Buddhist countries of Asia at this time contributed to the creation of a pan-Asiatic, international Buddhist style of art, which tended to emphasize the reality of Buddhist images directly, through the power of a more naturalistically rendered human form. The evolution of this artistic form—undoubtedly stimulated by the vital movements in Buddhist thought at this time—took place over a period of many decades and varied greatly. In China, Korea, and Japan the culmination of this Buddhist naturalism occurred around the second half of the eighth century, after which time the style turned toward more formal types of expression.

An early representative of the change in Korean sculpture toward greater naturalism is the stone triad discovered in 1962 by Hwang Su Young on the north side of Mt. Palgong in Kunwi district, not far from Taegu (pl. 5). The triad images of Amitabha Buddha and the Bodhisattvas Dae-se (Sanskrit, 'Mahasthamaprapta') and Kwanseum (Sanskrit, 'Avalokiteshvara') were made from separate pieces of granite and brought into the cave, which had been hollowed out some twenty to thirty feet above ground level in a sheer rocky cliff just above a rushing river (pl. 6). The style of this triad is similar to that of early Tang Buddhist sculpture of the 640s as seen in the stone sculpture dated 644 at Shantongsi (Shan-t'ung ssu) in Shandong Province. This factor as well as certain sophisticated subtleties of form and line suggest that this triad was probably carved around 660-680 at the beginning of the United Silla period. Although there are earlier cave-like structures in Korea, this is the oldest known complete, hollowed out cave temple similar to those so famous in China, Central Asia, and India.

Flanked by his two great bodhisattvas and framed by a large flaming (5-1, p. 10) halo carved in the rear wall, the. Buddha Amitabha sits with utmost calm on a square pedestal covered by the wide, almost symmetric, U-shaped patterns of the falling robe. Dominated by its large rectangular head with broad, smooth planes and large rounded features, the body of the Buddha still retains a simple blocklike cohesion and solidity. When compared with the Paeri triad, however, the emergence of this image from the strong binding force of its stone is evident. This change is also noticeable in the bodhisattvas, whose individual differences are much less pronounced than in the Paeri triad, while their forms are both more slender and more mobile.

Plate 5. Amitabha Triad (early Unified Silla Kingdom); granite; Buddha and pedestal measure 2.88 m. in height. Located at Kunwi, North Kyongsang Province. Discovered in 1962 by Hwang Su Young, this triad is an early representative of the change in Korean sculpture toward greater naturalism, which occurred during the early Unified Silla period.

Most astonishing is the extraordinary delicacy of the Buddha's robe, which lies gently on the body with subtly curved, yet firm creases which lightly indicate the main parts of the body. While the mass of the form connotes weight and substance, the delicate lightness of these garments suggests the breathtaking beauty of the transcendent. The majestic image reveals itself in the pure beauty of ephemerality, accordplished with the ease of complete composure—perfectly suggested by the languid drapery, the simple, unencumbered form, and the large, smooth hands lying with weight and grace on the figure's crossed legs. Through its gentle composure and kindness, the image projects an aura of total receptivity. This is an apt expression of the nature of Amitabha, whose special vow to save beings forms the basis of faith in Amitabha and rebirth in his 'pure land,' which was becoming increasingly popular at the beginning of the Unified Silla Kingdom.

Plate 6. View of the stone cave on Mt. Palgong, Kunwi Prefecture, North Kyongsang Province.

Relentless Energy

In addition to two famous solid gold Buddhas of exquisite workmanship dating to about 706, which have survived from the pagoda of Hwangboksa in Kyongju, many beautiful bronze images of Buddhas and bodhisattvas have survived from the late seventh and early eighth century. Among these bronzes are several (5-1, p. 11) excellent reliefs, possibly once part of a shrine, unearthed during excavation in 1975 at Anapchi pond in the Silla imperial garden, in Kyongju. The bronze reliefs unearthed from Anapchi date stylistically to about 710-720. Their style presents a close parallel to the artistic currents in China during the period from 700 to 710, especially as witnessed in sculptures formerly at the Baoqingsi (Pao-ch'ing ssu) in Changan (Ch'ang-an), the capital of the Tang dynasty, and in the sculptures of Cave XXI at Tianlongshan (T'ien-lung shan), dating to about 706. One relief from the Anapchi group shows a teaching Buddha seated on a richly adorned lotus and backed by an openwork halo of floral rosettes and honeysuckle rinceau designs (pl. 7). The Buddha image seems to radiate strength and power. There is no line or contour that is not alive and vibrant with energy, and the proportions and measure of the body are those of a splendid, well-formed youth. The energy generated by the full yet tight body with its broad shoulders and contracted waist is heightened by the taut curves of the drapery folds which stretch over and around the form in strong rib-like creases. The outpouring of energy from the figure becomes the brilliance of the Buddha's presence, which seems actual and real in human terms. The relentless nature of this energy, with no rest perceived in the curves of line and form, compels the viewer to acknowledge that the source of its power is beyond the ordinary. The image manifests the splendid and radiant activity of the Buddha in the human realm, as shown by its uninterrupted and unceasing emission of energy. Underlying the image's energy of curves is a geometric principle of order, apparent in its clear shape and in the symmetrical parallel composition of line clusters. This simple and clear abstract principle adds an even greater dimension to the power of the image,.through the fact of its absolute mastery over activity. Such an apparition, combining the fully active and fully controlled forces of power, arouses within the viewer the feeling of supreme strength and confidence needed to exert oneself from the mires of samsaric existence.

Plate 7. Buddha Triad (Unified Si lla Kingdom; ca. 710-720); gilt bronze; height 27 cm. This triad, now in the collection of the National Museum of Korea, Kyongju, was discovered in Kyongju at the site of the Anapchi pond in the Silla imperial garden, the most complete, spectacular and authentic example of palace garden art to survive from this period in all Asia.

Partaking of the Buddha's activity are the attendants, whose naturalistic modelling and flexed postures show a dramatic development compared with the bodhisattvas. of the Kunwi cave-temple. Possibly inspired by the bodhisattva's vows to help all sentient beings without exception, many of the images of this period from China, Korea, and Japan especially emphasize the display of motion in their representation of the bodhisattva.

Sokkurarn

If the Kunwi cave images reveal the awakening stages of naturalism in Korean Buddhist sculpture, and the Anapchi relief its energetic and powerful stage, the culmination of these naturalistic principles occurs in the Buddha image at Sokkuram. A supreme monument among all Buddhist art, this cave-temple was made during the third quarter of the eighth century, at the direction of the Silla minister Kim Tae-song (pl. 8). Although raised upon a large lotus pedestal, the great image is yet not so large nor so distant from the viewer as to appear unapproachable. But upon seeing the image directly, one cannot help but be filled with an awareness of the suitability and rightness of approaching it with a pure and loving mind.

(5-1, p. 12)

Plate 8. Buddha (Unified Silla Kingdom; third quarter of the eighth century); granite; Buddha and pedestal measure 4.84 m. in height. Located at Sokkuram, Mt. T'oham, Kyongju, North Kyongsang Province. The Sokkuram Buddha sits as lord of his realm in the domed rotunda of this cave-like temple, uniquely constructed of large blocks of dressed stone. Surrounding the august figure of the Buddha are images in delicate low relief of guardians, gods of the higher realms, bhikshus and bodhisattvas. A sublimely ethereal relief of the eleven-headed Bodhisattva Avalokiteshvara is placed directly behind the Buddha.

In all Korean sculpture, never has a Buddha image been revealed with such intimacy and sensuous tactile beauty. But these are expressed as the essence of perfection and harmony, without recourse to extremes, yet containing all potentialities and existing without any reservation or hindrance. Generous and naturalistic in its body, with broad muscular chest and plump limbs, the Sokkuram Buddha possesses in combination the qualities of calm weight seen in the Kunwi image, and dynamic power present in the Anapchi Buddha. Whereas these qualities appeared as single dramatic foci in the earlier works, in this image both are subsumed into the whole. To this is added the impact of the soft, fleshlike body, covered by a robe worn over only one shoulder. The image's fullness and soft shape seem to press through the robe, whose folded creases imperceptibly merge into planes that appear to become the very skin of the Buddha. Substance becomes non-substance as drapery

Continued Vitality

Following the splendid achievement of Sokkuram many wonderful sculptures continued to be created in Korea during the still flourishing and vital period of the late Unified Silla Kingdom. There remain, for example, numerous carvings executed in rocky prominences and cliffs around Kyongju. Also many temples were established in remote or mountainous areas of the various provinces; (5-1, p. 13) most of these belonged to the Seon (Japanese, 'Zen') sect, which was then beginning its rise to the prominence it still holds in Korea. Several distinguishing features of late Unified Silla sculpture are the appearance of regional schools, a tendency to emphasize heaviness and grandeur based upon size, a trend toward manneristic elegance, indications of the seeds of formalization, and a reinterpretation of the great style of Sokkuram. In addition to images of Shakyamuni, Maitreya, and Amitabha, there also appear many of the Buddha Yaksa (Sanskrit, 'Bhaishajyaguru'; the Buddha of healing), and Pirosana (Sanskrit, 'Vairocana'; mystical Buddha of the Hwa Om Kyong [Sanskrit, 'Avatamsaka Sutra']), whose earliest representation in Korea seems to be the large bronze image of about 800 at Pulguksa in Kyongju. From this period also date Korea's earliest surviving images made of iron, a material which continued to be used because of its greater resistance to damage by fire-one of the major causes of disaster to Buddhist temples.

A few years ago at the temple of Hanch'onsa on the outskirts of Yech'on, in northern Kyongsang, was discovered an iron image locally called Yaksa Buddha (pl. 9). Despite having been damaged by fire, this image is one of the oldest and finest of Korea's remarkable group of large iron Buddhas. Together with the Yaksa Buddha of the Silsangsa in North Cholla Province it probably dates ca. 840. Both images display a tall torso style known from the large bronze Buddhas of about 800 at the Pulguksa in Kyongju. In the repetitious nature of their garment folds there is a hint of the trend towards formalization which gradually developed during the late Unified Silla period. In the skillful rendering of a firm, still welldefined and rounded form and of the beautifully draped robes with varied types of folds, these two images demonstrate the continued vitality of Buddhist art in this period. Indeed, the interesting diversity of the drapery folds in the Hanch'onsa image, which fall with weight

Plate 9. Yaksa Buddha (Unified Silla Kingdom; ca. 840); iron; Buddha measures approximately 5 ft. in height. Located at Hanch'onsa, Yech'on, North Kyongsang Province. Mild distortions of size and proportion, together with the special beauty of the elegantly moving clusters of drapery folds, suggest an unusual and hence other-wordly aspect in this Buddha, which is one on Korea's oldest iron images. The figure has been slightly damaged by fire; the right forearm, hands, and top of its head are recent replacements.

The small head of the image contributes to an overall sense of elegance, as does the refined shape of its body, and the swift motion of the clustered drapery, which reinforces the rhythms of expansion and contraction and enlivens the whole figure. By contrast with the Sokkuram Buddha, the images of this time openly stress certain mannered qualities which seem to provide a startling glimpse into the supramundane while yet remaining basically rooted in the natural world of weight and form.

Pirosana

An even more startling and forceful vision is provided by the stone Pirosana dating in the second half of (5-1, p. 14) the ninth century at the Sudoam, a Seon temple on the west side of Mt. Kaya. The force of this Buddha's solid mass, which appears to have an unearthly heaviness and enormous weight surpassing even that of the stone itself, is heightened by the swollen contours of its limbs and the vigorous motion of its thick drapery (pl. 10). Because of their large size, the viewer perceives both the head and hands—the latter placed in the commandingly powerful gesture peculiar to Pirosana, and connoting wisdom—as signs of the Buddha's innate power and authority; yet because of their softness, he simultaneously accepts them as trustworthy signs of compassion. The surprising nature of images such as this may reflect Seon practices current during the ninth century, while their iconography appears to be based upon the use of the Hwa Om Kyong sutra, of which Pirosana is the main Buddha. This interesting placement of the Pirosana of the Hwa Om Kyong within a Seon temple occurs with marked frequency during the late Unified Silla period, and probably illustrates the contemporary Seon practice of combining meditation with study of the Hwa Om Kyong. It would appear that the Seon use of the Pirosana image during this period is a special feature in Korea: such a combination is seen neither in Japan nor, as far as we know, in China at this time.

In comparison with the Sudoam image, the Pirosana Buddha from the end of the ninth or beginning of the tenth century at Ch'uksosa—a temple high in the mountains near Yongju—reveals an overall gentleness of form and an interest in the beauty of its decoratively formal lines and delicate patterns (see rear cover). Folds without naturalistic weight cling in formal rows to the clear, but rather stiffened shape of the trunk and limbs. This regularity, together with the subdued patterns of step folds, contrasting wavy hems, and raised floral borders, creates an image of well-controlled, enticingly elegant appearance. Subtle embellishments, such as the border designs and thin edge of the shawl on the right shoulder, delight the viewer, while a calm and confident power quietly controls the whole. In this sureness is a steady assertion of correctness which has no need of excessive energy or naturalism. The image's confident statement of gentle power—conveyed through a strictly held body and limbs, combined with the attraction of regular, but not uninteresting patterns of lines and subtle designs—is another innovation in artistic and religious expression indicative of the continued vitality of Buddhist art even toward the end of the Unified Silla period.

Plate 10. Pirosana Buddha (Unified Silla Kingdom; ca. second half of the ninth century); granite; Buddha measures 2.51 m. in height. Located at Sudoam (Ch'ongamsa), Mt. Kaya, Kumnung Prefecture, North Kyongsang Province. With its unusually stocky width of body and massive cubic head, the imagestrikes the viewer as a startlingly forceful entity.

Quiet Reassurance The Buddhist art of the Koryo dynasty (918-1392) presents a different, but also wonderful and complex development. Although some tenthcentury sculptures—especially iron sculptures from central Korea around Seoul, some of which are of imposing size-attempted to maintain the aesthetic standards of the Unified Silla Kingdom, their vigor often seems strained, with an unreal sharpness that is more extreme than witnessed previously. Still another trend in tenth-century Koryo sculpture shows a deliberate lessening of the strength of the body, and the emergence of a new human dimension through the depiction of thick, soft garments and a portrait-like realism of the face. In this type of early Koryo image, the Buddha appears not so much as the resplendent lord of the Unified Silla period, but as a human teacher whose appearance often approaches the mundane. The viewer apprehends such images as tangible, close, and real, without any overt power or idealized perfection that might intimidate. The Buddha readily seems one with all men, and his relationship with the viewer is one of quiet reassurance.

Within this milieu, portrait images of the great monks—the human teachers of the Buddha's truth—were eminently successful. An example of one such—ranking as an equal in all ways among any of the famous portrait statues of China or Japan—is the 'self-portrait' sculpture of the Venerable Huirang (889-967?), third abbot of Haeinsa temple and founder of the Pukak branch of Hwa Om sect (pl. 11).

From a stylistic point of view this statue dates to the middle of the tenth century, and is a development from the late Tang style of monk's portrait apparent in the statue of Yuancheng (Yuan-ch'eng), abbot of the renowned Fokuangsi (Fo-kuang ssu) monastery at Wutaishan (Whu-t'ai shan), who died in 887. In the Huirang image, (5-1, p. 15) fine lines and eggshell-textured planes shape the head and the particularly thin and sharp features of the face. They create a rarefied clarity and brilliance that penetrates the surrounding space like arrows. As a contrasting foil to his delicately bony face, the soft and languid folds of the abbot's robes flow easily over his figure and, like the face, are painted to simulate the actual appearance of the master. Through a bright and clear realism, without the use of symbolism, this figure quietly and kindly radiates a constant aura of knowledge beyond ordinary sight.

Two-Dimensional Ethereality

The form of later Koryo images, partly inspired by artistic developments during the Chinese Song (Sung; 960-1279) and Yuan (1279-1368) periods is generally more iconic and unworldly. While these images maintain their close relation to the beholder based on an ideal of compassion, they are also instilled with more pronounced qualities of high nobility and perfection than witnessed in previous images. Special attention is focused upon lavish and exquisite details of the finest exactitude, delicacy, and beauty. This skillful precision of the Korean artist was brought to fruition in late Koryo dynasty Buddhist paintings, which must be considered among the world's greatest treasures of painting. The large golden bodies of the Buddhas and bodhisattvas appear like luminous suns against the translucent darkness of limitless space. Garbed in light overlapping draperies decorated with exotic textile patterns of subdued colors and cut gold leaf and, among bodhisattvas, adorned with sumptuous but refined adornments of jewels, and silken transparent scarves, the images become true apparitions of sublimest ethereality. Although some of these paintings are large, the viewer perceives the awesome power of the images not through their size, nor through the strength of their mass, as in Silla sculpture, but through the mysterious aspects of their pure beauty.

Kwanseum, the bodhisattva of compassion and most popular of late Koryo bodhisattvas, was frequently painted as a resplendent supernatural being, combining aspects of teaching and meditation. In the superb example of this genre by the artist So Gu-ban, dated 1323, the bodhisattva presents an overwhelming vision of refined beauty and two-dimensional ethereality (pl. 12). Surrounded by a setting reminiscent of descriptions of the Buddhist 'pure lands,' Kwanseum poses in 'royal ease' on craggy blue rocks which seem to reflect his golden light, also visible behind the image in two transparent circular halos, A vase holding a willow branch—symbolizing the identity and initiatory powers of this bodhisattva—lies near the image on a rocky prominence. The bowl in which the vase rests glows with the subtle shading characteristic of this lucid and exquisite painting technique. The landscape is completed by rushing waterfalls, strangely shaped coral, jewelled floral clumps, lotuses with thread-like veins of gold, and tall stalks of bamboo shrouded in semi-darkness. Never has the otherworldly in art appeared more beautiful and apparitional, yet remained so near, clear, and real. Every detail is clearly visible in this wonderously pure image, which radiates the nature of the transcendent world in its realism and serious tone.

Plate 12. So Gu-ban, Kwanseum Bosal (Bodhisattva Avalokiteshvara), (Koryo dynasty; dated 1323); colors on silk; 165.5 x 101.5 cm. Now in a private collection, Japan. This ethereal vision shows the bodhisattva of compassion seated in a secluded place of meditation among craggy rocks and rushing streams. The figure is depicted in the act of teaching the supplicating and worshipful Sudana, the seeker of enlightenment in the Gandhavyuha text of the Hwa Om sutra.

Throughout the course of Korean art, the ultimate Korean aesthetic statement has been admirably achieved in many different ways. Whether in a monumental triad or a delicate painting, this statement reflects the truth of the transcendent, through its vision of nothingness and non-phenomenality made manifest in our world. In turn, this manifestation ultimately directs the viewer toward the realm of the immaterial and non-substantial and, in a Buddhist context, into sunya, the emptiness of nirvana. In the beholder's glimpse of this vision lies the supreme delight and meaning of the Korean Buddhist image.

Marylin Martin Rhie received her Ph.D. in Asian art history from the University of Chicago, where she specialized in Chinese Buddhist sculpture. Dr. Rhie has travelled extensively in China, Korea, India, and other Asian countries for her research on Buddhist art. Her publications include studies of Northern Wei, Sui, and Tang period Chinese sculpture, as well as of the Buddhist art of Tibet, Korea, India, and Central Asia. Dr. Rhie is currently at Smith College, where she is a lecturer in the Department of Art and the Ada Howe Kent lecturer in the Department of Religion.

Previously published photographs used for this article have been taken from Kim Chewon and Lena Kim Lee, Arts of Korea (Tokyo: Kodansha International, 1974); and Kim Ki Hong, Haein-sa Temple in Mt. Gaya (Seoul: K im Ki Hong, 1977).