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Maitreya statues in the Southern Dynasties and the incarnation of Fu Dashi as Maitreya

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Published/Copyright: November 13, 2018
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Abstract

In the 5th and 6th centuries, the belief of the descent of Maitreya was very popular in the Jiangnan area, the Longhua Monastery worshipping the statue of Maitreya as Buddha was flourishing, and the Longhuahui (Maitreya’s preach assembly under the dragon-flower tree, aka Sri Lankan ironwood) was also once prospering. The Maitreya figures of the Southern Dynasties in the Jiangnan area are seen in the cliff niches at Baoxiang Monastery in Xinchang County, Zhejiang and the Mount Qixia Grottoes in Nanjing, Jiangsu; in Sichuan area, the Maitreya figures of the Southern Dynasties are seen on the votive stele made by Monk Xuansong in Maoxian County and the Maitreya statue made by Monk Fahai found at Xi’an Road in Chengdu. Fu Dashi (497–569 CE), a devout lay Buddhist native to Dongyang District of the Southern Dynasties, announced himself as the incarnation of Maitreya to attract believers, and invented the zhuanlun jingzang (rotating Buddhist scripture library).

References

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Published Online: 2018-11-13
Published in Print: 2018-11-27

© 2018 by Walter de Gruyter, Inc. · Boston · Berlin

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  1. Frontmatter
  2. New archaeological discoveries
  3. The Banlashan Cemetery of Hongshan Culture in Chaoyang City, Liaoning
  4. Surveys and excavations in 2014–2016 at Shijiahe Site in Tianmen City, Hubei
  5. The Imperial City Terrace Locality of the Shimao City Site in Shenmu County, Shaanxi Province
  6. The Jartai Pass Site in Nilka County, Xinjiang
  7. Reports
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  9. The excavation of the Daxi Cultural remains at Dashuitian Site in Wushan County, Chongqing
  10. The excavation of the Wujiachang Cemetery in Fuquanshan Site, Shanghai in 2010
  11. The Shang burials at the Yangjiawan Locality of the Panlongcheng Site in Wuhan
  12. The excavation of burial M89 at Tiesan Road at the Yinxu Site in Anyang, Henan
  13. The excavation of the burial M8 at the Zhoujiazhai Cemetery in Suizhou, Hubei
  14. The recovering of the Qianfosi cliff sculptures in Tongnan County, Chongqing
  15. Research
  16. On the subsistence types of the Xiantouling Culture
  17. On the origin and formation of the early Qin Culture
  18. On the provenance study method of the archaeological relics based on styles and distributions
  19. Maitreya statues in the Southern Dynasties and the incarnation of Fu Dashi as Maitreya
  20. A preliminary research on the burials of the Mongol Khanate period and Yuan Dynasty in northern area
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  22. The development and formation of soldering technique on the bronze ritual vessel casting of the Shang and Zhou Dynasties
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