Query on amulet wearing, Harappa and later

[Guest guest]

Recently I sent out a query to a few other lists and received some

responses

but only one person sent me a reference to check out. I hope that perhaps

someone in this list might be able to add some insights and or references to

consult.

 

Joanna Kirkpatrick

Bennington College, ret.

Boise, ID

--------------------------

When I recently visited the Art Inst of Chicago--having been there before

on

several occasions--I suddenly noticed something I'd simply overlooked

before.

 

Just inside the exhibit after you enter, when you go right into the Asian

art sculpture section, there is a gorgeous torso sculpture identified as

a Gandharan Bodhisattva .

What stuns me are the obvious tabiz-like multiple amulet necklaces he is

wearing draped over his chest and upper arms. The amulets are shaped quite

like so many tabiz one sees on south Asian Muslims usually around the neck

or tied closely on an upper arm. The shape is a rectangular-ish tube

attached by 2 loops to the chain on this murti. (Sorry I don't have a

photo

of this, but one correspondent has offered to send me some of his photos

from elsewhere of similar Gandharan material. Anyone living in Chicago will

probably know which image I speak of here.)

 

Indian Buddha images of course do not wear jewelry (at least far

as I've noticed--there could always be exceptions.) Bodhisattvas do. But

these I speak of are not just jewelry--they are amulet necklaces.

 

I've looked at a few other Gandharan period images on the LACMA website

--of Hariti for ex.--she does not wear amulets but necklaces. There is one

headless image, identified as a Buddha on the site, which wears three

identical

bead necklaces but the jewlery shows no amulets (why would he wear amulets

since he is the founder?).

 

One does not see such tabiz shaped amulets on east Asian Bodhisattvas--I

can't recall seeing any on southeast Asian Bodhisattvas, either--they seem

to wear distinctly jewelry necklaces and other ornaments.

 

Also, I don't know of any evidence that the Greeks of this period wore

amulets, even though their esthetics/conventions influenced Gandharan

design. Did the Hindus of this period wear amulets?

 

Could the wearing of tabiz-like amulets have preceded Buddhism in this

northwest area of the sub-continent--could they have been a local custom

which was continued by local Buddhist converts of this period in that

area?--which subsequently was continued by the local Muslims (probably the

converts)? Does anyone have any references or textual insights they could

share with me?

---------------------

Replies so far: One scholar wrote that indeed amulets were worn at Harappa

(no

references given). Another more or less wrote the same--that amulet wearing

in

this area preceded Buddhism, etc. Again, no references. I''m located far

from any

university library with south asian sources. I thought that perhaps someone

on this list

might help with this.

 

Thanks.