Seated Buddha Reaching Enlightenment, Flanked by Avalokiteshvara and Maitreya

Seated Buddha Reaching Enlightenment, Flanked by Avalokiteshvara and Maitreya

An item at Metropolitan Museum of Art

This Buddha from the great monastic site of Nalanda is seen at the moment of enlightenment, with his right hand reaching down to touch the earth, bearing witness to his past refined and meritorious actions, including those in countless past lives that brought him to this point of ultimate realization. The Buddha sits in a yogic posture, deep in meditation. His enlightenment allowed him not only to realize, but also to teach, the Four Noble Truths, as stated in the inscription on his lotus throne: Of all dispositions proceeding from a cause The Tathagata [Buddha] has explained the cause And he has explained their cessation also This is the doctrine of the great Shramana [the great ascetic or meditator—the Buddha]. At his right stands the bodhisattva Avalokiteshvara, identifiable by the image of the Buddha Amitabha in his headdress. At his left is Maitreya, the next Buddha who will come in some distant future.

Asian Art

An exhibit at Metropolitan Museum of Art

Seated Buddha Reaching Enlightenment, Flanked by Avalokiteshvara and MaitreyaSeated Buddha Reaching Enlightenment, Flanked by Avalokiteshvara and MaitreyaSeated Buddha Reaching Enlightenment, Flanked by Avalokiteshvara and MaitreyaSeated Buddha Reaching Enlightenment, Flanked by Avalokiteshvara and MaitreyaSeated Buddha Reaching Enlightenment, Flanked by Avalokiteshvara and Maitreya

The Met's collection of Asian art—more than 35,000 objects, ranging in date from the third millennium B.C. to the twenty-first century—is one of the largest and most comprehensive in the world. Each of the many civilizations of Asia is represented by outstanding works, providing an unrivaled experience of the artistic traditions of nearly half the world.