Birth of the Buddha Shakyamuni

Birth of the Buddha Shakyamuni

An item at Metropolitan Museum of Art

This panel, together with the one showing Maya's dream (1976.402), was part of a larger set that would have sequentially encircled the drum of a small stupa to recount the life of the Buddha. Here, Maya reaches up to grasp a branch of a tree, much like earlier representations of yakshis (female nature deities), and miraculously gives birth to the Buddha out of her right side.

Asian Art

An exhibit at Metropolitan Museum of Art

Birth of the Buddha ShakyamuniBirth of the Buddha ShakyamuniBirth of the Buddha ShakyamuniBirth of the Buddha ShakyamuniBirth of the Buddha Shakyamuni

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.