Defining the Image: Measurements in Image-Making, Buddhist Images

📘 Book Details

• Author: Charles Willemen

• Publisher: Sri Satguru Publications

• Language: English

• Edition: 2006

• ISBN: 9788170308423

• Pages: 103 (8 B/W Illustrations)

• Cover: Hardcover

• Dimensions: 23 cm × 15 cm

• Weight: 260 gm

English Description

An authoritative and scholarly exploration of ancient Indian Buddhist iconometry and artistic tradition—translating and analyzing the Pratimalaksana text for the first time in English.

🔹 About the Book:

This volume brings to light a critical Buddhist iconometric text, Pratimalaksana, offering both Sanskrit transcription and English translation. Dated tentatively to the 10th century, this text serves as an essential guide to the proportions, measurements, and symbolic features of sacred Buddhist imagery, revealing intricate connections between the śilpaśāstra (manuals on art and iconography) and Buddhist ritual aesthetics.

The text draws upon the Mulasarvastivada tradition and has been transmitted across cultures—translated into Tibetan and Chinese, with Tibetan interpretations influencing Chinese commentary during the Qing Dynasty. This multilingual and multicultural journey reflects the rich evolution of Buddhist visual culture through South Asia, Tibet, and China.

🔹 Key Themes & Features:

• A detailed overview of ancient Indian iconometry (tālamāna) within Buddhist contexts

• Traces the development and dissemination of the Pratimalaksana through Nepalese, Tibetan, and Chinese manuscripts

• Includes analysis of related texts such as Citralaksana, Bimbamana, and Alekhyalaksana

• Illustrations and glossaries for cross-referencing Sanskrit, Tibetan, and Chinese terms

• Commentary on Buddha’s iconic features, symbolic attributes, and doctrinal implications

• Situates Buddhist iconography alongside Brahmanical and Tantric traditions

This book bridges religious studies, Buddhist philosophy, and art history, making it a vital reference for scholars, students, and artists interested in the sacred visual traditions of Buddhism.

🧘♂️ Why This Book Matters:

• First complete English edition of the Pratimalaksana with academic depth

• Essential for understanding the visual grammar of Buddhist statuary and art

• Highlights the intercultural and interreligious transmission of iconometric knowledge

• Reveals how Indian and Tibetan Buddhist traditions codified the sacred body of the Buddha

✍️ About the Author:

Charles Willemen is a distinguished scholar in Buddhist and Chinese studies. With a Ph.D. on the Chinese Udanavarga and teaching experience across Europe and Asia, he has held positions at institutions like Beijing Language and Culture University, Banaras Hindu University, and Shantiniketan. A member of the Belgian Royal Academy of Sciences since 1997, Willemen has published extensively on Buddhist philosophy and East Asian art.