DESCRIPTION

India?s central role in the spiritual life of Asia fascinated scholars all around the world and inspired several notable endeavors to express elements of cosmology, pilgrimage and sacred landscapes, and, places cartographically. This resulted in fascinating transitional works, which represented a synergy of traditional concepts and modern mapping, of which two of the most significant and ingenious examples are presented here. A key feature, or dichotomy, in these fascinating maps is the overriding attempt is to explicitly situate key sites and landmarks within a measurable paradigm, yet, express the theological importance of these sites within their textual or liturgical traditions. These maps provide a rich testimony of cross-cultural interpretation and exchange.

The Nansenbushu Bankoku Shoka No Zu ('Outline Map of All Countries of the Universe'), printed in Kyoto in 1710, depicts the world according to the precepts of Buddhist cosmology, as interpreted by the Japanese priest-intellectual Zuda Rokashi, a.k.a. Hotan. It is a brilliant melding of cartography and traditional Buddhist cosmology. Asia is depicted as Jambudvipa, the realm of mortals, with India assuming a prominent role. While certain features, such as Lake Manasarovar, Tibet, where Buddha was born, are intentionally exaggerated in prominence, many of parts of Asia that were key to Buddhist tradition are depicted with a relatively high degree of geographic accuracy. Conversely, areas that were peripheral to Buddhist cosmology are relegated to irrelevance, being mere specks on the map.

The traditional Buddhist perspective of the world, as portrayed on the map, focuses on the metaphysical continent of Jambudvipa. In the centre of the continent is the mythical Lake Anavatapta, which represents the actual Lake Manasarovar in Tibet. It marks the centre of the Buddhist universe, as the location where Queen Maya conceived Buddha. Lake Manasarovar and its waters are also sacred to Hindus and Jains. Flowing from the lake are the four great sacred rivers of the Indian Subcontinent: the Ganges, the Brahmaputra, the Indus, and the Sutlej.

Reference: Nanda, Vivek, and Alexander Johnson. Cosmology to Cartography a Cultural Journey of Indian Maps from the Collections of Kalakriti Archives, Hyderabad and National Museum. New Delhi: National Museum, 2015.

GST	12%
Color	Black Frame
MediumType:	Paper
Mount:	Black Mount
Variable:	Acrylic