Buddha Images: The Development of Buddhist Innovation in Symbolic Communication for Accessing the Dhamma

Abstract

This academic article, entitled Buddha Images: The Development of Buddhist Innovative Symbolic Communication for Access to the Dhamma, aims to explain the creation of Buddhist sculptural representations that have emerged in the land of Thailand in each historical period as media representing the Buddha. These images possess beauty and are filled with meaning; however, in reality, Buddha images do not reflect only religious faith in Buddhism, but also embody significant historical, social, and cultural implications that vary according to temporal contexts. The article focuses on perspectives related to belief systems that have transformed across different periods, and emphasizes the causes underlying the creation of innovative Buddha images for access to the Dhamma, including relevant historical events and changes in the physical characteristics of Buddhist sculptural forms. This approach enables an understanding of social and cultural conditions in various periods of Thai society through Buddha images, based on contextual frameworks that guide the creation of innovative Buddha images as evidenced in the Tipiṭaka and the faith of Buddhist adherents toward Buddhism. Such communication involves interpretation that moves from the concrete to the abstract, which constitutes an important factor in the study necessary for the continued existence and preservation of Buddhism.