Confucius (551-479 BC)
Eminent teacher, philosopher and political theorist, and founder of its feudal system of education, Confucius is one of Ancient China’s most famous figures, a man whose practical experience and deep thinking on the subject have left their mark on educational development in his own country and elsewhere. Revered in antiquity as the ‘Supreme Sage’ and the ‘Model for Ten Thousand Generations’, Confucius now enjoys universal acclaim; his remarkable and lasting contribution to teaching and education has ensured him a place in history, as well as in culture, in China and beyond. The influence of his pedagogy remains perceptible today. Recent years have seen a renewal of interest in Confucius, as scholars ask themselves whether his ideas have withstood the test of time.
Confucius (551-479 BC), whose patronymic was Qiu and given name Zhongni, was born at Quyi in the principality of Lu (today’s Qufu in Shandong Province), to which his forebears, aristocrats from the principality of Song, had fled for political reasons and where their fortunes had gradually declined. His own father, a minor official, died when Confucius was still a child, leaving the family in poverty. Initially employed in a low-grade post with responsibility for livestock and granaries, he rose through the administrative hierarchy to become, at about the age of 40, the prefect (Zai) and director of public works (Sicong) in the city of Zhongdu, and then minister of security and justice (Sikon) for the principality of Lu.
Later, he traveled with his disciples in Wei, Cao, Song, Zheng, Chen, Cai and other parts of the country, unsuccessfully expounding his political opinions and moral precepts. He returned to Lu at the end of his life, and spent his final years writing and teaching. Confucius took lifelong delight in learning as well as teaching, and lived to see his reputation as an accomplished polymath spread far and wide. Before his time, under the Zhou Dynasty, schooling took place within government offices and was dispensed by public officials. General education, the prerogative of the nobility, was denied to the common people, and there was no such thing as a full-time teaching profession. Young aristocrats received a civil and military education based on the ‘six arts’: rites, music, archery, chariotdriving, calligraphy and mathematics. The end of the so-called Spring and Autumn Period, with which Confucius’ life coincided, was marked by violent upheavals as Chinese society based on slave-ownership was transformed into a feudal society; the political and economic underpinning of ‘education for and by the administration’ was collapsing and culture was acquiring a more popular base. In breaking the aristocratic monopoly of learning and setting up a private academy that was accessible to rich and poor alike, Confucius was moving with his times. ‘My teaching’, he declared, ‘is open to everyone, without distinction.’ He was in his 30s when he first accepted disciples; he took in 3,000 in all, seventy-two of whom progressed to complete mastery of the ‘six arts’. In scope, enrolment and quality of teaching, the school of Confucius was unique for its age; both during and after its founder’s lifetime and posthumously, it exerted a considerable influence in the political, economic, cultural, ethical and moral spheres. Confucius devoted his energies to this undertaking for almost half a century, and his efforts were interrupted only by illness and death at the age of 72.
His views on education
In the course of this half century, Confucius, not content to give excellent training to a large number of students, constantly distilled his own teaching experience, thus developing his own educational doctrine.
The teacher’s first task is to identify his audience. In this connection, Confucius stated that his lessons were destined for all men, without exception (Analects, Wei Ling gong). His pupils came from the lowest as well as the highest levels of society, and access to education was thereby broadened considerably. Opening the doors of learning more widely, he hastened the development of general education in Ancient China, thus contributing both to political reform and to the dissemination of culture. At the same time he helped to reveal the humanist character of Confucian teaching, which was to have an unquestionable influence on the private schools and academies of feudal society. This approach also helped to create the conditions whereby the emergent land-owner class could accede to the authority conferred by learning and produce talented men from its midst.
Role and objectives of education
Starting from the political principle that virtue was a prerequisite of government, and the psychological observation that ‘by nature, men are much alike; their practices set them apart’ (Analects, Yang Huo), Confucius demonstrated that education plays a fundamental role in the development of society and of individuals alike. Not only does it offer a means of ensuring the supremacy of virtue; it can also alter human nature and improve it in qualitative terms. By raising individual moral standards, it renders society in its entirety more virtuous: the kingdom is well administered, orderly and law-abiding, to the extent that all within it follow the path of righteousness. Although it may be an exaggeration to state that the supremacy of virtue can be guaranteed by education alone, special concern for the latter, and the notion that action at the level of individual morality is called for if the moral level of society is to be raised, remain topical today. The teachers and political leaders of the feudal era were all imbued with these principles; most of them emphasized that education had an improving effect on individuals, and promoted order and security throughout the land; hence it should be developed. Confucius was at the origin of that concern for education, which gradually became one of the great traditions of China’s feudal society.
Another of a teacher’s tasks is to determine what type of person he is to form. Denouncing the favouritism and the passing of office from one generation of nobles to the next that prevailed during his time, Confucius recommended appointment according to merit and ‘promotion of the ablest’ (Analects, Zi Lu). He considered that the goal of education was to produce capable individuals (xiancai)-whom he also called shi(gentlemen) or junzi (men of quality)-who ‘combined competence with virtue’ and whose subsequent careers in administration and government would bring about the ideal of a kingdom managed with integrity. ‘You believe you have studied enough? Then take up a post in the civil service’, he advised his disciples (Analects, Zi Zhang). This radical stand against the principle of the hereditary transmission of posts was reflected in the system of training and appointing officials that was later adopted in feudal society, and served as the theoretical basis for the selection process introduced under the Han Dynasty, and later for the imperial examination procedure that would be followed throughout the Sui and Tang Dynasties and up to the fall of the Manchus; it was also central to the feudal education system as a whole. The Chinese people have, to this day, kept faith with these two traditions; character development aimed at competence together with moral integrity; and appointment according to merit.
In conformity with these objectives, Confucius determined that the twin pillars of education should be moral instruction, which would have priority, and the imparting of knowledge. Moral instruction, which had to take pride of place, since what was needed were individuals of outstanding virtue who would assist the prince in governing with integrity, thus became the basis of Confucian teaching. In deference to the interests of the feudal landowning class, Confucius reshaped the moral concepts of the past, and proclaimed a series of new rules designed to put an end to the political chaos and moral decadence of the times. His ethics, philosophy and politics are indissociable, the first of these being characterized by a rare vitality which was the driving force of feudal morality and civilization for more than two millennia and which was centred on ‘humanity’ or ‘benevolence’ (ren), which also signifies love for one’s neighbour. This virtue manifests itself in all types of relations between human beings and contains the germ of other qualities: filial piety (xiao), respect for the elderly (ti), loyalty (zhong), respectfulness (gong), magnanimity (kuan), fidelity (xin), diligence (min), altruism (hui), affability (wen), kindness (liang), frugality (jian), tolerance (rang), indulgence (shu), wisdom (zhi) and courage (yong). It also helps in avoiding all forms of excess, promotes fearlessness in the face of difficulties, assists in distinguishing what is to be cultivated from what is to be eschewed, and encourages honest and righteous conduct. All these qualities stem from ren, which enjoins human beings to show mutual sympathy, solicitude and respect, and to watch over one another. In order that all these precepts might serve to enhance the responsibility of individuals and society alike, Confucius stressed that each man should cultivate virtue and should receive a moral education. Thanks to individual efforts in that respect, there would be order in family affairs, the country would be well governed, the people would live in security, and peace would everywhere prevail. Moral education was thus for Confucius the means whereby his ideas concerning virtue might be materialized. As the founder of feudal China’s education system he defined its basic content by working out his concept of moral instruction, and established guidelines for its further development. His ethics can, moreover, be said to have codified the whole network of social relationships in feudal China.
However, Confucius was equally concerned with the intellectual development of his disciples, that is to say with the inculcation of culture, abilities and skills. In order to instill the moral values of feudal society in them, the basics of an all-round culture and the capacities required to exercise official responsibilities, he drafted six manuals which were considered to be the foundation of teaching and learning: the Book of odes(Shi); the Book of history (or Documents) (Shu); the Book of rites (Li); the Book of music (Yue); the Book of changes (Yi); and the Spring and autumn annals (Chunqiu). These didactic works, which deal essentially with social relations and with ethics but also address a large number of other subjects, including philosophy, history, politics, economics, culture and musicianship, constituted the first relatively comprehensive teaching manuals in Chinese history. Since Xunzi’s ‘Exhortation to Study’, they have been respectfully referred to as jing (canonical works or classics). The Book of music has been lost, but the five other Confucian classics served for more than 2,000 years as the basis for education in feudal China. Nowhere in the world has any other didactic work ever been referred to with such consistency over such a long period. Beginning at the time when the Han Emperor Wudi founded the Imperial College in 124 BC and decreed that ‘all schools of thought except the Confucian doctrine shall be proscribed’, feudal China built the cult of Confucius and the reading of his canonical works into the foundations of an education that had been designed to serve the interests of the ruling class, according them a pre-eminence that would not be challenged until 1919, by the violent ‘Fourth of May Movement’.
Besides the six classics, which were designed to provide a general culture, Confucius’ teaching also covered the six arts (rites, musicianship, archery, chariot-driving, calligraphy and mathematics), the purpose of which was to impart skills and know-how through practice; according to Confucius, study of the six classics, coupled with mastery of the six arts, would inculcate sound moral sense and a solid cultural grounding that were necessary for the competent exercise of public office.
Rooted in political and moral principles, Confucian education is concerned solely with what constitutes the makings of the ‘man of quality’ and with the tools that the official must master. Natural sciences are hardly touched upon; trade and agriculture are completely ignored. Another outstanding feature of the educational theory and practice of Confucius and the feudal teachers who succeeded him is disdain for manual labour and those engaged in it. Except for a few minor alterations, the content of education continued to reflect the options and priorities established by Confucius throughout the feudal period.
In the course of his lengthy career as a teacher, Confucius steadily put together a system of principles which had a distinctly materialistic slant. Many of them correspond to the general laws of pedagogics. His essential concerns were: to provide students with an education that matched their aptitudes; to inspire and guide them; to lead them by stages; to instruct oneself while teaching others; to explain the present in the light of the past; to devote oneself conscientiously to study and to take delight in it; to combine theory with practice and applied study with abstract meditation; to ensure that personal behaviour was in conformity with the principles examined; to encourage independent thought; to take account of the age of the learners; to practise self-control and self-analysis; to set a good example; to correct one’s errors and improve oneself; to curb evil and exalt the good; to welcome criticism; to accept correction; to forget past affronts, etc. For Confucius, all these principles were the product of a profound intuition frequently confirmed by practice.
Confucius had a great deal to say on this subject. Considered to be a remarkable teacher himself, he was revered throughout feudal society and served as a model for countless generations of his successors.
He believed that a good teacher should first and foremost be passionately and conscientiously committed to his work. His own knowledge must be broad in scope and fully mastered if his pupil was to benefit from exposure to it. Confucius further believed that in order to elicit good results, the teacher must love his pupils, know them well, understand their psychological particularities, give thought to ways and means of facilitating their access to knowledge and, to that end, develop an effective methodology. The hallmark of a teacher’s virtue, in Confucius’ eyes, was tireless commitment through his lessons to his pupils’
development. He must also possess firm political convictions; show modesty and discretion in his relations with others; convey his knowledge in a disinterested fashion, keeping nothing to himself; express himself elegantly and in lively fashion; cultivate his own personal morality; and match his deeds with his words. The ethical code of education which Confucius elaborated, his own performance as a teacher and his attachment to the ‘mean’ are still considered today as Confucius’ finest and greatest contributions to the cause of learning.
Education and economics
Confucius was not unduly concerned with the links between education and economics, but he nevertheless maintained that prosperity should take precedence over education. An educated, vigorous and prosperous population was, to his mind, the sign of sound administration; in other words, not only was education important, but its development must be materially based on development of the economy. A State can be well administered only if its population is in good heart and if its prosperity permits steadily increasing access to education. This concept of educational economics reflects an embryonic materialism.
In this domain, Confucius, wittingly or unwittingly, applied some of the basic tenets of psychology to the solution of concrete problems with which he was confronted, and he formulated a number of observations in the domains of what we now refer to as differential psychology, learning psychology, moral psychology and teaching psychology. As regards the educational process itself, his remarks concerning the differences between his disciples- differences of intelligence, aptitude, character, aspiration, interest and taste-reflected an attentive attitude that led him to put forward a number of pedagogical principles concerning, for example, adapting teaching to the aptitudes of the pupil and the effectiveness of clarifying and encouraging pupils’ questions.
But Confucius’ thought on educational matters was not confined to these domains, and scholars who have recently examined other aspects of his thinking, notably in the fields of philosophy and sociology, consider that they deserve attention, especially for their rational qualities.
It will be seen from the foregoing that Confucius had elaborated a conceptual framework that was in keeping with the interests of the land-owning class in the China of his day, and he began to put his ideas into practice. His pioneering work, occurring as it did at a time when the old slave-owning system was being replaced by a feudal one, obviously had a revolutionary impact, and assured for Confucius a key place in the history of education in China, without which its development could not be properly understood.
The influence of Confucius
If Confucius’ thought had a profound influence on the development of Chinese society, and particularly that of its education and moral science, at different times and under a variety of circumstances, it also left its mark on a great number of Eastern and Western countries, which it reached through a wide variety of channels. Confucius and his doctrine do not belong only to China; he is acknowledged throughout the world as a major figure of universal civilization and culture.
Confucian thought moved eastwards at an earlier date than westwards, and its imprint in the East was more profound. His ideas reached Korea and Viet Nam more than 2,000 years ago, during the Qin and Han Dynasties. In 285 AD, his ideas were communicated from Korea to Japan. From Viet Nam, they were transmitted to a number of South and South-East Asian countries where, as the centuries passed, they entered the very fabric of national customs and traditions, becoming-as in China-part of their fundamental culture. Many scholars postulate the existence since ancient times of an `area of Confucian culture’ centred on China, with Korea, Viet Nam and Japan as its principal components. Confucianism joined Buddhism, Christianity and Islam to become one of the four major cultural systems of the planet.
From the time it began to spread, Confucian thought deeply influenced the political, economic and cultural, and to an even greater extent the educational and ethical, development of the countries which it reached. This was especially the case in Korea, Japan and Viet Nam which-when Confucianism arrived-were either in a state of transition from a primitive to a slave-owning society, or moving from the latter into feudalism. None of them had written languages, still less school education. With the introduction of the Confucian classics, they adopted Chinese characters, started to publish books and followed the Chinese example in establishing schools where the Master’s doctrine was taught. The propagation of Confucianism may thus be seen as being directly responsible for the emergence of their systems of schooling. Confucianism left its mark on the training of scholars as it did on the recruitment of officials. Schooling in each of these countries, at central as well as local levels, in public or in private establishments, at higher and at lower grades, and whether in matters of goals, content, selection and promotion of teachers, or assessment and placement of students, is characterized by a remarkable fidelity to Confucian principles. Indeed, Confucius became a cult figure in all schools and at all levels. In Japan, he was revered as the ‘Supreme Sage and Foremost Teacher’; in Viet Nam, as the ‘Teacher of Ten Thousand Sovereigns’. He was taken as a model by successive generations, and the supreme incarnation of virtue, an object of veneration for teachers, pupils and society as a whole. Confucianism also permeated family and social education, the education of women and small children, the education dispensed at the Imperial Court and the education of expatriate students. In all these countries, as in China, the Confucian classics served as didactic models during the feudal period, education being based on respect for Confucius and the reading of his canonical works. They may thus justly be claimed to have significantly extended the scope of the pattern of education which Confucius had initiated in China.
As for the recruitment of officials, examinations based on Confucianism, as applied in China, were organized over a period of eleven centuries (from 788 to 1893 AD) in Korea and for more than eight centuries (from 1075 to 1919 AD in Viet Nam). Such was not the case in Japan, but its people, from their supreme authorities down through the administrative hierarchy at all levels, including the Shogun and their followers, were the first to venerate Confucius and to practise the classics. Familiarity with Confucius’ ideas and canonical works was also an important criterion for the appointment of officials. Today, Confucius still has an important place in the education system of countries of the region. Japan, Singapore, Korea and South Viet Nam (before the reunification of the country) remained particularly faithful to his thought, especially in the domain of moral education. In 1982, the Government of Singapore exhorted its citizens to study and to disseminate Confucius’ teachings, which were described as embodying ‘the essentials of the art of government’ as well as the moral rules of life in society; classes in Confucian ethics were subsequently included in secondary education, with large-scale promotional campaigns. In the other Asian countries, the past and present influence of Confucianism on education, although less far-reaching, is nevertheless to a greater or lesser extent perceptible, pointing inevitably to the conclusion that no other teacher has been as influential as Confucius in this part of Asia.
In the early 1600s, Jesuits returning from missionary work in China spread the ideas of Confucius in the West, where they had a special impact on the philosophers of the Enlightenment. Europe at the time was in the throes of bourgeois revolution, and these thinkers turned to Confucius for support in their opposition to despotism and the principle of divine right. His atheistic philosophy, his moralistic vision of politics, his notion of the inseparability of politics and ethics, and the stress which he laid on the economic significance of agriculture filled philosophers such as Holbach, Voltaire or Quesnay, with the most fulsome admiration; they referred to his works in denouncing the abuses of their age, often attributing their own criteria to him. It was thanks to their enthusiasm that the West became truly enamoured of Confucianism, a state of affairs which is still very much apparent today. More and more international symposia on Confucian thought are being held; not content with new studies of Confucianism, Western scholars are investigating the modernity of his doctrine.
Although, during his lifetime, Confucius was unable to attain his goals as a teacher, his posthumous contribution to the history of culture and of teaching in China and in other countries throughout the world has won for him not only the reputation of ‘Supreme Sage’ and ‘Teacher of Ten Thousand Generations’ in Chinese feudal society, but also what amounts to universal esteem. Since ancient times, many countries have compared their leading scholars, educators and thinkers to Confucius: the distinguished teacher Ch’oe Ch’ung, who opened the first private school in the Kingdom of Koryo, was styled ‘the Confucius East of the Sea’; the Enlightenment philosopher Quesnay, ‘the European Confucius’; the great German poet Goethe, ‘the Confucius of Weimar’; as a token of the respect and admiration which he inspired, the Italian Jesuit Matteo Ricci, who established parallels between the Western and Chinese civilizations, was known as the `Christian Confucius’.
As a result of his outstanding qualities as a teacher, Confucius is regarded in many countries as a model for members of the profession. In pre-liberation China, his birthday was celebrated as a holiday; this is still the case today in Taiwan, in Viet Nam and in the Asiatic communities of the United States-an occasion marked by commemorative events and ceremonies to honour especially meritorious teachers, and to encourage others to draw inspiration from the virtues of the great educator.
1. Yang Huanyin (China). Researcher at the Central Institute of Educational Sciences (Beijing). Member of the Scientific Committee of the Council of the Chinese Foundation of Confucian Studies. Her works include particularly two books (in Chinese) on the influence of Confucius’ thought outside China and a series of essays on Confucius’ educational thinking.
Chen Jinpan. Educational ideas of Confucianism. Wuhan, Hubei Educational Press, 1985.
Chian Zhonglien. The cream of thirteen classics. Changsha, Hunan Educational Press, 1992.
China Confucius Foundation and Singapore East Asian Philosophy Institute. Papers of the international symposium on Confucianism. Jinan, Qi Lu Book Club, 1989.
China Confucius Foundation. Selected papers at the symposium in commemoration of the 2,540th birthday of Confucius. Shanghai, Sanlien Bookstore, 1992.
Du Jenzhi; Gao Shuzhi. The finest system of Confucianism. Xi’an, Shanxi People’s Publishing House, 1985.
Gu Shusen. Classified quotations of ancient Chinese educators. Ahanghai Educational Press, 1983.
Kuang Yaming. A critical biography of Confucius. Jinan, Qi Lu Book Club, 1985.
Yang Bojun. Annotations of the analects. China Book Bureau, 1962.
Zhu Qianshi. The influence of Chinese philosophy on Europe. Fuzhou, Fujian People’s Publishing House, 1985.
* All the publications mentioned here were published in Chinese.
The following text was originally published in: Prospects: the quarterly review of comparative education (Paris, UNESCO: International Bureau of Education), vol. XXIII, no. 1/2, 1993, p. 211-19.
Reproduced with permission. For a PDF version of the article, use: http://www.ibe.unesco.org/fileadmin/user_upload/archive/publications/ThinkersPdf/confucie.PDF


Children are natural dramatists, and activities that fuel their imagination and ability to make believe foster creative and academic skills. Inspired by a painting of Lewis and Clark, 3rd graders in Louisville take on roles of explorers and Native Americans; mother and neuroscientist Lise Eliot explains the connection between reading and brain development; teaching artists Kofi Dennis and Ingrid Crepeau use books and puppets to help children bring stories to life in the classroom; and children at the Smithsonian Early Enrichment Center in Washington, DC use artifacts, storytelling, and dramatic play to connect ideas in science and history.
In the Program
- The subtext strategy
3rd graders in Louisville “walk in the shoes” of explorers Lewis and Clark and Native Americans who encountered the explorers, using a painting as inspiration to imagine and act.
- Key points
Educators offer reasons why drama activities are important for young children.
- The reading-brain connection
Neuroscientist Lise Eliot discusses the importance of reading to brain development in young children.
- Bringing books to life
Wolf Trap teaching artist Kofi Dennis uses music and movement to bring Eric Carle’s The Very Hungry Caterpillar to life in a Head Start kindergarten classroom.
- About Wolf Trap
Wolf Trap teaching artist Ingrid Crepeau helps students at the Community Academy Public Charter School in Washington, DC explore Eve Bunting’s book Ducky using puppets.
- Object-based learning
Kindergarten students at the Smithsonian Institution’s Early Enrichment Center use themed explorations to delve into story writing, storytelling, science, music, and art.
- Drama basics and terms
- Storytelling with young children
Drama and the Literary Arts (Video)
Inspired by a painting, 3rd graders in Louisville take on roles of explorers and Native Americans. Mother and neuroscientist Lise Eliot explains the connection between reading and brain development, and teaching artists use books and puppets to help children bring stories to life in the classroom. At the Smithsonian Early Enrichment Center, kids use artifacts, storytelling, and dramatic play to connect ideas in science and history.
The Subtext Strategy
The “subtext strategy” shown in Program 5 of Art to Heart—in which 3rd graders are asked to imagine what the people portrayed in a painting are thinking—illustrates the power of the arts as a tool for thinking, says University of Louisville professor of literacy education Jean Anne Clyde.
“Thinking like an artist, thinking like a musician, a dramatist, changes the way you can see the world. The things that we all remember and understand best in our lives are the things we’ve lived. So that’s what I try to do in teaching—give students opportunities to step into a character’s world, into the story.”
A Matter of Perspective
Clyde and a group of Louisville teachers, including Byck Elementary’s Laura Wasz, whose class is featured in Art to Heart, have explored the use of the “subtext strategy” in the classroom. “Subtext involves asking children to assume different perspectives,” Wasz says. The strategy can be used with a painting, an illustration in a book, a story, or even children’s own work, Wasz says. “When they write something and then draw about it or draw it first, then we ask them, ‘OK, what is your character thinking?’ Then they have to think again and go underneath what’s on the surface and think even more deeply about it.”
In the classroom, the subtext activities become a bridge not only to deeper thinking but to writing. After they imagine what the characters are thinking, “we ask them to begin writing scripts. They’re going to have to take the experience and make a play out of the thoughts of these people.”
Young children adapt easily to the subtext technique, Wasz says. Bridging from arts to writing starts with something children already understand and guides them to the challenge of written language. “If they can sing it, if they can dance it, they’re going to understand it so much better than if you just start pouring words at them. The written language is the last step in literacy. The arts are such a native language to children. For every type of education, there is a way to use the arts to connect children to what they’re trying to learn.”
For More Information
Clyde and Wasz are co-authors (along with Shelli Barber and Sandra Hogue) of the book Breakthrough to Meaning: Helping Your Kids Become Better Readers, Writers, and Thinkers, which includes the subtext strategy and other techniques.
Why Are Drama Activities Important
“All children play-act as part of their development, so it’s a very, very natural process to them; they’ve known drama since birth. They’re so adept at reading people’s postures, people’s gestures. It’s necessary for survival, so children are automatic dramatists.”
Laura Wasz, teacher, Byck Elementary
“It’s multidiscipline—you know, you have the language acquisition, then the movement, fine motor, locomotor—things like that. And those are all things they need in order to develop.”
Ntaka Wellington, preschool teacher, Community Academy Public Charter School
“It’s very important to talk to babies, to sing to babies, to read to babies, from a very, very early age. The sheer number of words that children are exposed to in early life actually determines or influences their own verbal intelligence and performance in language arts classes in school.”
Lise Eliot, professor of neuroscience, Rosalind Franklin University of Medicine and Science
“We find over and over again that children who have had quality arts education do well in school. They make the kinds of connections that cross curriculum areas. Learning isn’t in silos; it connects in a lot of different ways, and the arts are one way to help children make those connections and understand the world as something other than just subject matter.”
Miriam Flaherty, senior director of education, Wolf Trap Foundation for the Performing Arts
“You can incorporate the arts into any subject—the children are going to learn more. And anybody who cuts art out—shame on them! They just do not understand children, they don’t understand education, and I would fire them all.”
Ingrid Crepeau, teaching artist, Wolf Trap Foundation for the Performing Arts
The Reading Brain Connection
The Power of Reading
What’s the best tool to teach literacy? “Just reading to your child,” says Lise Eliot, assistant professor of neuroscience at Rosalind Franklin University of Medicine and Science. The number of words children are exposed to in early life actually determines their own verbal intelligence and affects performance in language art classes when children get to school, Eliot says.
Another great thing about books is that they “take you out of your daily world into another one, another vocabulary. It allows children to visualize,” Eliot says. “And finally, there is some evidence that simply being read to helps children acquire all the pre-literacy skills such as understanding that text goes from left to right, understanding that there is a break between words, and starting to recognize their ABCs,” Eliot says. All this is critical to the transition to independent reading, “and the earlier children are read to, the easier their transition to reading themselves.”
Download the Art to Heart Reading Primer for Parents (PDF format) for tips on how to make reading a part of your own and your child’s daily lives.
Bringing Books to Life
In Program 5 of Art to Heart, Kofi Dennis and Ingrid Crepeau, teaching artists with the Wolf Trap Foundation for the Performing Arts, help students and teachers bring stories to life in the preschool classroom. Their activities vary widely—Dennis, who is from Mali, uses African drums, rhythm, and movement, while Crepeau uses puppets—but their goal is the same: learning.
The children are gaining important pre-literacy skills. They listen as the books are read to them. They “read” the illustrations. They learn about sequence. “Children can’t learn to read if they can’t remember first, second, third,” Crepeau says. They’re learning other curriculum concepts teachers and artists discussed in advance—from colors to prepositions to weather. They use their imaginations to go more deeply into the story. “We help them to focus, to draw from the book, to take the world of the book and bring it into the classroom,” Dennis says.
And they’re having fun—and that itself is important to learning. “We know so much more about how the brain works and how these early years are so developmentally important—that the thing to do is to find the best way to stimulate those little brains,” Crepeau says. “And if you can engage their emotions, they’re having fun, they’re laughing, they remember more. If you can engage them physically, it stimulates other parts of the brain. They remember more.”
Find Out More
Ingrid Crepeau, who is featured in Art to Heart, is the co-author, along with M. Ann Richards, of the book A Show of Hands: Using Puppets with Young Children. It explains how the use of puppets can support emergent literacy skills, introduce children’s literature, manage the classroom, and assist in the development of lesson plans.
For more information, visit the Show of Hands web site.
About Wolf Trap
Wolf Trap Early Learning
Kofi Dennis and Ingrid Crepeau are among about 200 professional teaching artists who work with schools as part of the Wolf Trap Institute for Early Learning Through the Arts.
This acclaimed program, based at the Wolf Trap Foundation for the Performing Arts in Vienna, Virginia, works with regional organizations across the United States to provide arts-in-education services for children ages 3-5, as well as their parents and teachers, through drama, music, and movement.
The Arts for Teaching
Wolf Trap’s early childhood program began in 1981. “Education has always been central to Wolf Trap’s mission,” explains Miriam Flaherty, senior director of education. “But in 1981, someone from Head Start approached one of our board members. Head Start was really looking at opportunities to have an impact on how teachers teach. And they wondered if the arts could be part of a teacher’s professional development program and if the arts could really be used to help young children learn.”
A quarter-century later, the program continues to grow and thrive. “I believe the success is because it’s about a partnership—a meaningful partnership between artists and teachers,” Flaherty says. “It comes down to where the children are in the classroom, what the teacher’s goals and objectives are for the children. The artist isn’t going in and doing a set performance. And the children aren’t audience members. They’re all participants together.”
Teacher Karen Bump, who worked with Dennis in her classroom at Belvedere Elementary, agrees. “When Mr. Kofi came into our classroom—he would come in two or three times a week—the children were so excited to see him. And I was just as excited because I knew we were going to have a good time and we were going to learn some new things and learn some new ways of learning. Joyful, active learning is what happens when you have a Wolf Trap artist in the classroom.”
Find Out More
The Wolf Trap Institute for Early Learning Through the Arts offers residencies and other programs in the Washington, DC/Maryland/Virginia region as well as through regional programs in Arizona, Southern California, Chicago, Connecticut, Delaware, the Mississippi Delta, Georgia, Kansas, Michigan, Nashville, New Jersey, New York City, North Carolina, Rochester, and North Texas.
The Wolf Trap Foundation web site has more information about the institute and contact information for regional programs.
In the activity shown in Program 5 of Art to Heart, Joshua Beasley, kindergarten enrichment teacher at the Smithsonian Early Enrichment Center, connects a wide variety of artifacts from the Smithsonian to guided activities to provide children with a rich and exciting exploration of science, music, art, and art-making.
Each month, students at the center embark on a theme-based study of an artist. The activity shown was a study of Antonio Stradivari, the Italian violin maker of the late 1600s and early 1700s, framed with the themes of science, music, and nature.
“We try and connect through simple ideas, the way that we frame it,” explains Beasley. “We’re looking for ways that a story might remind you of a work of art and how that work of art might remind you of an idea in science.” For example, in learning about violin music and Stradivari, Beasley used a picture of an old violin from the National Gallery.
Questions and Explorations
In researching Stradivari, Beasley learned that he had lived during what was termed the “little ice age.” The children were curious about this: Did Stradivari ever meet a woolly mammoth or saber-toothed tiger? Beasley asked a scientist to bring in mammoth fur and objects from the time in which the woolly mammoth and saber-toothed tiger lived. The children learned that these animals were gone by the time of Stradivari, but wolves were still around. “And once they had the thread, they connected the picture and the art and the science idea. That’s when we made up a story about violins and wolves.”
Throughout the month, the class told the story differently. It began as a very brief, spontaneous story made up during a visit to the Natural History Museum. As the month went on, the children elaborated on it and acted out different parts. They brought in articles and information about violins. They learned about the kind of wood used to make violins. They also took a virtual tour of the “Forest of the Violins,” a real place in Italy that Beasley discovered in doing research on Stradivari. And each child was encouraged to explore further an aspect he or she was especially curious about.
A Leader in Object-Based Learning
The Smithsonian Early Enrichment Center is recognized as a leader in this kind of object-based learning. The center was founded to create a model of museum-based learning for young children as well as to provide on-site care for the children of Smithsonian employees. “In 1988, there were very few, if any, programs for preschoolers in traditional museums,” notes Sharon Shaffer, the center’s executive director. “The idea was to use the rich resources here in the Smithsonian complex. But no one was quite sure how that fit with preschoolers because preschoolers were not viewed as part of the museum audience at that time.”
What the educators at the Smithsonian Early Enrichment Center discovered was that using art and artifacts could be an extremely successful approach if grounded in an understanding of young children and how they learn: making it interactive, connecting it with the children’s own prior experiences, and letting them express their ideas.
Find Out More
The Smithsonian Early Enrichment Center shares what it has learned about museum-based and object-based education for young children through outreach programs for educators. Two training seminars are offered: “Learning Through Objects” and “Museum Magic: Using Museums To Teach History, Literacy, and Math.” The center also offers teaching kits. The web site has information about training seminars and resources available, including a downloadable article by Sharon Shaffer on “Looking at Art with Toddlers.”
Drama Basics and Terms
Children of all ages love to pretend. Even toddlers mimic things and people they see around them. Storytelling, role playing, mimicry, pantomime, and acting out a written play—all are part of drama, an activity well suited to children in the early years of life.
Elements of Drama
Drama includes literary elements, technical elements, and performance elements.
Literary elements have to do with the plot. They include:
- storyline—what happens in the story or play.
- story organization—the beginning, middle, and end.
- character—who is in the story.
- script—a story written in the form of dialogue and directions for movement.
Technical elements help a dramatic performance come to life. They include scenery, costumes, props, and makeup. A dramatic performance may include very minimal technical elements—many storytellers, for example, use no scenery, props, costumes, or makeup. Other performances may have very elaborate scenery, costumes, makeup, and props.
Performance elements relate to how a performer uses speech, movement, and gestures to create characters and tell the story.
Exploring the Elements of Drama
- Encourage children to play and be imaginative.
- Read a variety of stories to your child. Have fun with the reading; use different voices and movement. With toddlers and older children, encourage them to move like characters. As language ability develops, encourage children to make up their own endings or stories.
- Even very young children engage in dramatic play in nearly any setting. Provide opportunities. For example, as you cook, give your toddler or preschooler a wooden spoon and plastic bowl so he or she can pretend to cook as well.
- Provide props and dress-up items—hats, scarves, jewelry, old clothing.
- With younger children, focus on creative dramatics and creative movement—pantomime, body gestures, moving to music, pretending to be animals or machines.
- As children’s language ability develops, books and stories are a natural tie-in to drama. Encourage your child to pretend to be a character in a storybook. Act out the story together. Ask your child to retell the story to you—or to a favorite toy.
- Provide puppets for your child to play with. These can be simple stick or paper-bag puppets.
- Look for opportunities for your child to attend age-appropriate performances. Storytelling sessions at the local library can be a good place to start. Local children’s theater companies usually do a variety of plays for a variety of ages. Afterward, discuss the elements. What was the story? Did the child learn something? Was it funny or sad? Were there costumes and props? What did they add to the performance? How did the storyteller or actors move and talk? Did the child like the performance?
Storytelling With Young Children
“Stories have been a part of almost every culture in the world. And why? Because they worked. It’s a way of passing on your culture,” says Rebecca Isbell, director of the Center of Excellence in Early Childhood Learning and Development and professor of early childhood education at East Tennessee State University. “Storytelling is a very powerful technique.”
What are some of the benefits to children of hearing stories told to them in early childhood?
The time from birth to age 8 is a critical time for oral language development, Isbell notes. Storytelling also develops visual imagery skills, as children must visualize what they are hearing as opposed to looking at illustrations in a book. Stories are also wonderful ways to learn about different cultures and people and to introduce moral and social issues.
Memory and Understanding
Isbell has been interested in storytelling throughout her career—she did her college dissertation on the effect of storytelling on young children’s language development. The Child Study Center also did a research study comparing the effects of story reading and storytelling on the intellectual development of children. “We found that children who heard stories told to them, without a book, with the eye-to-eye contact of the storyteller, that the children remembered those stories better than the ones they heard read; that they were actually able to internalize the pictures, create the stories for themselves in their heads, and remember the sequence of events much better than when they were read the story using a picture book where they focused on the pictures in the book.
“We also found that they had a better understanding of what the story was about; for instance, the moral of the story,” Isbell said. “They could tell you more about what the moral was than when they had a story told to them. So it’s a really fascinating area to look at and one that I think we need to study more and use more as teachers.”
Find Out More
- Rebecca Isbell has written several books on storytelling for young children. She is also co-author, with Shirley C. Raines, of Creativity and the Arts with Young Children, which has ideas and information relating to all the arts disciplines. Her Dr. Isbell web site has information about her books along with activity ideas and links.
- The International Storytelling Center web site has a variety of information and resources about storytelling, including information about the National Storytelling Festival held each year in Jonesborough, Tennessee.
Other Programs in this Series
Why are arts experiences important in the early years of life? How do music, dance, drama, and visual art contribute to growth and learning? How can parents and educators foster young children’s creativity?
Art to Heart is an eight-part KET production that explores the importance of visual arts, music, dance, drama, and literature in the lives of infants, toddlers, and young children, providing useful ideas and information for parents, caregivers, and early childhood teachers.


This Blog Is currently being updated.
There was a gap of about 1500 years after the Indus valley civilisation.
Aryans lived in teepees.
Aryans were the nomadic tribes. Did not settle at one place. Hence did not contribute to architecture and buildings. Before India. Aryans first appeared in Iran.
Both inscriptions were found in Iran.
The word Veda is derived from Sanskrit which means Knowledge, power, and excellence. The Indo Aryans contributed Literature to arts.
Aryans produced 4 Vedas:-
Rig Ved - collection of hymns
Yajur Ved - sacrificing text
Sam Ved - collection of melodies
Arthur Ved - magical chants and spell
Beside these Vedas we have 4 Upavedas:-
Ayurveda - medicine
Dhanurveda - welfare
Gandharva Veda - music
Shilp Ved - art and literature
These were the collection of knowledge written in Sanskrit. Hymns of religious and historical people who composed them. Only the upper society could recite the Vedas. Before the Vedas were given their finalised form, they were transmitted orally over a long period of time to many generations. The period between 1500 B.C. - 800 B.C. Along with Vedas, we have a group of GODS (signifies positivity) and DEMONS (signifies evil).
Birth of Indra. catalyst act. creator of individual forms so that the opposition of Devas and Asuras is a popular theme in later Hinduism and art.
Vedas present a category of 33 gods. among these were the sky, thunder, moon, sun, fire, water, river, etc. According to the Vedas, the Indo Aryans used to line at the banks of Satya Sidhu (Punjab). They did not require any image or temple for worship rather simply a square altar to set up a fire for sacrifice to call god. The sacrifices were called YAJNA and priests were called YAJA and whom they were done were the YAJAMAN. Ceremonies in alter areas became rich sources of later Hindu temple Architecture.
The two examples of potteries found are:
Red and Blackware
Interaction of religious tradition and plastic art came into existence in Mauryan period. All terracotta pottery entered in stone sculpture.
So in Buddhist Architecture, we have 3 things:
chaityas (the place where monks worshipped)
viharas (the place where monks lived)
800 - 450 B.C.
These were separate text which was anti-ritualistic and emerged as a reaction against sacrificial religion (i.e. Vedas) to call upon god.
They say- we should believe in our karma.
They were actually philosophical and spiritual in nature.
They were called the vedant (i.e. end of Vedas)
The word Upanishad contains the origin of Mankind and gods nature.
They practice the doctrine of karma (action) aatma (soul) god (Brahma) and Sansaar (Good actions).
There are about 108 Upanishad, thus they believe in the interaction of universal and individual form.
Puranas and Epics
In Hinduism, the VEDAS are the BASE FOR ALL.
These Vedas are Three in number ( trayee vedyam......Adi Sankara too says), the Atharva Veda is said to have been derived from out of the other THREE VEDAS.
The Vedas contain AXIOM like Sanskrit verses, very tough to understand without a leaned SADGURU.Moreover they shall be learnt with SWARAM.
So As Vedanta, UPANISHADS came where in the Vedic matters or the quintessence has been, explained in a comparatively simpler way.But these Upanishads too needed Commentaries.
The EPICS OR ITIHASAS are the ACTUAL histories.They are the recorded events, chronologically, without any additions or any interpolations.
ITI HA ASAM itself means THIS HAPPENED EXACTLY THIS WAY.
We have, Sri Ramayana and Mahabharata TWO GREAT ITIHASAS OR EPICS.
But to see things that are in Vedas are percolated to even common peoples levels PURANAS CAME.There are 18 Main Puranas and 18 Upa Puranas.
These Puranas explain the complex matter in a storytelling manner that can be remembered easily, understood easily. So the Puranas came into being.
The Puranas are chronicled containing ancient history, mythology and longer or shorter discourses in religion, philosophy, yoga, mystical attainments and spiritual realisation, and many other kindred subjects.
During the centuries immediately preceding and following the beginning of the Common Era, the recession of the two great Sanskrit epics, the Mahabharata and the Ramayana, took shape out of existing heroic epic stories, mythology, philosophy, and above all the discussion of the problem of dharma. Much of the material in the epics dates far back into the Vedic period, while the rest continued to be added until well into the medieval period. It is conventional, however, to date the more or less final recension of the Sanskrit texts of the epics to the period from 200 BCE to 200 CE.
Bharhut sculpture, early Indian sculpture of the Shunga period (mid-2nd century BCE) that decorated the great stupa, or relic mound, of Bharhut, in Madhya Pradesh state.
It has been largely destroyed, and most of the existing remains—railings and entrance gateways—are now in the Indian Museum in Kolkata (Calcutta).
The Bharhut style, though at times archaic and primitive in its conception, marks the beginnings of a tradition of Buddhist narrative relief and decoration of sacred buildings that continued for several centuries.
Sculptures similar to the Bharhut remains are located throughout northern India, suggesting that the Bharhut site was the main place for this style type.
The flat planes, rather stiffly posed figures, and precise, elegant detailing of the ornamentation suggest continuance in stone of an earlier tradition in wood.
Some of the uprights bear in relief standing figures of yakshas and yakshis (male and female nature deities) that have been pressed into the service of the Buddhist religion; a frequent motif is a woman embracing a tree.
The stone railing, which imitates wooden post-and-rail construction, is decorated with medallions and lunates, most of them filled with the lotus ornament and some of them centred by the head of a man or woman.
Other railing medallions and the coping depict Jataka stories (legends of the Buddha’s previous births) and events of the Buddha’s life.
Buddhism is a nontheistic religion that encompasses a variety of traditions, beliefs and practices largely based on teachings attributed to Siddhartha Gautama, who is commonly known as the Buddha, meaning "the awakened one".
The traditional belief is that he was born a prince in Lumbinī, Nepal in the Terai lowlands near the foothills of the Himalayas.
He left his home at the age of 29.
And at 35 attained Nirvana at Bodhgaya.(Bihar)
Delivered his first Selman (updesh) at Sarnath (Varanasi)
Attained Maha nirvana at age of 80 at Kushinagar (UP) in 483.B.C.
Branches of Buddhism:
Mahayana is referred to as the "great vehicle". It proposes that all enlightened beings refuse entry into Nirvana, choosing to return to the cycle of birth and death to enlighten others until all beings are enlightened and achieve Nirvana.
Theravada believes that enlightened beings enter Nirvana as the become enlightened one by one.
The analogy is that The Davera is like a bicycle - a small vehicle for individual transport, while Mahayana is a "great vehicle" like a bus that gathers everyone before proceeding to Nirvana.
CHAITYAS And VIHARAS
Chaityas are the halls enclosing the stupas. Ashoka constructed eight rock-cut halls in the Barabar & Nagarjuna hills and the one near Rajgir dedicated to Jaina monks. The Lomas Rishi, the Sudama (both in the Barabar hills) and the Sitamarhi (Nagarjuna hills) caves are fine examples of the Chaityas which resembled the wooden buildings of the period.
More sophisticated rock-cut chaityas developed later. The final form of rock-cut architecture that developed from these early forms can be seen all over India in Andhra Pradesh, Kathiawar in Gujarat and in Ajanta & Ellora. The rock formation in all these areas was most suited for these rock-cut structures. Alternating layers of hard and soft rock prevents moisture from seeping inside.
They began the work from the top & continued downward. The Buddhists were the main contributors to these rock-cut monuments and best monuments are those found in Ajanta & Ellora (Vishwakarma cave- cave No.10). Fine sculptures adorn the walls. Figures of Buddha in various poses were cut out.
Viharas are the dwelling places donated to the normally wandering Buddhist monks. The earlier structures were made of wood & soon developed from the primitive thatched huts into large sangharamas. Pali texts indicate the structure of the viharas. In course of time, the sangha ramas developed into educational institutions and centres of Buddhist learning, such as those at Nalanda, Vikramshila, Somapura. Hinayana viharas are seen in Ajanta, Ellora & in the Orissan hills on the east coast and at Nasik, Bedsa, Kondana and Pitalkhora in the Western Ghats. The development of Mahayana vihara can be traced only at Ajanta.
Vihars-they are the rest houses of the Buddhist monks constructed in circular shape example- Nagarjuna Konda Buddhist Vihara
Chaityas-they are Buddhist prayer halls.two types based on religious belief -Mahayana and Hinayana
Together stupas, chaityas and viharas are called maha sangharama.
There are contradictory theories regarding the original homeland of the Guptas.
It was in 320 A.D. when the Gupta Dynasty came to prominence, a new era of imperial unity started again. The period which intervened between the fall of the Kushans and the rise of the Gupta Empire is called ‘Dark Age’ in Indian history.
Not much is known about the origin of the Guptas, but we know that by 3rd century A.D. Sri Gupta had brought Magadha under his control. He was succeeded by his son Ghatotkacha Gupta. Neither the father nor the son seemed to have possessed any considerable power.
But with Chandragupta I, the son of Ghatotkacha Gupta, began a new epoch in the history of the family. He was the real founder of the Gupta dynasty.
Chandra Gupta I, Samudra Gupta, and Chandra Gupta II were the most notable rulers of the Gupta dynasty.
This period is called the Golden Age of India and was marked by extensive inventions and discoveries in science, technology, engineering, art, dialectic, literature, logic, mathematics, astronomy, religion and philosophy that crystallized the elements of what is generally known as Hindu culture.
The period of the Imperial Gupta has often been described as the golden age of the ancient Indian history. The Gupta period was characterized by all-around peace, prosperity and intellectual development.
The Gupta period saw the classic phase of Indian sculpture. Through centuries of evolution, this art of sculpture-making reached a stage of perfection. The sculptors were matured enough to transform stone into images of superb beauty. They were under no external influence. Their technique of art was at its best. In perfect precision and masterly skill, they could shape the stone into an object of attraction. They also set pattern to their art which became an ideal model for the future. Their works became the model for the coming ages.
The Gupta sculpture was at its best in giving shape to the images of the deities and divinities, both of the Brahminical and Buddhist faiths. Countless numbers of images were cut into shape at several centres for their installation in numberless temples and shrines. On the bodies of the temples also such figures were plentifully displayed. Sculpture-making became a major occupation, and the sculptors with their skill played a prominent role in the religious revolution of that period.
Among the finest examples of the Gupta sculpture, the images of Buddha in large numbers stand out the foremost. The seated image of Buddha belonging to Sarnath has been rightly regarded as the finest of all Buddha images in India. It seems to convey the true messages of Buddhism.
The standing Buddha of Mathura and the colossal copper statue of Buddha which is now in a British museum are some other excellent examples of the Gupta sculpture.
The Hindu images, too, went by the physical beauty of their figures, dignity of their divinity, and grace of their spiritual being. Among the best examples of Hindu images, the Vishnu Image of Mathura and the Varaha Image of Udayagiri are considered wonderful. On the body of the Deogarh Temple, the sculptures represent the episodes relating to Rama and Krishna. They are of an attractive style. The images of Siva and of other Hindu gods and goddesses were made in large numbers at various places. All of them possessed dignity. Their faces revealed spiritual expression and moods of divinity according to the Puranic descriptions of their individuality. It seems, as if, the sculptors were translating the themes from Sanskrit texts into religious versions on stones.
The Gupta sculpture thus enhanced the value of the Indian culture greatly. They remained as models for the posterity. They also served as models for the Indian sculptural art in several countries of South-East Asia.
The Gupta Age is an age of intense religion interests, saw the construction of a large number of temples and religious architectures.
The excellence of Gupta architecture can be seen in the temples of various Hindu Gods such as Shiva, Vishnu, Surya, Kartikeya, etc.
Unfortunately, most examples of the Gupta architecture have been lost to posterity. The Huna invaders destroyed most of those works. Many disappeared under the ravages of time.
Among the few surviving examples of the Gupta architecture, the famous Dashavatara Temple at Deogarh in Jhansi district of Uttar Pradesh is considered the best. The body of the temple is covered with beautiful sculpture with many figures. The other structures of the period include the Vishnu Temple of Tigawa in Jabalpur district, the Siva Temple of Bhumra in Madhya Pradesh, the Temple of Parvati in the former Ajaigarh state, and the Buddhist shrines of Bodh Gaya and Sanchi.
Besides the structures in stones, the Gupta temple-architecture was also erected in brick. Among the brick temples, the most famous one is the temple at Bhitargaon in Kanpur district of Uttar Pradesh. The beautiful designs on the body of the temple show the artistic talent of the builders who could mould the bricks in various forms.
The Gupta monuments were built under the Puranic religious concepts. They represented both balance and beauty. Built both in stone and brick, they maintained external decorations of a higher order. They were built in a great many numbers, but have been swept away by the tides of time.
Salabhanjika or Shalabhajika refers to the sculpture of a woman, displaying stylized feminine features, standing near a tree and grasping a branch.
The name of these figures comes from the Sanskrit śālabañjika meaning 'breaking a branch of a sala tree'.
They are also known as madanakai, madanika or shilabalika.
The salabhanjika is a standard decorative element of Indian sculpture, a graceful stone sculpture representing a young female under a stylized tree in various poses, such as dancing, grooming herself or playing a musical instrument.
The salabhanjika's female features, like breasts and hips, are often exaggerated.
Frequently these sculpted figures display complex hairdos and an abundance of jewellery.
The salabhanjika concept stems from ancient symbolism linking a chaste maiden with the sala tree or the Asoka tree through the ritual called dohada, or the fertilisation of plants through contact with a young woman.
The symbolism changed over the course of time and the salabhanjika became figures used as ornamental carvings, usually located in the area where worshipers engage in circumambulation, near the garbhagriha of many Hindu temples.
Placed at an angle, salabhanjika figures also were used in temple architecture as a bracket figures.
Salabhanjikas are also often mentioned in ancient and modern Indian literature.
Shalabhanjika on Eastern Torana (gateway), Sanchi Stupa
Detail of Salabhanjika.
Buddhist ideas and practices emerged out of a process of dialogue with other traditions – including those of the Brahmanas, Jainas and several others and can be seen in the ways in which sacred places came to be identified.These sites, with small shrines attached to them, were sometimes described as chaityas.
Why were stupas built
This was because relics of the Buddha such as his bodily remains or objects used by him were buried there. These were mounds known as stupas.According to a Buddhist text known as the Ashokavadana, Asoka distributed portions of the Buddha’s relics to every important town and ordered the construction of stupas over them.
How were stupas built
Inscriptions found on the railings and pillars of stupas record donations made for building and decorating them. Some donations were made by kings such as the Satavahanas; others were made by guilds, such as that of the ivory workers who financed part of one of the gateways at Sanchi.
The structure of the stupa
The stupa (a Sanskrit word meaning a heap) originated as a simple semi-circular mound of earth, later called anda. Gradually, it evolved into a more complex structure, balancing round and square shapes. Above the anda was the harmika, a balcony like structure that represented the abode of the gods.
Stories in stone
At first sight, the sculpture seems to depict a rural scene, with thatched huts and trees. However, art historians who have carefully studied the sculpture at Sanchi identify it as a scene from the Vessantara Jataka.
Symbols of worship
According to hagiographies, the Buddha attained enlightenment while meditating under a tree. Many early sculptors did not show the Buddha in human form – instead, they showed his presence through symbols. This stood for the first sermon of the Buddha, delivered at Sarnath. As is obvious, such sculptures cannot be understood literally – for instance, the tree does not stand simply for a tree, but symbolises an event in the life of the Buddha. In order to understand such symbols, historians have to familiarise themselves with the traditions of those who produced these works of art.
These include beautiful women swinging from the edge of the gateway, holding onto a tree. Salabhanjika according to popular belief, this was a woman whose touch caused trees to flower and bear fruit.
This term is related to ROMANCE, meaningly in the Roman manner.
It refers to the art of Europe approx.1000 AD and The rise of Gothic Style in the 13th c.
The term was Romanesque was invented by art historians in the 19th C.
It was the first style to spread across the whole of Catholic Europe.
Romanesque architecture was influenced by Byzantine art.
The art of this period was characterised by various style, both sculpt. and painting.
The most common subject was - Life of Christ - Jesus and Mary - The last judgement.
Decorated manuscripts were mostly Bibles.
Flourished especially during the 10th and 11th century.
Subject Matter - Biblical and Pictorial.
Stained Glass Windows - Mural Paintings
Stone, Metal, Ivory and Enamel Sculptures.
Figures are mainly stiff and lack of space, no gap between them.
Eg. shrine of the three kings cologne
Roman concrete construction. (a) barrel vault, (b) groin vault, (c) fenestrated sequence of groin vaults, (d) hemispherical dome with Oculus (John Burge). Concrete domes and vaults of varying designs enabled Roman builders to revolutionize the history of architecture by shaping interior spaces in novel ways.
It is medieval architectural style characterized by semi-circular arches.
Castles and Churches
Started during 6th century to 10th century. Developed into gothic style in 12th c.
Romanesque arch. is known for its massive quality, thick walls, rounded arches, sturdy piers, groin vaults, large towers and decorative arcading.
Eg. “Abbey church of saint-denis”.