Art and Culture

There is perhaps no country in the world where traditional architecture, painting and sculpture are as well preserved. For 1500 years, Nepal has been famed as a center of temple building, metalwork and wood carving, and for centuries has sent its precious art objects to other centers of civilization. Today, many of its craft skills are undiminished. To better understand the deep and complex roots of Nepalese culture, it is necessary to look at Nepal's ancient past.

Around the Kathmandu Valley

Most of the works of art in Nepal are found in the Kathmandu Valley. Although there are some interesting works of art dating back to Lichchhavi Period in the 5th century found in such places as the temple of Changunarayan, almost all of other work dates from the Malla period which lasted from 14th to 18th centyry. It was immediately after the only Moslem invasion of the valley in 1346 that an era began which resulted in the creation of numerous works of art. The valley was divided into three independent kingdoms and art received royal patronage. The works of art of this period include temples and other buildings of the Durbar Squares of the three cities such as Taleju and Nyatapola. During the Shah period which started in the 18th century the works of art created were less impressive. In the first half of the period, Nepal was expanding its territorial limits. In the second half from mid 19th to mid 20th century during the Rana regime, the European style was introduced which resulted in the construction of Rana palaces including Singha Durbar and Gaddi Baithak in Kathmandu Durbar Square. It is believed in Nepal that the pagoda style of architecture originated in the country and later went to China and Japan. This style is illustrated by most of the temples in Nepal including the Taleju in Kathmandu and Nyatapola in Bhaktapur. The Shikhara style is represented by Krishna Temple in Patan.

Beyond the Kathmandu Valley

Tilaurakot:

Over the past few decades archaeological work has been conducted in the Terai region of the country where Nepal's first settlements were probably located. Tilaurakot, for example, used to be the capital of the Shakya dynasty and is situated in Kapilavastu district in western Nepal. The present archaeological site extends over an area of more than five square kilometers. The central portion, measuring approximately five thousand meters by four thousand meter, is surrounded by a citadel built at three different periods. The first and second ancient citadel walls are made of mud and date from 600 to 200 B.C. while the third wall appears to have been constructed with kilnburnt bricks around 150 B.C. The eastern gate, the eastern stupa, the Ashita Apsidal Stupa and a defence wall were first discovered at the site. More recent excavations brought to light the majestic western gateway complex including the watchman's room, six meter wide rods of different periods (with cart-track impressions), the moat on the east and west, three periods of defence walls and the northern twin stupas made and enlarged between the fourth and second centuries B.C. The central portion of the site has also been excavated and various brick structures from the third century B.C. to the second century A.D. have been unearthed. Water storage tanks, big jars, brick and terra-cotta ring wells and a fire-altar have also been found. Other antiquities discovered at the site are human and animal terra-cotta figurines (dated 400 B.C. to A.D. 200), silver punch-marked coins, early cast coins with symbols, Mitra coins with different symbols, Kushan coins, and pieces of Sunga and Kushan pottery. Apart from these antiquities, practical items such as terra-cotta cart whells, iron implements, nails arrowheads, bone and copper rods, dice and fishing hooks have been found.

Gotihawa:

These ancient ruins are situated eleven kilometer south of Tilaurakot and six kilometers southwest of Taulihawa, the present district headquarters. To the north of the Gotihawa village, there is an ancient brick stupa and an Ashokan pillar. The lower portion, with its square granite base stone, is still intact but the crowning features and inscriptional portions are missing. The site can be safely identified as the Nirvan stupa of Kukuchhanda Buddha (one of the previous Buddhas), whose hometown lies within one kilometer of this stupa-pillar complex.

Sagarhawa:

This site is located two kilometer north of Tilaurakot on the bank of the Banganga river. It was excavated in 1986 and seventeen miniature stupas were found there.

In the same general region, sites of ancient civilization have been identified at Lumbini, Banjarhi, Nipaniya and Kadyatawa, to mention just a few. Several important sites have also been excavated in the eastern region of the country, the most important of which are Bhediari, Varahakshetra, janakpur and Simaraongarh.

Bhediari:

Located nearly ten kilometers south of Biratnagar, the ancient ruins at this site include many important brick temples, one of which has been fully excavated. It appears to have been built in the Sunga period and shows two phases of construction. There is a two-meter high rectangular platform supported from the inside by cross walls. So far no image either of stone or terra-cotta has been found during the excavations; however, a number of silver punch-marked coins have been found.

Varahakshetra:

This is another important temple site located at the confluence of the Koka and Koshi rivers. The site is known to belong to the period of later Guptas, who had issued a copper grant for the two Varaha images found there. There are also many miniature Gupta period temple replicas, which suggest that many such temples and idols were made during the sixth and seventh centuries A.D.

Narasingha Tappu:

Some years ago, while cultivating lands at Narasingha Tappu, close to the present town of Itahari, an idol of Vishnu was discovered. The image belongs to the fifth or sixth century A.D., and is of the Gupta tradition. It is now kept inside a local Shiva temple. The site, according to local people, also contains pottery items, indicating that is was inhabited as early as the Gupta dynasty (fourth-fifth century A.D.).

Janakpur:

At Ram-Janaki temple complex near Janakpur there is an important image depicting Uma lying on a bed and feeding a baby. Ganesh and Kumar are also depicted in the panel while on the top of the scene is a Shiva Linga. The piece dates from the twelfth or thirteenth century A.D. and belongs to the Karnatakas of Simaraongarh.

Simaraongarh:

This was the old capital city of the Karnatakas of Mithila and was built by King Nanyadeva in A.D. 1097-98. The ruins of the city extend over an areas of 16 kilometers which is still surrounded by a high wall of kiln-burnt bricks. There are more than one hundred images and sculptures scattered throughout the area. Most are made of black schist stone and are nicely polished; a few are made of sandstone. The images at the site are of Vishnu, Narayan, Laxmi-Narayan, Shankarsana, Garudopari Vishnu, Uma-Maheshwara, Durga, Shiva and Surya. In different parts of Simaraongarh, there are remains of temples and gateways of the old city.

Other sites bearing Karnataka images and sculptures are Kanchanpur (near Rajbiraj), Murtiya (west of Janakpur) and Valmiki Nagar (near the Gandaki barrage), as well as several other places between the Gandaki and Sapta Koshi rivers.

Gorkha Durbar

This small hill town is a ritual importance far beyond its size as the birthplace of Prithvi Narayan Shah, the 18th-century unifier of Nepal and founder of the present ruling dynasty. The immense square building in the centre of town is Tallo Durbar, the 'Lower Palace' (as opposed to the Upallo Durbar on top of the hill). Built in the mid 18th century, it served as the seat of local administration. Gorkha's main sight, the old Shah palace, broods above a hill overlooking the town. It is a stiff half-hour climb up a seemingly endless stone staircase.

The palace is smaller than the ornate durbar of the Kathmandu Valley, but remains a fine example of Newari woodwork and architecture, unspoiled by Rana-era additions. It seems the Gorkha preferred to concentrate on warefare and let their conquered people do the building, thus preserving traditional styles long past the dates of conquest. Constructed during the region of Ram Shah (1606-36), it was expanded by successive rulers. The palace's tremendous historic and ritual significance explains its excellent condition.

There are plenty of erotic strut carvings, especially in the small lower palace called the Raj Durbar, the old living quarters, sanctified as the birthplace of Prithvi Narayan Shah. Adjoining it is Kalika Durbar, centred around a powerful Kali temple which is the scene of frequent animal sacrifices. Worshippers prostrate themselves in devotion in front of the locked doors, which are opened only on the eight day of each lunar fortnight. This section of the palace is the holy of holies, with police posted to prevent tourists from entering and ritually defiling it.

The palace complex abounds with other shrines to Hindu deities, including Shiva, Guyheswari, and a 'cave shrine down a short flight of steps which is sacred to Gorakhanath. This 12th century yogi is said to have lived and meditated here; gradually he was deified into a cult figure and patron of the Shahs. He is linked with Shiva, obvious from the array of tridents inside.

Tansen

Tansen is the largest of the trading posts established by Newars in Nepal's middle Hills. It lies in the middle of Magar country, an ethnic group usually described as one of Nepal's most appealing peoples. The town is the old capital of the Kingdom of Palpa, the last of the independent kingdoms of Nepal, annexed only in 1806. It is located on a hillside a few kilometer off the Siddhartha Highway between Pokhara and Bhairawa, Tansen is definitely off the beaten track.

Built on the southern slope of a hill rising above the Madi Valley, Tansen comprises a maze of narrow lanes lined with red-brick buildings set with carved woodwork. It remains an important bazaar town, with hill people coming in to buy cooking oil, salt, tea, cloth and other provisions, and to enjoy the teashops and sociability. The quiet streets resound with the clack of the loom: Tansen's boldy patterned Dhaka cloth, used for topis and Shawls, is considered the finest in Nepal.

The centre of town is dominated by the rambling pink Tansen Durbar, the former seat of the Rana governor, today housing government offices. Behind it is a temple to Bhagwati, and further east the exceptionally fine Amar Narayan temple to Vishnu, where drums, bells and horns are sounded in worship each morning and evening.

Painting:

Two media that reveal a lot about Nepalese culture, both past and present, are painting and sculpture. Fortunately, there are many fine and well-preserved pieces that have survived the passage of time and thus enable detailed research to be made. Looking briefly at the history of Nepalese painting, it appears that ancient icons and religious paintings entered the Valley during the Lichchhavi period. Lichchhavi inscriptions inform us that traders, monks and Brahmans, as well as artists from neighboring areas, visited Kathmandu Valley from the mid-fifth century A.D. The visitors may have brought religious icons and paintings with them which served as models for local artists.

The chines envoy, Wang Hsuan Tse, who came to Nepal in the seventh century A.D., described quite eloquently the houses in the Valley, which at that early time were embellished with sculptures and paintings. Although there are no surviving examples of paintings from the Lichchhavi period, it can be surmised that the murals or wall-paintings noticed by the Chinese envoy were just as sophisticated as the surviving pieces of culture from this period.

The earliest examples of Nepalese painting are in the form of manuscript illustrations on palm leaves. Nepalese manuscripts go back to the ninth century; however, not all early manuscripts were illustrated. The earliest known example of an illustrated manuscript is the Astasahasrika Prajnaparamita, dated A.D. 1015.

These manuscripts invariably consist of narrow folios of palm leaves about thirty centimeters long, depending on the text, but not wider than fine centimeters. The manuscripts are perforated in two places, loosely held together with sting and protected by wooden covers on both sides. These wooden covers, a large number of which have survived, are more lavishly painted than the manuscripts themselves. In palm leaf manuscripts the scribes left spaces for the artist to later paint in the figures of divinities.

After the introduction of paper, palm leaf became less popular' however it continued to be used until the eighteenth century. Early paper manuscript imitated the oblong shape but were wider than the palm leaves.

Influence of Religion on Painting

All surviving illustrated manuscripts, whether Buddhist or Hindu, are illustrated with hieratic images of gods and goddesses. A large number of manuscripts are devoted to the principal events from the life of Buddha or the hieratic representations of Vahrayana deities which bear little relation to the text. During the early medieval period, Prajnaparamita, the personification of wisdom, became one of the most popular deities in Nepal. Manuscripts consecrated to this deity were repeatedly copied. Besides these Buddhist manuscripts, of Hindu divinities such as Brahma, Vishnu, Shiva, Kartikeya and Ganesh were also frequently represented.

Manuscripts continued to be painted and copied for centuries, for the act of donating a manuscript to a monk, priest, monastery or temple was considered by both Hindus and Buddhists to be an act of great virtue. Early illustrated manuscripts were executed in the same basic style, but later examples, particularly paper manuscripts, clearly show signs of deterioration in quality.

Thangka and Paubha Painting

Religious paintings worshipped as icons are known as paubha in Newari and thangka in Tibetan. The origin of paubha or thangka paintings may be attributed to Nepalese artists as early as the ninth or tenth century.

Realizing the great demand for religious icons in Tibet, these artists, along with monks and traders, took with them from Nepal not only metal sculptures but also a number of Buddhist manuscripts. To better fulfill the ever-increasing demand, Nepalese artists initiated a new type of religious painting on cloth that could be easily rolled up and carried along with them. This type of painting became very popular both in Nepal and Tibet and has remained popular to this day. One of the earliest specimens of Nepalese thangka painting dates from the thirteenth or fourteenth century and shows Amitabha surrounded by Bodhisattvas. Another Nepalese thangka with three dates in the inscription (the latest one corresponding to A.D. 1369), is one of the earliest known thangkas with inscriptions. The 'Mandala of Vishnu', dated A.D. 1420, is another fine example of the painting of this period. Early Nepalese thangkas are simple in design and composition. The main deity, a large figure, occupies the central position while surrounded by smaller figures.

Influence of Tantrism on Paintings

From the fifteenth century onwards, brighter colors gradually began to appear in the Nepalese thangka. Because of the growing importance of the Tantric cult, various aspects of Shiva and Shakti were painted in conventional poses. Mahakala, Manjushri, Lokeshwara and other deities were equally popular and were also frequently represented in thangka paintings of later dates. The embrace of male and female is another common motif of the Trantric Buddhist art of this period.

Sculpture

An art form that traces Nepalese culture from its early beginnings right up to modern times is sculpture. As previously mentioned, many carved artifacts have been found in the Terai region of the country, providing an insight into the religion and culture of early times. As with painting, nearly all Nepalese sculptures are of a religious character. It seems that the artists themselves were greatly imbued with a feeling of religious devotion.

The Golden Age of Nepalese Sculpture

Nepalese sculpture reached its zenith in the Lichchhavi period (A. D. 330-879).Stone, copper and bronze images from this period show round faces with slated eyes. A distinguishing feature of Lichchhave sculptures is their simplicity. The use of clothes and ornaments was quite restrained: many Hindu deities, for example, are shown wearing only a dhoti ( skirt-like lower garment). Buddhist deities were carved to show them wearing long sanghatis (a saffron-coloured robe that the Buddhist wear hanging from the shoulders). Lichchhave period sculptors most often used basalt for their work, first chiselling and then smoothing and varnishing, perhaps with iron dust. The limbs of Lichchhavi period idols were so beautifully executed that it is not possible to find one specimen with a chisel mark. Some of the best examples of Lichchhavi art are the images of 'Sleeping Vishnu' in Budhanilkantha, located eight kilometers north of Kathmandu; and the Vishnu Vikranta, or Dwarf Incarnating, found near Lazimpat in Kathmandu.

Woodcarving

Besides stone sculpture another art form worth mentioning is woodcarving. No visitor to the Kathmandu Valley can fail to be impressed by the numerous extremely beautiful windows, doors, temple roof-struts and other intricately carved artifacts. As wood is vulnerable to the ravages of time, w ell-preserved specimens date back only to the fourteenth century. Woodcarving has been an integral part of Nepalese architecture, some of the best examples being the old royal palaces of Kathmandu, Patan and Bhaktapur and a number of different Viharas (monasteries) around the Valley.