Dr.(Mrs) Prashanthi Narangoda

Department of Fine Arts
University of Kelaniya
Sri Lanka

Dr. (Mrs.) Prashanthi Narangoda, is a Professor in Fine Arts in the Department of Fine Arts of the University of Kelaniya. She is one of the pioneering research scholars in the field of Fine Arts covering many areas and seeking the interconnectedness of the Art, society and the culture, specially focusing on Sri Lanka and Asia. She was graduated from the University of Kelaniya in 1992 and obtained her Master of Science Degree from the Post Graduate Institute of Archaeology, of the same University in the year 2000. She pursued her PhD at the University of the West, California in the USA from 2008-2012 and earned her PhD with a merit due to the research scholarship she demonstrated throughout. Apart from that she bears several memberships in renowned organizations: member of the American Association for Religious Studies (AAR), member of the UNESCO International Dance Council, and a Life member of the Royal Asiatic Society, Sri Lanka Branch. She is also a member of the Advisory Board of South Asian Institute for Advanced Research and Development (SAIARD) in South Asia.

She has been undertaking national and international level responsibilities to date. She is the Chairperson to the Ethics Review Committee of University of Kelaniya to date and was the founding Secretary of the ERC, University of Kelaniya. She is currently holding the post of Director, National Centre for Advanced Studies in Humanities and Social Sciences, purviewed by the Ministry of Education, and the Director, SAARC Cultural Centre, under the purview of South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC).

ABSTRACT

ORIGIN AND THE EVOLUTION OF SRI LANKAN BUDDHA IMAGE INDEPENDENT FROM THE INDIAN PROTOTYPE

This dissertation focusses to examine the independent origin and the evolution of the Sri Lankan Buddha image from its Indian prototype.

The scholars studying the development of the Buddha image in the Indian sub-continent assume that it was originated in India from the aniconic form to the anthropomorphic form during the period of Kushans in the first century CE, and influenced the origin and evolution of the Buddha image in neighboring regions, in that, Sri Lanka was not an exception.

Contrary to this assumption, there are sufficient facts and evidence that testify to the independent evolution of the Sri Lankan Buddha image from at least second century BCE, despite the fact that Buddhism was introduced to the country from India. Literary and archaeological evidence has been analyzed in detail to ascertain which theory is acceptable. In addition, the vast number of images found from various locations in Sri Lanka display indigenous iconographical and iconometric characteristics to establish that Sri Lankan Buddha image originated and evolved independently of Indian prototypes.

Although, the scholars have highlighted the authentic nature of the Sri Lankan Buddha image, none of them have attempted to conduct a detailed examination, and, as a result, have concluded that the Sri Lankan Buddha images was an influential outcome of those of India, simply underlining the constant socio-cultural and political relationships between India and Sri Lanka.
The questions of how, when, and where it was originated is to be addressed alone, the present study, thus, aims to examine the constantly highlighted authentic characteristics of the Sri Lankan Buddha image without prejudice, to identify its independent evolution.