What does an empty seat represent in early Buddhist iconography?
- The meditation of the Buddha
- The Buddha’s Enlightenment
- The Buddha’s Mahaparinibbana
- The Buddha’s Mahabhinishkramana
Explanation
Option (a) is correct
- Early sculptors did not depict the Buddha in human form; instead, they showed his presence through symbols. The Empty Seat represents the Buddha’s meditation, specifically his state of deep concentration under the Bodhi Tree.
| Symbol | Associated with |
| Lotus and Bull | Birth |
| Horse | Renunciation (Mahabhinishkramana) |
| Empty seat | Meditation of Buddha |
| Peepal tree | Enlightenment (Nirvana) |
| Wheel (Bodhi tree) | Dhammachakrapravartana (First sermon at Sarnath) |
| Stupa | Mahaparinirvana (Death) |
