Thich Nhat Hanh, Tu Hieu Temple Walks and Ajanta Cave Wall Paintings

Summary: Tu Hieu Temple walks by Abbot and Head Thich Nhat Hanh adapt to the 200th anniversary year of Ajanta cave wall paintings in central-west India.

Vietnamese peace activist and now wheelchair-bound walking meditator Thich Nhat Hanh returned to his Root Temple, Tu Hieu in Hué, north central Vietnam, Oct. 28, 2018: Thich Nhat Hanh @thichnhathanh, via Facebook Nov. 17, 2018

Tu Hieu Temple walks associated with Abbot and Head Thich Nhat Hanh actualize ancient aims of Ajanta cave wall paintings, available in their 200th anniversary year of European access in central-west India.

Ajanta cave wall paintings and sculptures in north-central Maharashtra state bear tales about and teachings of Gautama Buddha (from Sanskrit गोतम, "darkness-dispelled light" and बुद्ध, "awakened"). The Tu Hieu Temple in Duong Xuan Thuong village, Thuy Xuan ward, Hué, Thua Thien-Hue province, north-central Vietnam, contains carved and printed texts of Buddha's teachings. Ajanta cave wall paintings divulge Siddhartha (from Sanskrit सिद्धार्थ, "successful") Gautama's (624?-544 B.C.?) bodhisattva (from Sanskrit बोधिसत्त्व, "enlightened existence") reincarnations before his 550th as Gautama Buddha.

Tu Hieu Temple emphasizes collected works by Gautama Buddha's Sangha (from Sanskrit संघ, "multitude") Council in the Tipitaka (from Sanskrit त्रिपिटक, "three baskets") of 80 B.C.

Ajanta cave wall paintings and sculptures feature Hinayana Theravada (from Sanskrit हीनयान, "lesser vehicle" and स्थविरवाद, "elders' doctrine") and Mahayana (from Sanskrit महायान, "greater vehicle") Buddhism.

The 176-year-old Tu Hieu Temple, unlike the 1,600- to 2,300-year-old Ajanta cave wall paintings and sculptures, guards only the earlier Hinayana Buddhism known as Theravada Buddhism. Ajanta cave wall paintings and sculptures perhaps herald Gautama Buddha's successor since their name and their namesake, nearby village honor Ajita (from Sanskrit अजित, "invincible") Buddha. Tu Hieu Temple (from Vietnamese Từ, "mercifulness" and Hiê'u, "filial piety") identifies Gautama Buddha's merciful benevolence and his prior reincarnation as filially pious Prince Suvanna Sama.

Tu Hieu Temple juggles likewise filially pious reputations of its founder monk, Nhat Dinh, and of its imperial sponsor, Tu Duc (Sept. 22, 1829-July 19, 1883).

Ajanta cave wall paintings and sculptures originally knew devotional, instructional, meditative uses similar to the Tu Hieu Temple walks by Abbot and Head Thich Nhat Hanh.

Tu Hieu Temple logs history on four entryway columns and purposes and uses on one sign between the first, and another between the next, two pillars. Tu Hieu Temple signs manifest Từ Bi (loving-kindness [and] compassion) and Hỷ Xả  (joy [and] equanimity) between columns one and two and columns three and four. Ajanta cave wall paintings and sculptures nestle along a 1,968.5-foot- (600-meter-) long loop into 246.06-foot- (75-meter-) high cliffs within a 20,366.46-acre (8,242-hectare) teak (Tectona grandis) forest.

Tu Hieu Temple walks organized by Abbot and Head Thich Nhat Hanh occur over earthen, vegetated pathways through an 8-acre- (3.24-hectare-) wide, semi-cleared pine (Pinus) forest.

The 200th anniversary year of European-accessed Ajanta cave wall paintings and sculptures present generators, guardrails and guides that perhaps parry pairing breaths and steps in walking meditations.

Artisans, merchants and monks once queued up and down stone-carved steps and wooden ladders and back and forth over forest and glen pathways and stone floors. Walking meditations around Ajanta cave wall paintings and sculptures and cliffside and riverside forests recalled Gautama Buddha's 45-year walking meditations throughout northern India and southern Nepal. Barriers, crowds, din, glare and metal somewhat subvert Tu Hieu Temple walks, supplanted for the 200th anniversary year of European-accessed Ajanta cave wall paintings and sculptures.

Tu Hieu Temple walks by Abbot and Head Thich Nhat Hanh train tourists to team breaths, steps and thoughts there and around Ajanta cave wall paintings.

Vietnamese peace activist Thich Nhat Hanh's Root Temple, Tu Hieu, in Hué, central Vietnam, honors a previous incarnation of Gautama Buddha as Prince Suvanna Sama; a fresco over the doorway of Ajanta Cave 17 depicts Gautama among the Seven Buddhas of Antiquity (Saptatathāgata) and includes (far right) the future Buddha, Maitreya, also known as Ajita, namesake of the cave complex's nearby village; Ajanta Caves, Maharashtra, central-west India; Oct. 21, 2006: Londenp, CC BY SA 2.5 Generic, via Wikimedia Commons

Acknowledgment

My special thanks to talented artists and photographers/concerned organizations who make their fine images available on the internet.

Image credits:

Vietnamese peace activist and now wheelchair-bound walking meditator Thich Nhat Hanh returned to his Root Temple, Tu Hieu in Hué, north central Vietnam, Oct. 28, 2018: Thich Nhat Hanh @thichnhathanh, via Facebook Nov. 17, 2018, @ https://www.facebook.com/thichnhathanh/photos/a.10150611330974635/10156167909394635/

Vietnamese peace activist Thich Nhat Hanh's Root Temple, Tu Hieu, in Hué, central Vietnam, honors a previous incarnation of Gautama Buddha as Prince Suvanna Sama; a fresco over the doorway of Ajanta Cave 17 depicts Gautama among the Seven Buddhas of Antiquity (Saptatathāgata) and includes (far right) the future Buddha, Maitreya, also known as Ajita, namesake of the cave complex's nearby village; Ajanta Caves, Maharashtra, central-west India; Saturday, Oct. 21, 2006: Londenp, CC BY SA 2.5 Generic, via Wikimedia Commons @ https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Ajanta_Entrance_cave_17.jpg

For further information:

"Ajanta Caves." UNESCO > Culture > World Heritage Centre > The List > World Heritage List.
Available @ http://whc.unesco.org/en/list/242

"Ajanta Caves Vulnerable to Landslides, Says Study." NDTV > India > News > August 6, 2014 15:50 IST.
Available @ https://www.ndtv.com/india-news/ajanta-caves-vulnerable-to-landslides-says-study-616005

Anh-Huong, Nguyen; and Thich Nhat Hanh. 2019. Walking Meditation. Boulder CO: Sounds True.

Bankar, M.V.; and N.P. Bhosle. November-December 2017. "Ethnobotanical Survey of Medicinal Plants in Ajanta Region (MS) India." IOSR Journal of Pharmacy and Biological Sciences Volume 12, Issue 6 Ver. II: 59-64.
Available @ http://www.iosrjournals.org/iosr-jpbs/papers/Vol12-issue6/Version-2/I1206025964.pdf

Barrett, Douglas E.; and Basil Gray. 1963. Painting of India. Geneva, Switzerland: Skira, Treasures of Asia. Distributed in the United States by World Publishing Co., Cleveland OH.

Behl, Benoy K. 2005. The Ajanta Caves: Ancient Paintings of Buddhist India. London UK: Thames & Hudson.

Boyd, Ryan. 14 December 2018. "Sacred Sites: Ajanta Caves." Evolve + Ascend > Ancient Wisdom > Culture > Occult > Sacred Sites.
Available @ http://www.evolveandascend.com/2018/12/14/sacred-sites-ajanta-caves/

Boyle, Alan. 25 November 2013. "Religious Roots of Buddha's Birthplace Traced Back 2,600 Years." NBC News > Science News.
Available @ https://www.nbcnews.com/sciencemain/religious-roots-buddhas-birthplace-traced-back-2-600-years-2D11648772

Burgess, J. (James). 1879. "Notes on the Bauddha Rock-Temples of Ajanta, Their Paintings and Sculptures, and on the Paintings of the Bagh Caves, Modern Bauddha Mythology, &c." Archaeological Society of Western India, no. 9. Bombay, India: Government Central Press.
Available via Internet Archive @ https://archive.org/details/archaeologicals01indigoog/

Dalrymple, William. 15 August 2014. "The Ajanta Cave Murals: 'Nothing Less Than the Birth of Indian Art.'" The Guardian > Culture > Art & Design.
Available @ https://www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/2014/aug/15/mural-ajanta-caves-india-birth-indian-art

Fergusson, James. 1845. Illustrations of the Rock-Cut Temples of India: Text to Accompany the Folio Volume of Plates. London, England.
Available via Internet Archive @ https://archive.org/details/gri_33125008483717/

Fergusson, James. 1845. Illustrations of the Rock-Cut Temples of India: Selected From the Best Examples of the Different Series of Caves at Ellora, Ajunta, Cuttack, Salsette, Karli, and Mahavellipore. Drawn on Stone by Mr. T.C. Dibdin, From Sketches Carefully Made on the Spot, With the Assistance of the Camera-Lucida, in the Years 1838-9. London, England: John Weale, M.DCCC.XLV.
Available via Internet Archive @ https://archive.org/details/gri_33125008543106/

Fergusson, James; and James Burgess. 1880. The Cave Temples of India. London, England: W.H. Allen & Co.
Available via Internet Archive @ https://archive.org/details/cavetemplesofind00ferguoft/

Fergusson, James; and Robert Gill. 1864. The Rock-Cut Temples of India; Illustrated by Seventy-Four Photographs Taken on the Spot by Major Gill. Described by James Fergusson. London, England: John Murray.
Available via HathiTrust @ https://catalog.hathitrust.org/Record/100206115
Available via Wikisource @ https://en.wikisource.org/wiki/The_Rock-cut_Temples_of_India

Gill, Robert; and James Fergusson. 1864. One Hundred Stereoscopic Illustrations of Architecture and Natural History in Western India. Photographed by Major Gill and described by James Fergusson. London, England: Cundall, Downes & Co.

Gupte, R.S.; and B.D. Mahajan. 1962. Ajanta, Ellora and Aurangabad Caves. Bombay, India: D.B. Taraporevala Sons and Co.

LucyH. 24 December 2018. "Tu Hieu Pagoda - The Place Where Zen Master Thich Nhat Hanh Spends the Rest of His Life." Authentik Vietnam Travel > Travel Blog.
Available @ https://authentiktravel.com/tu-hieu-pagoda-the-place-where-zen-master-thich-nhat-hanh-spends-the-rest-of-his-his-life

Marriner, Derdriu. 29 March 2019. "Thich Nhat Hanh, Walking Meditations and Ajanta Cave Wall Paintings." Earth and Space News. Friday.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2019/03/thich-nhat-hanh-walking-meditations-and.html

Marriner, Derdriu. 22 March 2019. “200th Anniversary Year of Ajanta Cave Wall Paintings: Ajanta Cave 13.” Earth and Space News. Friday.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2019/03/200th-anniversary-year-of-ajanta-cave_22.html

Marriner, Derdriu. 15 March 2019. “200th Anniversary Year of Ajanta Cave Wall Paintings: Ajanta Cave 12.” Earth and Space News. Friday.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2019/03/200th-anniversary-year-of-ajanta-cave.html

Marriner, Derdriu. 8 March 2019. “200th Anniversary Year of Ajanta Cave Wall Paintings: Ajanta Cave 8.” Earth and Space News. Friday.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2019/03/200th-anniversary-year-of-ajanta-cave_8.html

Marriner, Derdriu. 1 March 2019. “200th Anniversary Year of Ajanta Cave Wall Paintings: Ajanta Cave 15A/30.” Earth and Space News. Friday.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2019/03/200th-anniversary-year-of-ajanta-cave_1.html

Marriner, Derdriu. 22 February 2019. “200th Anniversary Year of Ajanta Cave Wall Paintings: Pithora Wall Art.” Earth and Space News. Friday.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2019/02/200th-anniversary-year-of-ajanta-cave.html

Marriner, Derdriu. 15 February 2019. “200th Anniversary Year of Ajanta Cave Wall Paintings: Ajanta Cave 29.” Earth and Space News. Friday.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2019/02/200th-anniversary-year-of-ajanta-cave_15.html

Marriner, Derdriu. 8 February 2019. “Ajanta Cave 26 in 200th Anniversary Year of Ajanta Cave Wall Paintings.” Earth and Space News. Friday.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2019/02/ajanta-cave-26-in-200th-anniversary.html

Marriner, Derdriu. 1 February 2019. “Ajanta Cave 19 in 200th Anniversary Year of Ajanta Cave Wall Paintings.” Earth and Space News. Friday.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2019/02/ajanta-cave-19-in-200th-anniversary.html

Marriner, Derdriu. 25 January 2019. “200th Anniversary Year of Ajanta Cave Wall Paintings in Ajanta Cave 9.” Earth and Space News. Friday.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2019/01/200th-anniversary-year-of-ajanta-cave.html

Marriner, Derdriu. 18 January 2019. “Ancient Ajanta Cave Wall Paintings and Inscriptions in Ajanta Cave 10.” Earth and Space News. Friday.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2019/01/ancient-ajanta-cave-wall-paintings-and.html

Marriner, Derdriu. 11 January 2019. “Ajanta Cave Wall Paintings Ailing at World Heritage Centre Site.” Earth and Space News. Friday.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2019/01/ajanta-cave-wall-paintings-ailing-at.html

Marriner, Derdriu. 4 January 2019. “Accurate, Ancient, Artistic Ajanta Cave Wall Paintings to Buddha.” Earth and Space News. Friday.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2019/01/accurate-ancient-artistic-ajanta-cave.html

Nhat Hanh, Thich. 2003. The Hermit and the Well. Berkeley CA: Plum Blossom Books.

Nhat Hanh, Thich. 2002. My Master's Robe: Memories of a Novice Monk. Berkeley CA: Parallax Press.

Nhat Hanh, Thich. 1998. The Heart of the Buddha's Teaching: Transforming Suffering Into Peace, Joy, and Liberation. Berkeley CA: Parallax Press.

Nhat Hanh, Thich. 1991. Old Path White Clouds: Walking in the Footsteps of the Buddha. Translated from the Vietnamese Duòng xua mâ trang by Mobi Ho. Berkeley CA: Parallax Press.

Pisani, Ludovico. 6 August 2013. "The Ajanta Cave Paintings." The Global Dispatches > Articles and Culture.
Available @ http://www.theglobaldispatches.com/articles/the-ajanta-cave-paintings

Saddhatissa, H. 1976. The Life of Buddha. New York NY: Harper & Row, Publishers, Inc.

Singh, Rajesh. 2012. An Introduction to the Ajanta Caves: With Examples of Six Caves. Vadodara, India: Hari Sena Press Private Limited.

Singh, Rajesh Kumar. 2017. Ajanta Cave No. 1: Documented According to the Ajanta Corpus of Dieter Schlingloff (Photographic Compendium, Ajanta Narrative Painting). Vadodara, India: Hari Sena Press Private Limited.

Somathilake, Mahinda. June 2013. "Painted Jataka Stories of Ancient Sri Lanka." International Journal of Arts and Commerce 2(6): 139-150.
Available @ https://ijac.org.uk/images/frontImages/gallery/Vol._2_No._6/14.pdf

Spink, Walter M. 2018. Ajanta: History and Development. Volume 1: The End of the Golden Age. Handbook of Oriental Studies. Section 2 South Asia, Volume 18/1. Leiden, Netherlands: Brill Academic Publishers.

Spink, Walter M. 2018. Ajanta: History and Development. Volume 2: Arguments about Ajanta. Handbook of Oriental Studies. Section 2 South Asia, Volume 18/2. Leiden, Netherlands: Brill Academic Publishers.

Spink, Walter M. 2005. Ajanta: History and Development. Volume 3: The Arrival of the Uninvited. Handbook of Oriental Studies. Section 2 South Asia, Volume 18/3. Leiden, Netherlands: Brill Academic Publishers.

Spink, Walter M. 2008. Ajanta: History and Development. Volume 4: Painting, Sculpture, Architecture - Year by Year. Handbook of Oriental Studies. Section 2 South Asia, Volume 18/4. Leiden, Netherlands: Brill Academic Publishers.

Spink, Walter M. 2006. Ajanta: History and Development. Volume 5: Cave by Cave. Handbook of Oriental Studies. Section 2 South Asia, Volume 18/5. Leiden, Netherlands: Brill Academic Publishers.

Spink, Walter. 2017. Ajanta: History and Development. Volume 7: Bagh, Dandin, Cells and Cell Doorways. Handbook of Oriental Studies. Section 2 South Asia, Volume 18/7. Leiden, Netherlands: Brill Academic Publishers.

Spink, Walter M; and Naomichi Yaguchi. 2014. Ajanta: History and Development. Volume 6: Defining Features. Handbook of Oriental Studies. Section 2 South Asia, Volume 18/6. Leiden, Netherlands: Brill Academic Publishers.

Thich Nhat Hanh gems. 29 July 2017. "Walking meditation is practicing meditation while walking. . . . . -- Thich Nhat Hanh Photo: Paul Davis." Facebook.
Available @ https://www.facebook.com/319228401438031/photos/a.319236131437258.87388.319228401438031/1867221496638706/

"Thich Nhat Hanh Returns Home." Plum Village > News > Official Announcement > Friday 2nd November 2018.
Available @ https://plumvillage.org/news/thich-nhat-hanh-returns-to-vietnam/

Thich Nhat Hanh @thichnhathanh. 17 November 2018. "Thay enjoying being at the Root Temple in Hue, where he first became a novice in 1942 aged 16." Facebook.
Available @ https://www.facebook.com/thichnhathanh/photos/a.10150611330974635/10156167909394635/

"Từ Hiê'u Pagoda." Lan Huê' > Huê'> Posted on November 8, 2010.
Available @ http://lanhue.com/tu-hieu-pagoda/

Uno, Tomoko; and Yoshiko Shimazdu. "Thermal Environment in Ajanta Caves." Archi-Cultural Translations through the Silk Road: 2nd International Conference, Mukogawa Women's University, Nishinomiya, Japan, July 14-16, 2012, Proceedings.
Available @ http://www.mukogawa-u.ac.jp/~iasu2012/pdf/iaSU2012_Proceedings_401.pdf

"World Heritage Sites - About Ajanta Caves 01 to 29." Archeological Survey of India > Monuments > World Heritage Site > Ajanta > About Caves.
Available @ https://web.archive.org/web/20120501151253/http://asi.nic.in/asi_monu_whs_ajanta_caves.asp