Nagas Bathe Shakyamuni

Scene 13, Baodingshan, Dazu (map)

The young Buddha is lustrated by nagas, in this magnificent scene that owes much to the imagery of Southeast Asia (example). The sculptors channeled a natural stream to issue from the principal naga's mouth. The Birth Scene (see previous page) is just to the right.

It is probably no accident that the three scenes illustrating Buddha's life on earth are placed together (Birth, Death, and Lustration), although technically the Lustration is out of sequence.