A Meaning and Origin of the Stupa

불탑의 의미와 어원

  • Received : 2011.08.14
  • Accepted : 2011.10.17
  • Published : 2011.10.31

Abstract

Buddhism that has arisen in India began to build the Stupa to enshrine body and Sari of Buddha as an object of worship. The stupa existed as a tome of holy leaders even before the birth of Buddha, which was called stupa or tupa in the Sanskrit and the Pali, the ancient language of India. The stupa was renamed accordingly in each Buddhism transmitted countries such as Ceylon, Tibet, Nepal, Myanmar, Thailand and China and also reshaped according to their own formative style. But its original meaning and type are kept unchanged. The stupa was established in the 4 holy places including the birth place of Buddha, the place where Buddha found enlightenment, the place where Buddha preached for the first time, and the place where Buddha died. Thus, a pagoda to commemorate holy ancient places is called Chaitya, which became differentiated from the stupa in which Sari is enshrined. The stupa means Nirvana, the eternal body of Buddha, and also a place filled with teaching and preaching of Buddhism. It signifies the symbol of Buddha who escaped from the death and rebirth, to achieve complete extinction, i.e. parinirvana, and to reach ultimate eternal world, rather than simply means death. During the non-statue of th Buddha period, people built the stupa to embody Nirvana of the Buddha, and worshipped the tomb where body of holy saints was enshrined. On the other hand, they also sanctified memorial things such as tools that holy saints used, the Bo tree under which one achieved Nirvana, Dharma cakra that implied words, footprint that carried out mission work, and a way to reach to heaven.

Keywords

References

  1. Dietrich Seckel 저, 이주형 역, "The Art of Buddhism, 불교미술" , 예경, 2007
  2. 미야지 아키라, "인도미술사", 김향숙, 고정은 역, 다할 미디어, 2006
  3. 中村元, 金知見 역, "불타의 세계" , 김영사, 2005
  4. 이희봉, "탑의 원조 인도스투파의 형태해석" , 건축역사연구, 제18권 6호, 2009
  5. S. Paranavitana, The Stupa in Ceylon, Memories of the Archeological Survey of Ceylon, volume 5, colombo, 1946
  6. 고유섭, "한국탑파의 연구", 동화예술선서, 1975
  7. 諸稿轍次, "大漢和辭典", 大修館, 1968
  8. 김희경, "한국의 탑" , 열화당, 2005
  9. M.Winternitz, Geschichte der indscken Literatur, Bd.1, 1907
  10. 衫本卓洲, "インド佛塔の硏究" , 平樂寺書店, 1993
  11. 尹昌淑, "韓國塔婆相輪部에 관한 硏究" , 단국대학교 대학원 박사학위논문, 1993
  12. Sir M. Monier-Williams, A Sanskrit-English Dictionary, Oxford, 1956
  13. J. Bloch, Les inscriptions d'Asoka, Paris, 1950
  14. 윤창숙 "문화재해설-탑파", 자유출판사, 1991
  15. 村田治郞, "東洋建築史", 建築學大系4, 彰國社, 1980
  16. James Fergusson, History of Indian and Eastern Architecture, Vol.1, 2.(Delhi India, 1876
  17. 林永培, "韓國塔婆建築의 造形特性에 관한 硏究" , 홍익대학교대학원 박사학위논문, 1981
  18. 강우방, 신용철, "탑, 한국미의 재발견5", 솔, 2003
  19. 이주형, "인도초기불교미술의 불상관" , 미술사학 15, 2001
  20. 逸見梅榮, "印度佛敎美術考-建築篇", 甲子社, 1929
  21. Fergussion, History of Indian and Eastern Architecture , 1920/2006
  22. 衫本卓州, "caitya及stpa崇拜の 形態と展開" , 東北福祉大學論叢 第9, 11卷
  23. "僧祇律", '有舍利名塔婆 無舍利名支提'
  24. 김버들, 조정식, "경전속에 나타난 탑의 건축적 요소에 관한 연구" , 대한건축 학회 논문집 계획계 통권 232호, 2008
  25. 천득염, "인도시원불탑의 의미론적 해석- 불탑건축의 전래와 양식에 관한 비교론 적 고찰" , 건축역사연구 2권 2호, 1993
  26. http://ebit.dongguk.ac.kr