بررسی نقشمایه های مشترک هنر ایران باستان و هنر بودایی

India and Iran have always had cultural and artistic exchanges throughout history. Buddhist art is one of them. Buddhism is one of the most important Indian religions that was prevalent in many different regions of Iran, especially the eastern regions, and it has left a great impact on the art of ancient Iran. The aim of the research is to identify the common motifs and to investigate the influence of Buddhist motifs in the art of ancient Iran. The research method is descriptive-analytical and data collection is carried out through documentary studies. The research question is based on what are the common motifs of ancient Iranian and Buddhist art and what elements of Buddhist art influenced Iranian art? And the hypothesis states that common motifs include animal, plant, and geometric motifs and elements such as the lotus flower motif and the location of some reliefs and sculptures have entered Iranian art under the influence of Buddhist art. The results of the research show that elements of Buddhist art were influential in ancient Iranian art in the form of three themes: animals such as elephants; plants such as lotuses; and geometric shapes such as swastikas and wheels (circles),
 

Introduction

Throughout history, the land of Iran has always played a role as a bridge between the East and the West. The existence of this characteristic has caused the culture of the land of Iran to influence or be influenced by the cultures of the surrounding regions (Dador and Mobini, 2011: 116-118). One of these cultures is the culture and art related to Buddhism in India. The relations between Iran and India are one of the most important current topics in archaeology, history, culture and art that have long been the focus of researchers, and the presence of these civilizations next to each other has caused a lot of influence and effects (Velaiti, 2008: 90) because the two Iranian and Indian peoples are from the Indo-European ethnic group, and this has caused their mythology, culture and religion to have close ties. In the Achaemenid period, despite the common symbolic motifs (animal, geometric and plant), no influence of Buddhist art is seen. The Seleucid and Parthian periods marked the beginning of the arrival of this religion in the eastern regions of Iran. Due to the religious tolerance and tolerance during the Parthian era, Buddhism was easily propagated in Iran, and this period played an important role in the transmission of Buddhism to neighboring lands, especially China. During the Sassanid period, despite the officialization of Zoroastrianism, Buddhism continued to be prevalent in eastern Iran. Ancient Iranian traditions, along with new Sassanid methods and artistic models from various other regions (especially Syria under Roman rule), penetrated the art of the Bamiyan region and then merged with Buddhist-Indian iconographic traditions (especially the Gupta period in India) and artistic elements taken from the Kandahar style. The combination of all these artistic elements, considering the dominant characteristics of Sassanid art, led to the creation of a native art style called the "Iranian-Buddhist school". The main goal of the research is to identify common motifs and examine the influence of Buddhist motifs in ancient Iranian art (Parthian and Sasanian).
The focus of the present research is the artistic relationship between ancient Iran (Achaemenid, Parthian and Sasanian) and India (Buddhist art), with regard to the following question: What are the common motifs of ancient Iranian and Buddhist art, and what elements of Buddhist art most influenced Iranian art?
 
2- Research Method
The research method is descriptive-analytical and the data is the result of documentary studies. Therefore, sources related to the subject were collected and after a thorough study and examination, the desired, citation-worthy and relevant information related to the research subject was extracted. Then, it was categorized into thematic sheets and then the materials were arranged in certain frameworks and finally, by analyzing and comparing them, an attempt was made to answer the research question.
 
3- Discussion
This topic examines the motifs of ancient Iran and Indian Buddhist art; first, common motifs are identified and then classified.
Animal motifs: The motifs of animals are among the phenomena that have had an ancient and inextricable link with human life. In general, "animals" have had a very high position in human beliefs and thoughts throughout human history, and the roots of many superstitions, beliefs, rituals, and myths have been related to animals and beasts (Sarikhani, 2019: 79). These motifs include: Horse (especially winged): In ancient Iranian thoughts and myths, it has always been respected and considered a sacred animal and was used in religious rituals to pass through the afterlife (Sharifi and Zargham, 2013: 56). Lion (symbolically has various meanings such as fire, sunlight, victory, summer, bravery, spirit of life, monarchy, courage, wisdom, pride, warmth of the sun, care (Dador and Mobini, 2011: 20). Deer, deer and elephant (were considered symbols of sovereignty, wisdom of kings and moral and psychological strength).
Plant motifs: Common plant motifs include trees, lotus flowers and rosettes.
Geometric motifs: These motifs include crosses, wheels and circles which were common between ancient Iranian art and Buddhist art.
 
4-Conclusion
Based on the aforementioned evidence, it can be concluded that the common symbolic animal, geometric and plant motifs in Buddhist and Achaemenid art, such as the lotus flower motif, the animal motifs of the horse and lion, and the symbolic motifs of the circle and umbrella, do not indicate the influence of Buddhist art on Achaemenid art.
The religious tolerance prevalent in the Parthian period allowed Buddhism to be easily propagated in Iran, and even the Parthians played an important role in transmitting Buddhism to other places, including China. The elephant motifs in Parthian art indicate its connection with Indian and, of course, Kushan art. The stucco paintings in Yazdgerd Castle are in the form of panels with human motifs, each placed in a separate frame, their standing posture with dancing figures is similar to the Butkara relief and the images of Yakshis in the railing of the Baharhut temple in the second century BC. The complex of buildings excavated by Herzfeld on Mount Khajeh in Sistan is reminiscent of Buddhist monasteries in India due to its similarity in topography. Stein has mentioned the remains of the central fortress as the remains of a Buddhist temple.
During the Sassanid period, despite the officialization of Zoroastrianism, Buddhism was still prevalent in eastern Iran, and it can be admitted that the Gupta period in India witnessed the formation of an Iranian-Buddhist school of art. The mosaicists of Bishapur were influenced by the sculptures of Gupta art in their works. Buddhist religion and art had an impact on Manichaean beliefs and the surviving Manichaean texts. The close contact between the Manichaeans and Buddhists in Central Asia caused Manichaean art to receive significant influences from Buddhist art. For example, the lotus flower can be cited as an example, which can be seen in most Manichaean paintings. In the Manichaean paintings, there are images of people carved on lotus flowers, and in some other paintings, this flower is carved above the heads of people, which shows the influence of Buddhist art. In one of these paintings, the image of the ruler of Balkh (a Sassanid prince) is seen, whose throne is depicted between columns, in a way that the details of this image reflect the style of Buddhist images in Central Asia. In the carvings of Taq-e-Bostan, the image of a blue lotus flower, over which Mithra, like an image of Buddha, rises, is a sign of the influence of Buddhist art. The image of the lotus flower was considered a symbol of Anahita in the Sassanid period; but the image of Mithra standing on this flower could be an influence of Buddhist art. Regarding the influence of Buddhist art on Sassanid coins, according to existing traditions, Pirouz, the brother of Shapur I, who was nicknamed Kushan Shah, had converted to Buddhism. Coins of Pirouz are on hand with the phrase "Worshipper of Mazda, Gods of Pirouz, Emperor of Kushan." The image of the god seen on Pirouz's coin contains the phrase "God Buddha." Among the designs on the coins, one can cite the motif of three dots, which could be reminiscent of the Buddhist symbol of the Three Jewels.
 

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