태국 사찰벽화에 나타난 우주도상 연구 -뜨라이품에 근거한 도상해석을 중심으로-

Abstract

Mt. Sumeru (Meru in Pali) is the center of the Buddhist cosmography. It stands at the center of the world and is surrounded by 7 rings of inner seas and mountain ranges. Outside them, there is an outer sea in which 4 continents are located at each cardinal point. The end of the outer sea is surrounded by a mountain range which is the boundary wall of the world. Sun, moon and stars move around the Sumeru mountain, 84,000 yojana high above sea level. Buddhism views the world as comprising Three Worlds: the World of Desire, the World of Form and the World without Form. The Three Worlds also comprise 31 levels or realms of existence. All the beings or inhabitants in the Three Worlds are subject to rebirth in a higher or lower realm depending on virtue and moral conduct. Beyond these realms is Nirvana. The images of Buddhist cosmography have often been portrayed in the forms of sculptures and paintings. Generally, main motivation for such portrayal is to describe some relevant contents of Buddhist Sutras. In the Mahayana Buddhism, Sumeru cosmography is usually represented in portraying the Vairocana Buddha whereas, in the Theravada Buddhism, Sumeru cosmography is mainly represented in portraying the historical Buddha's preaching at Tavatimsa heaven. An image of Sumeru cosmography generally contains a combination of Sumeru Mountain and other objects such as sun and moon, 7 rings of mountains, seas, 4 continents or Tavatimsa Heaven. This paper is presumably the first research in Korea on the Theravadan image of Sumeru cosmography and deals with a case of the Sumeru cosmography shown on the western wall of the ubosot building of Wat Thong Thammachat in Bangkok, Thailand. This wall painting was produced in the period of King Rama III (r. 1823-1851) of Thailand. From the reign of King Rama IV(r. 1851-1868), the Buddhist cosmography in Thailand was forced to be reinterpreted by the Western cultural influence, and its portrayal on temple walls conspicuously shrank. Main research results are as follows:Firstly, this research summed up the history, architectural characteristics and mural painting of Wat Thong Thammachat. Especially, the Sumeru cosmography portrayed on the western wall of the ubosot building was reproduced by the author for exact interpretation of iconography. Secondly, this research introduced the Traiphum Phra Ruang text written by Phya Lithai (then Si Satchanalai's ruler) in 1345 and translated into English by Frank E. Reynolds and Mani B. Reynolds. Thirdly, this research reviewed the Sumeru cosmography described in the Traiphum Phra Ruang text and tried to explain the iconography of the Sumeru cosmography portrayed on the wall of Wat Thong Thammachat based on the text. Fourthly, this research reviewed the history of portrayal of Sumeru cosmography in Thailand, by focusing on manuscripts and temple wall paintings produced in the period of Ayuttaya dynasty(1351-1767). Fifthly, this research argued that the convention of portraying Mt. Sumeru and other mountains in the form of pillars is one of the most outstanding features in the images of Sumeru cosmography found in Thailand. This research also argued that this way of representation is a commonly shared convention with neighboring Myanmar and Cambodia where the same convention is found in Lokahteikpan temple of Bagan and Bayon temple of Angkor Thom. In conclusion, this paper suggested future researches be undertaken in the fields such as comparative researches on the Sumeru cosmography of the two different Buddhist sects; researches for revealing the formation process of the sun and moon image in the Southeast Asia; researches for discovering the origin of the pillar-like portrayal of mountains and its spreading into neighboring countries.