After my trip to Bali, I did not return to my home temple in Taiping, but first went down to the Brahmavihara Moanstery in Melaka. I had met the founder Bhante Dhammapāla earlier in the year, and as I was interested in seeing his collection of art works, he had invited me to come.
The thing I was most interested in was his large collection of Gandhāran works, which a number of people had told me about. There are around 30 reliefs on display in the hall, along with many other object d’art.
Although I am not an expert in Gandhāran art, it struck me that they are in too good a condition to be genuine, and must be modern imitations of the real thing. They do not appear to be copies though, but new works based on Gandhāran style.
If we compare them with what we know to be genuine works from the time, at the Peshawar and Hund Museums, the difference is astounding. Whereas the genuine works are nearly all broken and defaced in one way or another, the ones in Brahmavihara are all complete and unmarked.
They are, however, if not genuine, at least very fine imitations, seemingly made locally in Pakistan, using the same kind of stone, and with well-created themes, based on the originals, while not being copies which are easy to recognize.
I do not say this to detract from the beauty of the pieces. As we know we can also get fine Borobudur-style works from the workshops that line the road leading into that site also. And having just returned from Bali, which has a living tradition of artists and sculptors, I am more than impressed by modern-day art in Asia.
Besides these Gandhāran works, there are many other pieces in the hall, and most of these seem to be genuine collector items from various countries, but especially from China. If you get a chance to visit the Monastery, it has a lot to offer besides this great collection, and it functions as a retreat centre also.
