Shakyamuni Buddha with Avadana Legend Scenes

Buddha Shakyamuni, the central figure in this painting, is seated on a lotus, holding a begging bowl and making the gesture of giving. He is surrounded by scenes of narrative depictions of the stories of the noble deeds, or avadanas. Landscape elements frame each scene, identified by Tibetan inscriptions in gold letters. The narrative moves clockwise around the Buddha. However, the unifying landscape makes it difficult to distinguish where one story ends and another begins. Three red trilobed vignettes, which give the title and number of the avadana stories help to make sense of this busy tapestry-like painting.