Nawakit – Aesthetics: The Conservative Intertextuality and Dissemination of Values in Buddhist Mural Painting at Man Zai Long Temple, Xishuangbanna

Abstract

The article was a part of research on “Nawakit – Aesthetics: the conservative intertextuality and dissemination of values in Buddhist mural painting at Man Zai Long Temple, Xishuangbanna.” The purpose of this research was to study the mural painting outside the monk's house of Man Zai Long Temple from a visual art and design point of view to create paintings. In case of the inheritance of Man Zai Long Temple mural painting in the modern era has not protected and inherited through traditional methods, it would cause the mural painting with losing basic meaning. From interviews with a sample group of monks, it found that the inheritance for traditional mural painting at Man Zai Long Temple has currently been ignored without the protective measures. It was difficult to adapt the development of contemporary society. The new creations would make traditional mural painting with a lack of vitality and its characteristic. Consequently, the appropriate conservation and dissemination of values in Buddhist mural painting at Man Zai Long Temple, Xishuangbanna was conducted; including 1. the analysis of the mural identity, and 2. the restoring traditional mural painting by creating contemporary paintings. It has effectively corresponded the era and reflective realism. Both of these methods would result in knowledge on the creation of mural painting. These have got the contemporary paintings which are in line with current aesthetics, as a reference for future mural creations. Therefore, the Theravada Buddhism mural paintings have been widely preserved and spread.