The mudras, or hand positions, are crucial to Buddhist spiritual practice. The dhyana mudra, with the back of the right hand on the palm of the left and thumbs touching, is the mudra of meditation, concentration on the Good Law, and the attainment of spiritual perfection. The Buddha assumed this mudra while meditating under the Bodhi tree when he achieved enlightenment.
Buddha, seated
Gandhara (present-day Pakistan and Afghanistan)
2nd century CE
Schist, 35.7 x 21.6 x 9.8 cm
Given by the Morton family in memory of Harold Hargreaves, and of his two daughters, Mary Morton, and Elizabeth Capstick, 2003
O.1-2003
