Skip to main content

Secondary sourceSculpturec. 5th century CE

Reclining Buddha Statue, Mahaparinirvana Temple

Dinna · c. 5th century CE

A 5th-century reclining statue at Kushinagar, India, marking the traditional site of the Buddha's death.

This statue depicts the Buddha's death (parinirvana) at the traditional site of that event.

Ask Buddha about this sourceView the original(opens in new tab)
A large reclining Buddha statue lying on its right side under a glass enclosure, draped with a yellow-orange cloth, with a golden curled-hair head visible. A person kneels at the side of the glass case, and a red donation box sits in the foreground. Wood-paneled walls surround the room.
Reclining Buddha statue, c. 5th century CE, sculptor Dinna. Mahaparinirvana Temple, Kushinagar, India.

About this source

What it is

This large statue, carved by a sculptor named Dinna according to its inscription, shows the Buddha lying down in the pose of his death, or parinirvana. It dates to around the 5th century CE and is housed at the Mahaparinirvana Temple in Kushinagar, India, the traditional location of the Buddha's death.

Why it matters

The statue marks a site believed to be where the Buddha died, making it an important place of pilgrimage. It shows how later Buddhist communities memorialized key moments of his life through monumental art, and how devotion to him continued long after his death.

Look closer

  • What does the pose of the statue tell you about how the Buddha's death is remembered?
  • Why might people still visit and worship at this site today?
  • What do the objects around the statue, like the donation box, tell you about ongoing religious practice here?

This sculpture is part of the curated material that grounds the AI version of Buddha on Humy.ai — when students ask about related events, the AI can quote it and cite it.

More Buddha sources

Meet the AI Buddha →
A large upright marble slab with a red-painted rim and a tablet-shaped top, inscribed with dense Burmese script in many lines. A framed title panel sits at the top, and paper inscriptions are on the wall behind it in a stone-walled alcove.Book

Secondary source

Dhammapada

Attributed to the Buddha · c. 3rd century BCE compilation

Painted leaf of a palm-leaf or wooden-board style manuscript showing a seated, yellow-faced Buddha in red robes in meditation pose, flanked by two small figures, with black and red borders and script at the sides.Painting

Secondary source

Buddha in Dhyana, Perfection of Wisdom Sutra Manuscript

1074

Grey stone sculpture of the head of a Buddha with tightly curled wavy hair in a high topknot, downcast eyes, a small raised dot on the forehead, and a broken neck base. Photographed against a pale background.Sculpture

Secondary source

Head of the Buddha, Gandhara style

Diagram of the Tipiṭaka structure. Top box TIPIṬAKA branches into three: Vinayapiṭaka (Suttavibhaṅga, Khandhaka, Parivāra), Suttapiṭaka (five Nikāyas including Khuddakanikāya), and Abhidhammapiṭaka (seven books). Khuddakanikāya's fifteen texts are listed below.Book

Secondary source

Pali Canon (Tipitaka)

Early Buddhist sangha · oral from 5th century BCE; written c. 29 BCE

A photo of the cover board of a folding book with a red lacquered background and gold floral scrollwork, with a vertical green panel bearing gold Burmese script lettering in the center.Document

Secondary source

Life of the Buddha

19th century

Ready when you are

Start chatting with Buddha now.

20 messages free · No credit card · Available in 50+ languages.

Trial Humy for freeGet a quote for institutions