Visual Rhetoric in Early Buddhist Art uses symbolic imagery, not human form Buddhas, to communicate Buddhist doctrines, foster communal identity, and mediate socio political authority. Key elements include aniconic symbols like the Bodhi tree and wheel to represent Buddhist concepts, and narrative strategies, such as continuous or synoptic narration across reliefs, to tell stories of the Buddha's life and previous lives (Jataka tales). The materiality of the art, combined with its context within ritual and textual traditions, allows it to convey meaning beyond mere illustration.

Visual Rhetoric in Early Buddhist Art of India, Deepak Kumar and Jagpal Singh, Research India Press, Hardcover, 139 pages, $60.00

Deepak Kumar is a professor of History of Science and Education, at Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi, India. Kumar has lectured at numerous universities within India and abroad, held visiting fellowships at the universities of Cambridge, London, Leiden, The Smithsonian Institution, etc. and has also taught at Wisconsin University, Madison, USA, and York University in Toronto, Canada

Jagpal Singh is an Archaeologist and research scholar at Gurukula Kangri University Haridwar. Mr. Jagpal Singh has specialization in Cultural and Heritage studies.