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Mahayana and Vajrayena Buddhist deity Avalokiteshvara is the bodhisattva
of compassion. A bodhisattva is a being who has attained
the state of enlightenment but has not moved on to become a Buddha,
choosing to assist others with finding the way to enlightenment.
There are ten stages of a bodhisattva’s spiritual development.
In one stage, bodhisattvas are no longer subject to the forces
of natural laws and can assume any form they wish, be in several
places at once, and move about at the speed of thought. Thus Avalokiteshvara
has many manifestations.
This statue shows one of the manifestations of Avalokiteshvara called
Ekadasha-mahakarunika-Lokesvara who has eleven heads and eight arms. Just
as there are many manifestations of the bodhisattva himself, there
are several versions of the legend explaining his eleven heads. The
main story line is this:
Ekadasha descended into hell with the intention of saving souls. He
brought a number of souls to the intermediate paradise, Sukhavait,
discovering that for every soul he saved, another took their place. Ekadasha’s
head broke into ten pieces when he discovered the amount of evil
in the world and the hopelessness of saving all mankind. Amitahba,
Ekadasha’s father and one of the five transcendental Buddhas,
then made a new head from each of the ten broken pieces and placed
them on the body of his son. Nine of the faces are full of love with
floral crowns, one face is evil with a crown of skulls, and the eleventh
face on top is the head of Amitabha himself.
In Buddhist imagery every position of the body and object held have
a meaning. On this statue, the nine heads, in sets of
three, represent the world of desire, the world of living forms,
and the world without form. Below are some of the hand positions, objects,
and their meanings. |
Avalokiteshvara, Bodhisattva of Mercy |
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Two hands in the center are holding a wish-fulfilling gem. |
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The bottom left hand is holding
a vase or jug. |
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In the top left hand is an open lotus flower symbolizing purity. |
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The top right hand is holding the “wheel
of combined spiritual teaching and benevolent governance”. |
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In the middle left hand is a bow and arrow. The
arrow is the symbol of alertness and consciousness. The arrow
with the bow is the symbol of the path and purpose, method and
wisdom, and accurate determination. |
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The lowest right hand is open, palm up. This mudra (a
symbolic gesture) symbolizes bestowal of supreme accomplishment. |
Learn More: Avalokiteshvara, Bodhisattva of Mercy 1985.17.0001
For More Information:
Jansen, Eva Rudy. The Book of Buddhas: Ritual Symbolism used on
Buddhist Statuary and Ritual Objects.Diever,
Holland: Binkey Kok Publications, 1990.
Pal, Pratapaditya (organized by). Light of Asia: Buddha Sakyamuni
in Asian Art. Los Angeles, California: Los Angeles County
Museum of Art, 1984.
Zwalf, W., ed. Buddhism: Art and Faith. London,
England: British Museum Publications Limited, 1985.
Most of the artifacts in Artifacts of the Month articles are chosen to allow website visitors to explore artifacts that are not on display in the Museum's galleries. Try searching the database or exploring the Virtual Tour to find artifacts on display.
 
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