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Water-Moon Avalokiteshvara

This superb painting depicts one of the most popular Buddhist deities during the Koryo period (918–1392). The usual attributes of this deity are present in this portrayal: the image of Amitabha Buddha in his crown and the willow branch that symbolizes healing, displayed in a kundika bottle placed in a clear glass or crystal bowl. Avalokiteshvara is attired in beautiful robes and sashes, with intricate gold details on his jewelry and clothing.  Holding a crystal rosary in his right hand, he is seated on a rocky outcropping with his right leg crossed and his left foot placed on a lotus-flower support. At the top of the painting, above the nimbus and aureole, is a depiction of a moon, where a hare pounds the elixir of immortality under a cassia tree, a theme based on  a well-known Chinese legend. Shown in worship of the deity are the boy Sudhana, who appears in the sutra on which the Water-Moon iconography is partially based, and a retinue of officials and supernatural beings offering precious gifts.

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