Antique Nepalese Sand Cast Bronze Thousand Armed Guan Yin Avalokiteshvara Statue 觀自在菩薩
Antique Nepalese Sand Cast Bronze Statue
Three Headed Avalokiteshvara 觀自在菩薩
Ten Armed Compassion Bodhisattva
Origin: Nepal. Circa: 19th Century and earlier
H 8 in. (20cm), W 5 in. (12.5cm), D 3 in. (7.5cm)
Condition: damage to pedestal rim, overall very good!
This finely cast Nepalese bronze has bloomed a patina of ages, with mottled mineral deposits in green and dark umber and excrescences of minerals and rust erupting on the surface. The figure is Avalokitesvara, gracefully standing on one foot in his benevolent three-headed form, and fanning out behind his torso are layers of arms. As a bodhisattva who embodies the compassion of all Buddhas, Avalokiteśvara vowing never to rest until he had freed all sentient beings from saṃsāra. Despite strenuous effort, he realizes that many more suffering beings are yet to be saved. Then Amitabha Buddha granted him eleven heads with which to hear the cries of the suffering. Upon hearing these cries and comprehending them, Avalokitesvara tries to reach out to all those who needed aid. Once more, Amitābha comes to his aid and endows him with a thousand arms to aid the multitudes.