Goddess of Mercy

This beautiful statue of the Buddhist Goddess of Mercy lies in Daxiangguo Temple in Kaifeng, Henan, China.  Gold-plated, it is a memorial to both propriety and filial piety, two of the great Chinese Confucian virtues.  The story below is a combination of the story told by the tour guide and some local conversationalists who were happy to relate the story to me.  

Many centuries ago,

An old emperor of China grew very, very ill and saw that his country was suffering as well.  Realizing that the country was troubled and needed heavenly assistance, the worried king called out to Buddha and asked for guidance on how to appease the heavens and reclaim the blessings from above.  

Buddha responded that the country and its king had done some very wicked things in the past and that now a sacrifice would be required to repair the damage.  Buddha asked that the Emperor offer up to the heavens one arm and one eye from someone within his family. If he did so, Buddhas said, the country and emperor would be healed and would live in peace once more.  

The Emperor was very saddened and worried, because the only family he had left were his three young daughters.  The Princesses though were very concerned about their father and finally convinced him to share what Buddha commanded.  Upon hearing of the sacrifice required, the sisters were quite upset.

 The eldest daughter went to her father ~ “My king, although I love you and would do anything else that you asked of me, I cannot do this for you. I am a new mother, my baby is still nursing. If I only have one arm and one eye, how could I possibly care for my baby the way a good mother is supposed to?”

Mummified Buddha Statue Contains Actual Monk Mummy

by James Maynard via “Modvive“

A Buddha statue in China examined by researchers using a CT scan, like those in medical facilities, was found to contain the remains of an actual mummy.

The 1,000-year-old monument is painted in gold, and the body inside discovered when examinations of the artifact started, soon after its discovery. The latest investigation involved studies of samples from the body itself, as well as the CT scan.

However, the mummy discovery contrary to some reports is not as shocking as it may seem, as The History Blog notes: “It was known to be inside the statue all along … that’s why it was sent to the Drents Museum in the first place as part of the Mummies exhibition.”

Inside the statue, the body may be the remains of a well-respected monk who may have achieved status as an enlightened being. The artifact was likely stored in southeastern China for several centuries, housed at a monastery.

During the Cultural Revolution, which began in China in 1966, Mao Zedong encouraged Chinese citizens to seize private property, in an effort to rid the nation of bourgeois cultural influences. Investigators believe the statue may have left China during this time, before being sold in the Netherlands, to a private buyer. When the new owner decided to have the artifact restored in 1966, the restorer first noticed the statue appeared to be kneeling on a pair of pillows.

When these were removed, the human remains inside were first seen. The mummy was sitting on a rolled pillow, inscribed with writing.

“He looked right into the bottom of this monk. You can see part of the bones and tissue of his skin,”  said Vincent van Vilsteren, archaeology curator at the Drents Museum in Holland.

The outer shell of the statue is composed of a form of papier-mâché, covered in lacquer.

Samples from the artifact were examined by researchers, looking for ratios of different isotopes of carbon, in order to determine its age. This investigation revealed that the monk likely lived sometime in the 11^th or 12^th centuries, while the carpet on which he sat was found to be about two centuries older than the body.

The mummy was studied with CT scans at both Meander Medical Center in Amersfoort, Netherlands, as well as Mannheim University Hospital in Germany.

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Coming Exhibition: Loving Devotion: Enter the Mandala

“Enter the Mandala”

“Taima Mandala” (1300s – 1400s)

Who:  Asian Art Museum

When: Mar. 14, 2014 – Oct. 26, 2014 (Tues-Sun. 10 a.m. – 5 p.m.; Thurs. 10 a.m. – 9 pm.)

Where: 

Asian Art Museum
200 Larkin Street
San Francisco, CA

How Much:  

• Adults ~ $15
• Seniors, Students, Youth ~ $10

More Information: Here.

“Mandalas are maps of Buddhist visionary worlds.

Minutely detailed and saturated with philosophical meaning, these works (most often paintings or sculptures) are a feast for the eyes and the mind—nested squares and circles are arrayed to represent the center of the cosmos and the four cardinal directions. For Buddhist practitioners, however, mandalas are not just images to view, but worlds to enter—after recreating the image in their mind’s eye, meditators imaginatively enter its realm.But is it possible to have this experience without years of meditative discipline?  

Enter the Mandala says yes. In this exhibition, 14th-century paintings align a gallery with the cardinal directions, transforming open space into an architectural mandala—a chance to experience the images in three dimensions, to dwell in the midst of the cosmic symbols and be transported to another world. Visitors can literally “enter the mandala,” exploring places in the cosmos—and perhaps themselves—that might otherwise remain invisible. “

“Roots of Indian Architecture”

by Ashish Nangia via “Little India”

“The present Indian civilization, culturally speaking, can be traced back to early Harappan, Buddhist and Gupta age roots, when the foundations of Indian culture were laid. However, few recognize that many core Indian architectural forms also took shape during this era as well.

Some of the architectural transitions from the Buddhist to the Gupta age were deciphered by British colonial archaeologists and historians in the 19th century by decoding and preserving manuscripts, artifacts and structures from ancient India.

The Buddha preached and laid the foundations for . . . . “