Kizil Cave 110: Maitreya Bodhisattva Teaching the Dharma

CHINA, Xinjiang, Aksu

This illustration is located on the semicircular section of the wall above the doorway in the main chamber. Maitreya Bodhisattva is seated in the center with ankles crossed and his feet resting on a hexagonal footstool. The Bodhisattva forms the vitarka (teaching) mudra and wears a jeweled crown, with a stole draping over the bare upper body. Maitreya has both a nimbus and an aureole. Four Bodhisattvas are on each side of the Maitreya, listening to the Dharma. All of them are bare-chested, have nimbuses and wear jeweled crowns. Some listen attentively while others talk among themselves. The figures are seated in a heavenly palace, the architectural features symbolic of the palace at Tusita Heaven.