Fusheng Temple Amitabha Hall: Avalokitesvara Crossing the Sea

CHINA, Shanxi, Yuncheng; Yuan dynasty

This high relief is located on the back of the screen wall at the rear of Amitabha Hall. Avalokitesvara Crossing the Sea is one of the Bodhisattva’s Thirty-Three Manifestations in the work of saving sentient beings. The Bodhisattva wears a headdress with a Buddha and a monastic robe that leaves the chest bare. The clothes move about the body as if blown by the wind and the figure stands upon a cloud above turbulent waves. The infant Sudhana stands with palms joined in reverence below Avalokitesvara, while a long-tailed dragon dives into the water and then looks back at the Bodhisattva.