Khara Khoto: Mahasthamaprapta Bodhisattva

CHINA, Inner Mongolia, Alxa; Western Xia period

Discovered in Khara Khoto, this 13th century painting shows Mahasthamaprapta Bodhisattva sitting on a lotus throne that seems to rise from the ocean. The Bodhisattva, forming a mudra with both hands, has a thin beard and lowered eyes. The blue hair is tied into a topknot behind a decorative headdress. The image of a vase on the front of the headdress is characteristic of Mahasthamaprapta. According to the Amitayurdhyana Sutra, Mahasthamaprapta wears a headdress with 500 lotuses, each containing 500 platforms to display the glamor of the Pure Land. Atop the usnisa at the crown of the head, there is a vase which radiates with brilliant light, displaying a variety of Buddhist activities.
The Bodhisattva is adorned with beaded ornaments, armlets, and bracelets. Several colored stoles are intertwined across the body. The pink dhoti is depicted with delicate folds. Thin, string-like lines of flame surround the green nimbus. The mandorla is drawn with a shaded line of white. A canopy of clouds, flowers, and hanging ornaments hovers above the head of the Bodhisattva. The ocean waves below the lotus throne are meticulously painted with curving lines. The canopy, the flames on the nimbus, and the clothes of the Bodhisattva appear to flutter in the breeze.