Eleven-Headed, Thousand-Armed Bodhisattva of Compassion (Avalokiteshvara)
Unknown Artist
c. 1500
Medium
Gum tempera and ink on cotton
Dimensions
94.6 × 69.2 cm
Classification
Painting
Department
Indian and Southeast Asian Art
Museum
Cleveland Museum of Art
Credit
Andrew R. and Martha Holden Jennings Fund
Accession Number
1982.147
About this artwork
One thousand arms surround the central figure like a radiating halo. Each hand has an eye in the palm to see the suffering of all beings, generating the sense of compassion that this figure embodies. The special form of the central image of the bodhisattva Avalokiteshvara derives from the mystic vision of a nun named Gelongma Palmo, who was born a Kashmiri princess, but prayed for leprosy to avoid having to marry and became an accomplished nun. While meditating in a cave, she achieved this visio...