The Bodhisattva Avalokitesvara Expounding the Dharma to a Devotee: Folio from a Ashtasahasrika Prajnaparamita Sutra Manuscript
early 12th century
Medium
Opaque watercolor on palm leaf
Dimensions
Page: 2 3/4 x 16 7/16 in. (7 x 41.8 cm) Image: 2 1/2 x 1 15/16 in. (6.4 x 4.9 cm)
Classification
Paintings
Culture & Period
India, West Bengal or Bangladesh · Pala period
Department
Asian Art
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
Purchase, Lila Acheson Wallace Gift, 2001
Accession Number
2001.445f
Tags
Art Historical Context
This exquisite folio, titled *The Bodhisattva Avalokitesvara Expounding the Dharma to a Devotee*, comes from an *Ashtasahasrika Prajnaparamita Sutra* manuscript, a foundational Mahayana Buddhist text extolling the "Perfection of Wisdom." Created by the Mahavihara Master in early 12th-century eastern India during the Pala period (8th–12th centuries), it captures Avalokitesvara—the bodhisattva of infinite compassion—teaching a devoted disciple. Produced in the monastic workshops of West Bengal or Bangladesh, such manuscripts were sacred objects, blending scripture with vivid illustrations to ins...