Arapachana Manjushri

Artist

Mongolian (Mongolian)

Date

19th century

Medium

Pigments and gold on sized cloth; silver, copper and glass case

Dimensions

Case : 10 1/8 x 7 5/8 x 3/4 in. (25.72 x 19.37 x 1.91 cm)
Image : 8 1/4 x 5 3/4 in. (20.96 x 14.61 cm)

Credit Line

Hope College Collection, Gift of David Kamansky and Gerald Wheaton

Object Number

2021.21.20.A-B

Label

Manjushri is the bodhisattva of wisdom. This painting portrays Manjushri in one of his most iconic forms: sitting comfortably in a cross-legged position atop a lotus throne with his raised right hand holding a flaming sword that he uses to cut through ignorance  and obfuscation, and his centrally-positioned left hand holding a lotus blossom on which rests a copy of the Sutra of the Perfection of Wisdom (Prajnāpāramitā Sutra). His body is adorned with fine clothing and jewelry, and his skin radiates a golden light that  appears around him as a mandorla. He also bears an image of Shakyamuni on his chest to signify his unwavering devotion to the Buddha’s teachings. Manjushri is accompanied in this image by an entourage consisting of two bodhisattvas and six haloed  mahasiddhas, or holy men. The blue-skinned figure in the central foreground is the bodhisattva Vajrapani.