-
Essay / Bodhisattva Avalokiteshvara of the Lion's Roar
The carved wooden stone statue of Bodhisattva Avalokiteshvara seated on a lion saw many representations when it was transmitted from India to China. One possible representation may represent a woman's lack of identity as opposing power, male influence, restricts this. The carved art was created between the late 14th and 15th centuries, depicting an outward beauty supported by her high cheekbones and rounded chin beneath red, blushed lips to shape the feminine beauty of the typical Chinese woman. The bodhisattva's body rested on the male chest, followed by the bulky and tight feet. This may demonstrate the suppression of the abstract spirit of the woman in favor of the physicality of the man, presented in a society as something more depreciated. Nevertheless, this shows that the bodhisattva body has an unstable gender identity. Observing the male-female conflict, the bottom-seated lion is depicted with a braid-like symbol on its neck that controls how it can turn its head, like a dog that wears a leash to stay within its owner's boundaries . This is probably neglecting the fact that female intelligence is capable of advancing like the mechanics of a human body. Additionally, the position of the legs has one on the lion and the other leg resting on the pedestal. This can mean that one leg is forced to stay in this type of conformity while the other wants to walk towards something that allows it some form of freedom. In fact, “…, the raised right leg and the dangling lower leg are often found in representations of Bodhisattva Alalokiteshvara, who takes the well-known form of the Water Moon, in China the most popular manifestation of this bodhisattva.. .... middle of paper ......der is that the sculpture's different messages intrigued its viewers as to its meaning. “For the myths tell us that from the mystical point of view, the distinctions between man and woman… - as between time and eternity, pluralism and monism - have no meaning” (TECHNIQUES OF THE SAVIORS OF THE WORLD: Bodhisattva Avalokitesvara, Part Two of The Myth of the Great Secret: An Appreciation by Joseph Campbell [Celestial Arts, 1990], Toby Johnson). Although both masculine and feminine influences intersected, the mythical stories of the goddess or god represented the need for a stronger feminine aspect. To keep her in such a high position that a goddess can occupy and show it to the whole world, this piece of evidence not only tells the story of Chinese woman's adversity, but also of women's adversity from all over the world..