Western Paradise of the Buddha Amitabha

Description: High relief carving of Western Paradise. Amitabha presides over a lotus pond that contains flowers opening to reveal newborn souls. Numerous deities and celestial attendants fill in the tableau. Label: The Buddha of Infinite Light (Sanskrit, Amitabha), is lord of the Pure Land called the Western Paradise. Devotees believe that absolute faith in Amitabha entitles a person to be reborn in that paradise. In this mural, Amitabha presides over a pond and welcomes newly reborn souls who emerge from within lotus blossoms. This mural is among the earliest known depictions of the Western Paradise in Chinese art. It is from the Southern Xiangtangshan Buddhist cave-temple site, Cave 2. The Xiangtangshan caves were located close to the city of Ye, the capital of the Northern Qi dynasty. Their carving was an imperially sponsored project. A related object in the Freer collection is F1921.1. Provenance: Before 1920 Provenance: Removed from Cave Temples of Xiangtangshan, Fengfeng, Handan Municipality, Hebei Province by unknown party [1] Provenance: By 1920 to 1921