The Avalokiteśvara Smile : 觀自在的微笑
This image is included in a gallery "Spiritual Journey 1" curated by thanks 173rd Airborne.
This 70 metres tall, distinctive white statue is located at Tsz Shan Monastery, Tai Po, Hong Kong. This was taken on an overcast morning, with my mobile phone and from a distance.
In Buddhism, Avalokiteśvara, also known as Avalokitasvara, is a bodhisattva who contains the compassion of all Buddhas and is the principal attendant of Amitabha Buddha on the right. He has 108 avatars, one notable one being Padmapāṇi (lotus bearer). He is variably depicted, described, and portrayed in different cultures as either male or female. In Chinese Buddhism and East Asian Buddhism, he is in a feminine form called Guanyin (pinyin: Guānyīn).
The earliest translation of the name Avalokiteśvara into Chinese by authors such as Xuanzang was as Guānzìzài (Chinese: 觀自在), not the form used in East Asian Buddhism today, Guanyin (Chinese: 觀音).
七十米高素白觀音聖像位於大埔洞梓慈山寺, 立於六米高圓形平臺之上，以超過六百噸錫青銅鑄造，雙目俯視，寓意觀世間眾生疾苦。法相慈悲，清淨莊嚴。聖像外噴塗白色氟碳自淨漆。其造型追模宋式，法相慈悲莊嚴，頭頂髮髻中現阿彌陀佛像，寓意無量法力庇佑眾生。其右手持智慧寶珠——摩尼珠，左手持淨瓶， 施灑淨水，清涼世界。法身佩戴瓔珞，衣帶當風，典雅飄逸。觀音頭部微微低垂，俯瞰眾生，以慈悲與智慧廣度一切有情。
觀音在印度時期的造相為男相，傳入中國後，直至唐朝末期（618-907），其造像皆現男相。至宋代（960-1279）初期，觀音像開始現女相，如公元十世紀出現的水月觀音像，是真正具有中國本土特徵的觀音形像，此後的觀音造像皆現女相。觀音從男性到女性的性別轉變，是觀音在中國本土化的進一步發展。
The Avalokiteśvara Smile : 觀自在的微笑
This image is included in a gallery "Spiritual Journey 1" curated by thanks 173rd Airborne.
This 70 metres tall, distinctive white statue is located at Tsz Shan Monastery, Tai Po, Hong Kong. This was taken on an overcast morning, with my mobile phone and from a distance.
In Buddhism, Avalokiteśvara, also known as Avalokitasvara, is a bodhisattva who contains the compassion of all Buddhas and is the principal attendant of Amitabha Buddha on the right. He has 108 avatars, one notable one being Padmapāṇi (lotus bearer). He is variably depicted, described, and portrayed in different cultures as either male or female. In Chinese Buddhism and East Asian Buddhism, he is in a feminine form called Guanyin (pinyin: Guānyīn).
The earliest translation of the name Avalokiteśvara into Chinese by authors such as Xuanzang was as Guānzìzài (Chinese: 觀自在), not the form used in East Asian Buddhism today, Guanyin (Chinese: 觀音).
七十米高素白觀音聖像位於大埔洞梓慈山寺, 立於六米高圓形平臺之上，以超過六百噸錫青銅鑄造，雙目俯視，寓意觀世間眾生疾苦。法相慈悲，清淨莊嚴。聖像外噴塗白色氟碳自淨漆。其造型追模宋式，法相慈悲莊嚴，頭頂髮髻中現阿彌陀佛像，寓意無量法力庇佑眾生。其右手持智慧寶珠——摩尼珠，左手持淨瓶， 施灑淨水，清涼世界。法身佩戴瓔珞，衣帶當風，典雅飄逸。觀音頭部微微低垂，俯瞰眾生，以慈悲與智慧廣度一切有情。
觀音在印度時期的造相為男相，傳入中國後，直至唐朝末期（618-907），其造像皆現男相。至宋代（960-1279）初期，觀音像開始現女相，如公元十世紀出現的水月觀音像，是真正具有中國本土特徵的觀音形像，此後的觀音造像皆現女相。觀音從男性到女性的性別轉變，是觀音在中國本土化的進一步發展。