This Divinity represents is the Bodhisattva Chenrezig or Avalokiteshvara.
Avalokiteśvara is the deity of compassion. It represents the compassionate quality of the Śākyamuni Buddha. He sits on the Lotus Flower which symbolizes spiritual purity. In his right hand he holds a rosary that refers to the 108 incarnations that the Buddha experienced to reach the final state of enlightenment. With his left hand he holds a lotus flower which represents purity, beauty and self-healing; and with the pair of central hands, he holds a precious stone called cintāmaṇi (precious stone of thought) ready to grant every wish.
Size : 38 X 31 cm about
The material is cotton canvas, and the colors are water-soluble pigments, both minerals and organic materials, tempered with a solution of grass and glue.
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The material realization of a thangka, as indeed happens for most Buddhist art, is highly geometric in nature. Arms, legs, eyes, nostrils, ears and various ritual objects are all placed on a systematic grid of intersecting angles and lines. A good master of thangka generally chooses from a variety of pre-arranged forms, those to be inserted in the composition, on a range ranging from cups for alms, to animals, to the shape, size and angle of eyes, nose and lips of a figure. The procedure appears very scientific, but often requires a very deep knowledge of the symbolism of the scene that is being painted, in order to grasp its essence or spirit.
