A rare and large parcel-gilt and painted bronze figure of Simhanada Avalokiteshvara


15th/16th centuryThe deity seated in rajalilasana on the back of a recumbent and caparisoned lion, the right arm rested on the raised knee, the left arm resting on a low table atop the beast's back, the deity with a serene expression and downcast eyes below arched eyebrows, wearing loosely draped robes, the hair arranged in a single topknot encircled by a diadem centred with a small figure of Buddha Amitabha, all raised on a double lotus pedestal. 67cm (26 3/8in) high.
|十五/十六世紀 銅漆金獅吼觀音坐像Provenance:A German private collection, acquired in Beijing between 1899 and 1901 by a German diplomat A German private collection, received as a wedding gift from the above in 1956Nagel, Stuttgart, 2 November 2012, lot 694An Asian private collection來源：德國私人舊藏，於1899年至1901年間德國外交官蒐集德國私人舊藏，於1956或受贈於上一藏家德國納高，2012年11月2日，拍品694顯赫亞洲私人收藏Well cast in the position of 'royal ease', with the weight of her body relaxed into her left arm resting on a small stand while her right arm drapes over her bent knee, and surrounded by flowing ribbons fluttering around her body, the present figure conveys a powerful sense of majesty which is typically associated with the Bodhisattva Avalokiteshvara. Seated atop a lion with its mouth opened in a growl, the deity, known as 'Guanyin of the Lion Roar' (Simhanada Avalokiteshvara), embodies the intense moment of transcendent enlightenment. The serene expression of the deity, contrasting with the ferocity of the lion, expresses controlled power and overall harmony.The earliest textual reference to the present form of Avalokiteshvara appears in the 'Garland of Sadhanas, Sadhanamala, an 11th century iconographic compendium assembled by Abhayakaragupta, an Indian monk-scholar, who mentioned that the present manifestation could heal diseases;See D.Patry Leidy and D.Strahan, Wisdom Embodied: Chinese Buddhist and Daoist Sculpture in The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, 2010, p.156.Venerated in Indian Buddhism as the embodiment of the Compassion of the Buddha, Avalokiteshvara (known as Guanyin in China) is described in the 'Lotus Sutra', as capable of hearing all mankind, striving endlessly to help those offering prayers, transforming at will and appearing in more than thirty human guises to expound Buddhist teaching to devotees. The deity was associated with religious beliefs concerning the devotee's rebirth in the blissful Pure Land presided over by Buddha Amithaba. Introduced into China from India during the 2nd century AD, 'Pure Land' Buddhism was based on the belief that Amitabha granted rebirth of the dead in his wondrous realm to whoever meditated on him through chanting and prostration. The three main scriptures forming the core of the 'Pure Land' teachings, namely the 'Sutra of the Buddha of Immeasurable Life', the 'Sutra of Visualizing the Buddha of Immeasurable Life', and the 'Amitabha Sutra', all refer to Amitabha and Avalokiteshvara as capable of liberating the devotees from the Wheel of Samsara and allowing them entry into the Pure Land where they finally attained enlightenment.Compare with a related gilt-bronze figure of Simhanada Avalokiteshvara seated on a lotus base, Ming dynasty, illustrated in Classics of the Forbidden City: Guanyin the Collection of the Palace Museum, Beijing, 2012, pl.83. See a related large gilt-lacquered bronze figure of Simhanada Avalokiteshvara, 16th century, which was sold at Sotheby's Hong Kong, 3 October 2017, lot 3666.此尊獅吼觀音頭戴寶冠，冠上出化阿彌陀佛，開臉圓中帶方，開臉端正，略露笑意，神態安詳，顯慈悲安和之女相。 胸飾菊花形瓔珞，七條細瓔珞垂墜散開，身披薄衫，左手持蓮，蓮莖隨臂而上至肩膀開花，蓮花上立一鸚鵡。右肘亦飾蓮莖，攀於肩上出蓮一朵，蓮上飾寶瓶一尊。腰間亦飾瓔珞，著寶裙。觀音衣飾繁簡相宜，結輪王姿坐於吼獅之上。獅子回首開口作吼，鬃髪、腳爪凌厲，整體威嚴，承以蓮座。像為銅鑄，再髹金漆，蓮莖、飄帶、扶手及獅子及蓮座局部塗綠彩，獅子鬃毛髹紅漆。此件獅吼觀音像為明代中期漢地風格，頗有永宣遺風。「獅吼觀音」又名「阿摩提觀音」，乃密宗神靈，為觀世音菩薩化身之一，可降服一切龍魔所生病楚，度三界眾生出苦海。獅子則代表威猛力量，震懾邪崇。獅吼觀音為觀世音化身之一的說法最早可以追溯到十一世紀一個印度僧侶所著經典，其中記載獅吼觀音能治百病，詳情參閱D.Patry Leidy及D.Strahan合著，《Wisdom Embodied: Chinese Buddhist and Daoist Sculpture in The Metropolitan Museum of Art》，紐約，2010年，頁156。獅吼觀音本尊之觀世音菩薩在漢地流傳更久遠，為阿彌陀佛座下的上首菩薩，與大勢至菩薩為阿彌陀佛的左、右脅侍菩薩，並稱「西方三聖」，也是四大菩薩之一。觀世音早在公元二世紀即從印度傳入東土，與佛教在中國流傳時間大致相當。流傳最廣的淨土宗常供奉「西方三聖」神像，故而觀世音菩薩為釋迦摩尼以外最廣為人知的佛教神祇。參考一件北京故宮所藏一件明代銅鎏金獅吼觀音像，見《故宮經典：故宮觀音圖典》，北京，2012年，圖版83。另可參考一件十六世紀銅漆金獅吼觀音像，2017年10月3日，拍品3666。