Water and Moon Guanyin,

undated; ca. 1208

Guanyin is known as the Bodhisattva of Compassion. Bodhisattvas are beings who are able to attain nirvana yet choose instead to stay in this world in order to help others. The deity’s full name, Guanshiyin (觀世音), means “Perceiver of Sounds [the cries for compassion of sentient beings] in the World.” Guanyin is seen as a protector of those in distress, including the sick, the disabled, the wretched, and the poor. A cult devoted to Guanyin emerged between the third and sixth centuries, and the deity became one of the most worshipped figures in the Buddhist pantheon across Asia. Here, seated on a rock pedestal that rises from the sea, Guanyin expresses the infinite compassion of the Bodhisattva through a pensive downcast gaze.