Indra, holding a ju-i. In back is a man biting his under-lip with his teeth, his hands clasped, and a warrior with a pike. A demon holds a standard with a bear on it, A creature like a dragon is partially seen.
Besides the four Generals, which complete the group of twelve, there are two other warriors. |
Candraprabha Bodhisattva is seated on a throne under a canopy, which is unsupported in the air. Besides the Bodhisattva with the tall monk's staff, he is attended by two Bodhisattvas and by a monk who holds a rosary in his right hand and raises his left, clenched to form a fist.
In front, are two of the Twelve Generals.
Candraprabha is similar to Sūryaprabha and has in his headdress a small white disc, the sign or symbol of the Moon. |
the Buddha of Healing, his hands in dharmacakra mudrā, is seated on an elaborate throne in bhadrāsana (both legs pendent), with a lotus under each foot. He is dressed in an under robe of very pale blue with a border of pale yellow, another inner robe of pink, and an outer robe of red, with borders having a flower or tendril design in red and gold. This garment, of course, corresponds to the "patched robe" of the monk. His whole figure is enclosed in a transparent halo, of which the gold edge alone is visible.
Behind the throne, which is so high and wide that it forms a kind of halo, are two trees, between which are two streamers of red and white waving clouds, seemingly emanating from the throne. Other similar rays issues from two Bodhisattvas who stand near the throne, one on the right holding a bowl and the other, opposite, holding a very tall monk's metal staff like that carried by Kṣitigarbha. Inside its openwork ogival top is a tiny standing Buddha figure.
The throne is covered with intricate decorations and the high back has eight lobes. Crowning the topmost point is a jewel on a lotus, backed by a tiny halo shaped like a leaf of the Bodhi tree. At the point on each side where the lobes end and the straight sides of the throne-back begin (there are no arms), extends a dragon's head, with a jewel in its mouth and an elaborate pendent piece of jewelry. Below the dragon's head on each side, issuing from the back of the throne, are two lotuses, on the upper of which is a boy riding a rearing goat, while on the lower is a swan. The throne is two-tiered; at each of the two corners of both tiers is a jewel on a lotus, backed by a small halo shaped like a leaf of the Bodhi tree.
In front of the throne is a dais, similar in construction and decoration, on which rest the two lotuses that uphold the feet of the Buddha. In front of the dais is a table with offerings: in the center, a dragon encircling a rock set on a red-gold lotus stand; to the right, a rock; and to the left a dish of flowers. The floor is parqueted with diamond shapes, and jewels lie scattered here and there over its surface.
In the foreground, to the right of the table, a Bodhisattva kneels, his hands in añjali mudrā. Opposite is a kneeling monk, hands clasped over another. With each of these two figures is a child worshipping, seen from the back. |
Sūryaprabha Bodhisattva is seated on a lotus throne under a canopy which hangs unsupported in the air. Besides a small halo around his head, he has also a halo formed of rays issuing from behind the upper part of his body. His feet rest on a lotus which in turn rests on a pedestal, In Sūryaprabha's elaborate headdress, is a small red disc, the sign or symbol of the sun.
In attendance, standing in back of Sūryaprabha, are two Bodhisattvas, the one to the left with hands in a form of dharmacakra mudrā, the other opposite with hands in a special mudrā in which the two index fingers are joined above the rest which are locked. Below the latter is a monk standing, his hands in añjali mudrā.
In the foreground are two of the Twelve Generals. |
A group which includes Brahmā, holding a fan in his, right hand and making a mudrā with his left.
Behind this divinity, to the left, is a Chinese official, wearing a Tang hat and holding a hu. To the right is Vaiśravaṇa, a broad figure, with raised eyebrows and wrinkled brow; in his right hand, he holds a sword and in his left, a stūpa. He wears armor, but instead of a helmet has a peculiar crown composed of segments, from which hang streamers to right and left of his face.
To the right are two demons, dressed in tiger skins, one of whom holds a trident with flying streamers, and the other, an enormous club. Between this latter demon and Brahmā, is an old man, holding an incense burner in his left hand.
In the foreground, are four of the Twelve Generals and a bearded man, with a crown or headdress, his hands in añjali mudrā. The old man and the two demons are the only ones on the right of the Buddha who are without haloes. |
