Bronze Guanyin Statue Playing Lute

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Seller's Notes:Cultural Metaphor The Path of Harmony The lute requires the perfect balance of frets and strings to produce music, symbolizing Guanyin’s all-encompassing wisdom and embodying the Confucian-Buddhist-Daoist ideal of "harmony." This resonates with the poetic imagery in the Ming Dynasty’s Pipa Song: "The thick strings loud like rushing rain, the thin strings soft like whispers." Manifestation of Impermanence The lute's dynamic tones signify the impermanence of worldly phenomena, echoing the Diamond Sutra’s teaching: "All conditioned things are like dreams, illusions, bubbles, and shadows." This concept is visually represented in Dunhuang murals through "self-sounding lutes" that play without human touch. Unity of Compassion and Wisdom The left hand pressing the strings represents compassionate vows, while the right hand plucking symbolizes wisdom. Only together do they create sublime music, reflecting the Song Dynasty verse: "In a thousand places where prayers arise, in a thousand places she responds." Sensory Path to Enlightenment Through auditory art, the image conveys the concept of "perfect penetration through hearing," as described in the Shurangama Sutra, where Guanyin attained enlightenment via the faculty of sound. This imagery appears in classical artworks such as the Amitayus Visualization Sutra mural in Dunhuang’s Cave 112 and the flying apsaras sculptures in Quanzhou’s Kaiyuan Temple, showcasing the seamless fusion of art and religion in the sinicization of Buddhism. Modern Buddhist music, like Pipa Song: Ode to Guanyin, continues this tradition.

Brand: Vintage/Antique Finds