
Dora Tan
Head of Sale, Specialist
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Sold for HK$127,500 inc. premium
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Head of Sale, Specialist

International Director
西藏 十四世紀 銅鎏金藥師佛像
The cult of the Medicine Buddha started in Northern India before spreading to the Himalayas, East Asia, and Southeast Asia. He is widely worshiped in both Vajrayana and Mahayana Buddhism to assist practitioners in overcoming physical, mental, and spiritual sickness, and to purify karmic debt. According to the Bhaishajyagurusutra, he resides in the Eastern Pure Land of Vaiduryanirbhasa, which in Sanskrit literally means 'Pure Lapis Lazuli', drawing a parallel to his blue body that shines brighter than the sun.
Here, the Medicine Buddha's sublime body is gilded. He is depicted holding a begging bowl in his left hand and a myrobalan fruit in his extended right hand. His slender physique and undecorated tight-fitting robes are consistent with Tibetan bronze sculptures of the 14th century. See a closely related gilt bronze Buddha with similar large, teardrop-shaped lotus petals around its base, preserved in the Shalu Monastery (von Schroeder, Buddhist Sculptures in Tibet, Vol.II, Hong Kong, 2003, p.962, no.231B).