Alex Quito's Rubin Museum Project

Alex Quito

Professor Trusso  

HUP 105

April 19, 2017

Thousand-Armed Avalokiteshvara

Buddhism, A Unique World Religion

Upon visiting the Rubin Museum of Art in New York City, I was intrigued by all the Hindu and Buddhist artwork in display. There was one Buddhist artwork that especially grabbed my attention and became the center of my focus in this paper. This specific Buddhist artwork was a painting named the “Thousand-Armed Avalokiteshvara,” which dates back to Central Tibet during the 20th century. There were several details that made this specific art piece so attracting and through my own observations, I was able to connect the painting to a Buddhist doctrine. Further interest in the artwork then led me to conduct more detailed research. All in all, the “Thousand-Armed Avalokiteshvara” represented an important Buddhist doctrine very different to that of a Hindu doctrine and led us to ask even bigger questions of Buddhism.

            There were several aspects that attracted me to the “Thousand-Armed Avalokiteshvara” Buddhist artwork. To start off, I was really amazed by all the color involved in the painting. One can easily observe all its bright colors that make it so eye-catching. White, blue, green and red seem to be the four main colors that make up the art piece. In addition, I really enjoyed and was fascinated by the content in the painting. At first glimpse, we can see an enlarged white Buddha figure at the center of the painting with five different colored heads and dozens of white arms spread out in a circle. This figure alone encompasses about half the painting and all around him we see other smaller figures such as people, deities, gods, and nature, all in different colors. This truly makes us wonder what it all means. Thus, it was the Buddhist doctrine I felt this painting was representing that also really attracted me to this specific work of art.

            The “Thousand-Armed Avalokiteshvara” painting seems to represent the Buddhist doctrine of Nontheism. The doctrine of Nontheism in Buddhism refers to the religion’s absence of a “personal” God-being who is the creator of the world. There is no core belief in a supreme, almighty, all powerful, and all knowing God “to whom prayers can be directed” (Fisher 73). Basically, the center of the Buddhist faith does not revolve in a God or multiple all-powerful Gods. In a 1993 Parliament meeting of the World’s Religions in Chicago, Buddhists further emphasized this idea of Buddhist Nontheism by explaining how, “‘Buddhism is not a religion of God. Buddhism is a religion of wisdom, enlightenment and compassion’” (qtd. in 73). In other words, Buddhism is not a religion whose main concentration and beliefs are in a God, there is a more ethical main focus. In a lot of Buddhist practices, there are still Gods and Goddesses present who are worshipped and prayed to, but they are in no way deemed above the Buddha and his teachings and they are definitely not considered supreme, or the center focus of the religion.

The “Thousand-Armed Avalokiteshvara” Buddhist artwork illuminates exactly these previous ideas and it represents how Buddhism is a Nontheistic religion with no dependence on the existence of Gods. Going back to its content, we can see a large Buddha figure being the only one in the center of the painting with what seems to be deities and humans surrounding all around him. The fact that deities are shown in the painting shows that in Buddhism, there may be Gods present, but again, by having them be small figures all around the large Buddha figure, it emphasizes the idea that they are not the main center focus in Buddhism; the main focus is following Buddha and his teachings of enlightenment and wisdom. In this same way, the proportional differences between the deities and the Buddha in the painting also portrays that the Gods are not all powerful and all knowing, instead Buddha’s enlightenment and wisdom are superior to all of them. Therefore, it again emphasizes the notion that reaching “awakening” and true enlightenment is the primary goal in Buddhism. The center is not in supreme gods and the goal is not in reaching the Gods or becoming God, there is a more ethical main focus, as portrayed in the painting.  

            Detailed research on the “Thousand-Armed Avalokiteshvara” art piece gives us further understanding of the painting, its content, and what it represents. According to Jeff Watt, the expert behind the description for this painting located in the Rubin Museum, what this art work is depicting is the “Avalokiteshvara” and how “in this form [He] is peaceful in appearance, with eleven heads, one thousand hands and in a standing posture”. A quick search of the Avalokiteshvara tells us that he is a bodhisattva who embodies and represents the compassion of all Buddhas. In the Buddhist faith, he is also known as the one who overlooks the whole world, aiding the suffering and helping them through the Buddhist teachings to help free them from samsara (Leighton 182). That is why he is drawn with thousands of hands, to illustrate the aid he gives to the thousands of Buddhist followers. The way he helps them is by aiding them all through the Buddhist teachings because after all, following the Buddha’s teachings is the only way to end suffering and reach salvation, or nirvana, in Buddhism. By having a more precise understanding of what the enlarged Avalokiteshvara figure in the paintings represents, we can now see that the painting is without a doubt asserting the importance of Buddhist teachings.

Watt goes on to give us more information of the Avalokiteshvara painting in his description. He adds how “He [Avalokiteshvara] is encircled above by the previous teachers in the lineage...the early teachers of the lineage...the later teachers of the lineage and specifically those of the Gelug Tradition of Tibetan Buddhism”. Watt is describing who the surrounding figures are in the painting and also mentions some names of deities common in Hinduism. He even provides an official annotated image of the painting with all the surrounding figures labeled. By looking at this official annotated image of the Buddhist painting, we can clearly see some Hindu deities present, such as the deities of Hayagriva, Jambhala, and Mahakala (Avalokiteshvara). We know that these are Hindu deities because in Hinduism, Hayagriva is a well-known horse-headed avatar of Lord Vishnu while Jambhala also exists in Hindu mythology, but is simply known as Kubera (Parmeshwaranand). Next, Mahakala is the husband of Hindu Goddess Kali and “most prominently appears in Kalikula sect of Shaktism”, which is a major tradition of Hinduism (Johnson). Basically, we got these smaller sized Hindu deities under the Avalokitesvara, implying that they are not above the Buddha and that they too, like humans, are dependent of the Buddha’s teachings and not the other way around. Furthermore, again by looking at the annotated image, we can also see “lineage teachers” drawn above the enlarged Avalokiteshvara as well as other representations of Buddha all around the painting, further specifying the fact that the painting is portraying the emphasis of the Buddha’s teaching. It depicts that Buddhism is a religion centralized in the Buddha’s teachings and not Gods. So, after conducting detailed research, we can now see that the “Thousand-Armed Avalokiteshvara” painting is indeed in a way depicting the Buddhist doctrine of Nontheism.

            When comparing and contrasting Buddhist and Hindu doctrines, we can see that this Buddhist doctrine of Nontheism differs greatly from the Hindu doctrine of Brahman. We already have a strong sense of what Buddhist Nontheism is, so now it’s time to comprehend the Hindu doctrine of Brahman. In Hinduism, Brahman is considered to be the ultimate reality of the universe and of life and is viewed as the ultimate God. Brahman is also believed to be both within the world and beyond the world. For example, expert Sushanta Sen explains how in Hinduism, “God is both immanent and transcendent in relation to the world...this ‘beyond-aspect’ of God is called Brahman” (92). God, or Brahman, has two states in the universe and for each, he plays different roles. Specifically when he is beyond the world, he’s known as the “creator, preserver and destroyer of the world” (92) and when he is within the world, he is considered to encompass all things, meaning that all living and non-living things that exist in the world are made up of Brahman. Sen directly states this by saying, “Brahman is the source and support of every object and experience in nature; One without a second” (93). Thus, we can see that in Hinduism, there is one ultimate God who is known by the name of Brahman. This Brahman is everything in the universe and everything in the universe is Brahman.  

We can now start seeing the differences between Buddhist Nontheism and the Hindu belief of Brahman. In Hinduism, there is this central belief in the ultimate reality of Brahman, who is viewed as a God and a creator and is said to be both “immanent” and “transcendent”. For this reason, it can be said that Hinduism is more of a monotheistic religion, since it “has never been a pure polytheistic religion” (Sen 91). Whereas Hinduism seems to be more of a monotheistic religion, with a creator and Supreme Being, in Buddhism there is no belief in such a central God figure, especially not a Creator being. The doctrine of Brahman indicates that there is an ultimate God in Hinduism and Buddhist Nontheism rejects the idea of such things. However, there are some similarities between the two doctrines. Like mentioned before, in Buddhism there are deities and gods present. In the Hindu doctrine of Brahman, Brahman is said to be the ultimate God, but there are also countless of other deities and gods present that are all believed to be different manifestations of Brahman, each containing god-like abilities. Well, in Buddhism, many of these Hindu deities who are said to be the manifestations of Brahman, do exist. Thus, in both Hinduism and Buddhism, there are similar deities present. Yet, despite these minor similarities, in each of these two religions, the deities and gods are viewed in completely different ways. In Hinduism, they are all seen as being part of the ultimate “One” Brahman, implying more of a monotheistic view. In Buddhism, through the doctrine of Nontheism, these deities are not seen as part of a whole ultimate God, they do not play the same roles or have the same abilities as they do in Hinduism, and they are not a central belief in the Buddhist faith.

This all leads us to ask even bigger questions of Buddhism. Is Buddhism a religion? Is Buddha a God or something else? To answer the first question, we must first answer the second question. Although many people misguidedly think that Buddha is the God of the Buddhist faith, the Buddha was definitely not a God; he was instead a spiritual and religious leader and the founder of the Buddhist faith. The Buddhist members in the 1993 Parliament Council of the World’s Religions even explained how, “‘Shakyamuni Buddha, the founder of Buddhism, was not a God. He was a human being who attained full Enlightenment through meditation and showed us the path of spiritual awakening and freedom” (qtd. in Fisher 73). In other words, the Buddha was a human being who had “awakened” and discovered the path to true enlightenment and would then go on to teach and lead his disciples within the same path. His teachings and his followers would then lead to the creation of the religion known today as Buddhism. With that being said, the Buddha was not a God, and because of this, many are also misguided to think or question whether Buddhism is even a religion.

Although Buddha was not a God, Buddhism is still a religion, a Nontheistic religion which was founded by the Buddha. After all, it has all the core components present in any other world religion, they just differ in ideologies. For starters, there may not be a central God present in Buddhism, but there is still emphasis in compassion just like in the other main world religions, and the main goal is reaching wisdom and enlightenment. In addition, just like in other religions who worship Gods, in Buddhism there is also an emphasis in salvation, but the means of getting salvation in Buddhism is different. For instance, unlike the “worshippers of God who believe that salvation is available to all through confession of sin and a life of prayer, we Buddhists believe that salvation and enlightenment are available through removal of defilements and delusion and a life of mediation” (qtd. in Fisher 73). Just like in any other main religion, there is still this goal of salvation and norms that must be followed, which are the means of reaching salvation, but they just simply differ in these means of reaching that salvation. Plus, Buddhism is also full of its own doctrines and teachings to follow and it contains a way of righteous living, proving that Buddhism has all the components of any other world religion.  

The substantial amount of followers Buddhism has in all parts of the world and their strong dedication to the faith are all another reason why it is necessary for us to acknowledge that Buddhism is a religion. Since the Buddha’s death, the faith and teachings he had left behind has spread throughout the entire globe. For example, in the PBS documentary, The Buddha, the narrator states how after the Buddha’s death, Buddhism did not disappear, instead it “flourished in India for 1500 years, spread into Sri Lanka, Central and South East Asia, Tibet, China, Korea, Japan, and in the 20th Century, to Europe and the Americas.” Buddhism both rapidly and slowly spread to almost every continent in the world. In addition, in the same PBS documentary, we can also observe how Buddhism has so many dedicated followers and holy sites where millions of devotees travel to pray. The narrator himself explains how, “Before he [the Buddha] died, he asked his followers to remember him by making pilgrimage, to the place of his death, to where he gave his first teachings, where he achieved enlightenment, and where he was born.” These four places signaled out by the Buddha became sacred places in Buddhism and the documentary shows how millions of followers of the Buddhist faith fulfill the pilgrimage to these holy sites every year to remember the Buddha, and most importantly, his teachings. This aspect of holy sites and pilgrimage is yet another common thing we see in other world religions. Taking all this into consideration, it is no wonder Buddhism is considered one of the main five world religions.  

Visiting the Rubin Museum of Art was a wonderful and unforgettable learning experience. It allowed me to engage with Hindu and Buddhist artwork from different parts of the eastern world. I was able to observe different works of art and notice the similar and different ways these artists, communities and people connected with each of their religions and their doctrines. Most of all, visiting the museum and producing this project helped me to better understand the nature of religion. I can now see that although there are many different religions in the world, almost all of them share the same common basis of trying to tackle world problems, questions or suffering, while at the same time promoting a righteous way of living a meaningful life. Basically, religions will all have their differences, but in the same time, they are also all similar in some ways. We saw this specifically in the Hindu and Buddhist faith through comparing and contrasting one of the main doctrines of each religion. The Buddhist art work, “Thousand-Armed Avalokiteshvara,” located at the Rubin Museum, seemed to represent Buddhist Nontheism, which had some similarities, but was rather more different from the Hindu doctrine of Brahman. This project then led me to ask even bigger questions of Buddhism. I was able to better understand that the Buddha is not a God, but Buddhism is still definitely a religion, founded by the Buddha. In the end, like stated before, this Rubin Museum of Art project not only expanded my knowledge of Hinduism and Buddhism, but also of all world religions.    

Works Cited

"Avalokiteshvara (Bodhisattva & Buddhist Deity) - Annotated Image." Himalayan Art. Himalayan Art Resources Inc., n.d. Web. 7 Apr. 2017.

Fisher, Mary Pat. Living Religions: A Brief Introduction, 2nd ed. Pearson, 2008.

Hamilton, Sue. Indian Philosophy: A Very Short Introduction. Oxford University Press, 2001.

Johnson, W. J. "A Dictionary of Hinduism". Oxford Reference. Oxford: Oxford University Press. (2009).

Leighton, Taigen Dan  Bodhisattva Archetypes: Classic Buddhist Guides to Awakening and Their Modern Expression. New York: Penguin Arkana. (1998). pp. 158–205.

Parmeshwaranand, Swami. Encyclopaedic Dictionary of Puranas. Sarup & Sons, January 1, 2001. pp. 632-33. Retrieved April 14, 2017.

Sen, Sushanta. "The Vedic-Upanisadic Concept of Brahman (The Highest God)." Concepts of the Ultimate: Philosophical Perspectives on the Nature of the Divine, edited by Linda Tessier, Palgrave, 1989, pp.83-97.

The Buddha. Directed by David Grubin, Narrated by Richard Gere, PBS, 2010.

Watt, Jeff. "Item: Avalokiteshvara (Bodhisattva & Buddhist Deity)." Himalayan Art. Himalayan Art Resources Inc., May 2009. Web. 07 Apr. 2017.