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Avalokiteshvara is one of the most popular deities in Himalayan Buddhism and signifies the quintessential Tibetan attribute of compassion. He is said to have more than a hundred forms, three of which are the most prevalent:
1) Padampani or "Lotus in Hand.' This is a very ancient form, often depicted standing, holding a lotus (padam) in one of the hands (pani).
2). Eleven-Headed, Thousand-Armed Avalokiteshvara
3). Four-Armed Avalokiteshvara
Padampani Avalokiteshvara stands here on a multi-colored lotus pedestal with feet pointing in the opposite directions. His extended right hand makes the Varada (boon-granting) mudra, while the left supports a stalk which ends at a blossoming pink lotus at his shoulder. His body is hued a rich red. This is a symbol of sensuality and also the color of passion. Here it represents the vigorous energy of individualistic passion transformed into an all embracing universal compassion.
Over his left shoulder is draped the skin of a wild deer, representing his ability to subdue the untamed delusions. A traditional commentary explains: "This particular deer is said to live upon mountains in the margins between the snow and rock. It has incomparable physical strength, but is extremely compassionate by nature. One of the hunters' tactics is to enter its territory and pretend to fight among themselves with swords. Seeing this, the deer becomes impatient with compassion and emerges to mediate between them, which provides the hunters the opportunity to kill it. Merely touching its skin with one's feet calms the mind and endows it with bliss."
The soft treatment of the deity's facial features combined with the suppleness of his limbs gives him an almost feminine demeanour. This reveals the artist's detailed acquaintance with the mythology of Avalokiteshvara, since the beautiful Tara of Tibet and the graceful Chinese goddess Quan Yin, are both emanations of Avalokiteshvara himself. The slightly closed intoxicating eyes and the dot on the forehead (serving both as a mark of feminine beauty and enlightened wisdom) are all pointers to his dual status. Further, the three conch-like curving lines on his neck symbolize the sweetness of his speech. This is an attribute of both male and female deities.
The embodiment of compassion is adorned with sumptuous jewels and flowing robes. The dhoti clinging to the lower limbs is painted over with dragons and a knotted blue apron with tassels serves as a waistband. The painter's exceptional hold over the human anatomy is amply evident in the deft manner with which he has balanced the male and female sides of Avalokiteshvara without giving prominence to one aspect over the other but being fair to both.
Another unique feature of the artwork is the almost complete domination of the painted surface by a sea of densely packed, repeating scrollwork, including the nimbus framing Avalokiteshvara. This grants an almost ethereal, otherworldly glow to the composition and is symbolic of the endless, infinite extension beyond ordinary, mundane reality, merging into a higher invisible realm.
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