White-robed Avalokiteshvara Viewing a Waterfall

Avalokiteshvara, known in Japanese as Kannon, is one of the most popular deities in Zen Buddhism, and monochrome ink paintings of Kannon relaxing in nature were a staple of Zen painters’ repertoires. Such images imagine the deity in his own paradise, which sacred texts describe as a high seaside grotto surrounded by waterfalls and lush plants. Here, Kannon sits casually on a boulder, his legs tucked beneath him, and gazes up at a waterfall.