A deeply philosophical interpretation of Guan Yin forms a major anchor of Royal Selangor’s current collections, which also include Guang Gong and Fu Lu Shou.
The series is created by master sculptor Xu Xiaoyong who hails from Jiangxi province, in China. He is a member of the United Nations Arts Initiative, and is the Deputy Secretary for the Zhao Art Research Association.
In this video, he explains in Mandarin that the sculpture of Guan Yin he has visualised is based on the Huayan Buddhist scriptures.
Drawing on the philosophy that “when we are mindful of the external voices, we cultivate insightful wisdom”, Xu depicts the Goddess of Mercy sitting on a structure looking down upon the ocean.
The ocean is symbolic of people, who are praying to Guan Yin; the hearts of the people communicating with the heart of the Goddess Of Mercy.
In the design, there is a lotus, traditionally associated with Guan Yin’s pure heart.
The figurine of Guan Yin is priced at $5,300 and is available at Royal Selangor boutiques.