202.
A ‘FAMILLE VERTE’ ENAMELED BISCUIT MODEL OF PINDOLA LUOHAN ON A TIGER
Qing dynasty, Kangxi period, early 18th century
24 cm high
Provenance: Naples, Villa della Floridiana, Museo Duca di Martina, Placido de Sangro (1829-1891) collection.
inv. n. 3409.
Pindola Bharavdja is a disciple of Sakyamuni Buddha and a member of the group of the Eighteen Lohan which was a constant source of inspiration for Chinese art after the monk Guanxiu (832-912) realized in the late ninth century a series of paintings with the their idealized portraits. Guanxiu’s depictions – with their exaggerated facial features – still represent the best known iconography of these very popular deities.
Pindola, known in Chinese as Fuhu luohan, “the taming tiger luohan”, was an Indian Brahmin and a general who became a Buddhist monk, promising to never kill any sentient being. Hearing a tiger howling every day, he understood the animal was hungry; he then decided to offer only vegetarian food so the tiger would not become a man-eater. The feline came back to the monastery for that food every night until it was completely tamed.
