Standing Ksitigarbha
1300–1350
- Medium
- Hanging scroll; ink, color, and gold on silk
- Classification
- Painting
- Dimensions
- Painting: 102.6 x 43.2 cm (40 3/8 x 17 in.)
- Culture
- Korea, Goryeo dynasty (918–1392)
- Museum
- Cleveland Museum of Art, Korean Art
- Credit line
- John L. Severance Fund
- Rights
- Public domain (CC0), as the museum states it.
- Who can see it
- Teens profiles and older: its museum says too little about what it shows to place it for younger viewers. How works are placed
View at the Cleveland Museum of Art
About this work
This fourteenth-century hanging scroll depicts Kṣitigarbha (지장보살), the Bodhisattva of Salvation in the guise of a youthful Buddhist monk. Clad in simple monastic robes, he holds a staff to announce his presence and a wish-fulfilling jewel symbolizing his vow to relieve suffering. Kṣitigarbha is believed to descend into the underworld to guide and liberate tormented souls trapped in purgatory. His compassionate mission made him a key figure in both East Asian visual and ritual tradition.
