Bodhisattva Presenting A Prayer Tablet

November 14, 871
Famen Si

A unique object in Famen Si is this statue of a kneeling Bodhisattva who holds a prayer tablet in his arms. Its text alludes to a "true body relic" of the Buddha, which was enshrined nearby. The statue is of gilt silver, decorated with pearls. Created for Emperor Yizong, it was dedicated on his 39th birthday "that His Majesty will have long life and abundant descendants, and that the barbaric nations will come to acknowledge their allegiance and that the whole nation will enjoy peace for ever."

Despite these pious wishes, Yizong died only two years later, amid increasing internal and external disorder. His ineffectual reign marked the beginning of the end of the Tang dynasty.