Ancient ornate rock crystal buddha - Rock cystal - Laos - Late 19th century

Ancient Buddha carved in rock crystal Provenance: Laos. Period: late 19th, early 20th century. With a few traces of wear. The tip is slightly blunt. Dimensions: 48 x 14. 5 x 29 mm. Weight: 19. 57 grams. The colour of the Buddha varies depending on the background (have a look at the pictures with white/black backgrounds) . The gesture of calling on the Earth to witness: Sitting in a meditative posture, Buddha comes out of his meditation and moves his right arm towards his knee, to touch the earth with the tip of his fingers. This gesture recalls a precise moment, when Shakyâmuni was challenged by Mâra, the lord of death and desire, just before reaching Awakening. Fearing of seeing his power undermined, the latter dispatched his formidable armies and voluptuous daughters to the recluse in meditation. These assaults remained in vain, Mâra asked the meditator to provide proof of his past merits. Neither frightened nor moved, he calmly touched the ground with his right hand and asked Sthâvarâ (or Prithvî) , the earth goddess, to witness of the meritorious acts accumulated, and the gifts lavished for the benefit of all living beings. The goddess testified, thus, sealing the defeat of Mâra. “As soon as this great Earth was touched by the Bodhisattva, it trembled in six ways: trembled, trembled strongly on all sides; resounded, resounded strongly on all sides (. . .) The great Earth goddess, named Sthâvarâ, appeared with a body decorated with all her ornaments, the body inclined, the hands joined, she said: he is indeed a Great man, as you declared yourself! Here we are to prove it. Moreover, Blessed, you have become the supreme witness of the world, which also includes the gods”. Bodhisattva is a Sanskrit term. In Hinayana Buddhism, it refers to a Buddha before he has reached awakening. Mahayana Buddhism refers to the one who made the vow of following the path shown by Shakyamuni Buddha, who has taken refuge from the three jewels (Buddha, Dharma and Sangha) and strictly respected the disciplines intended for the Bodhisattvas, to first help other sentient beings to awaken, while delaying his own liberation out of compassion. The pictures were taken with artificial lighting. Registered shipment with insurance and track & trace.