Five Hundred Arhats No.122 · The Venerable Heavenly King | Traditional Hand-Painted Chinese Ink Zen Buddhist Figure Painting | 100×50cm

Five Hundred Arhats · No.122 The Venerable Heavenly King

'Heavenly king' likens him to a Dharma-protecting celestial king, sovereignly free within the Dharma, of lofty authority who safeguards the true teaching; the name marks one with a heavenly king's authority yet without its pride, protecting beings as he protects the Dharma. The venerable has a majestic, composed bearing—authoritative without anger, guarding the world and the saṅgha, his virtue reaching humans and gods.

Painted by Li Zongyi in the freehand Chinese ink (xieyi) tradition, the brushwork is fluent and the ink tones layered from dense to pale, capturing the arhat’s spirit in a few assured strokes. The blank paper itself breathes Zen; figure and spirit are one, blending monastic solemnity with the literati’s ease. Each of the Five Hundred Arhats bears its own name and practice, uniting faith, art and collectibility — an original, non-reproducible hand-painted work.

Size: approx. 100×50cm (4.5 square chi) | Traditional hand-painted Chinese ink Zen Buddhist figure painting | On paper