Oil on Canvas -30” x 40”
December, 2014
Many symbols and spiritual beliefs are intertwined throughout South and Southeast Asia, transcending race, organized religion and historical territorial and military disputes. This is especially apparent through the close ties and parallel histories of Buddhism and Hinduism, now two of the world’s principal belief systems.
No two symbols better represent this transcendence than the Garuda, or “Khrut” as it is known in Thailand, and the Emerald Buddha. The Garuda is known in Hindu mythology to be the “Vahana,” or vehicle and protector, of Lord Vishnu, but is also prominent in Buddhist symbolism, and is often seen sculpted on the outsides of Buddhist temples. The Emerald Buddha has one of the most remarkable and improbable histories that can be imagined, surviving perilous travels and natural disasters throughout the region, and now resides in the Wat Phra Kaew (Emerald Buddha Temple) in Bangkok, Thailand, surrounded and protected by golden Garudas.
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