Guardian Deities Painting of Gaeunsa Temple

This Buddhist painting is a sinjungdo (guardian deities painting) enshrined on the wall to the right of the main image in Daeungjeon Hall at Gaeunsa Temple. It bears stains from contamination in several areas and is currently mounted in a frame; overall its colouring has faded and appears rather dark. In the upper part of the painting the heavenly host is arranged around Brahma and Indra at the centre, while the lower part depicts the Eight Kinds of Divine Beings centred on Skanda. Brahma and Indra, dressed in bodhisattva robes and wearing crowns, stand facing forward with hands joined holding white lotus flowers; around them are the deities of the Sun Palace and Moon Palace, together with boy and girl attendants bearing ceremonial banners, pennants and fans, and celestial musicians, all encircling the two central figures. Skanda, shown at the centre of the lower section, has his body turned slightly to the right while his head faces the opposite way, holding a three-pronged vajra upright with both hands brought together before him. Dressed in a helmet elaborately adorned with feathers and gilded armour, he stands in a commanding pose that conveys his authority as leader of the Eight Kinds of Divine Beings. His face is rounded, with the features drawn in fine, delicate lines. To Skanda's left and right stand the Mountain Spirit holding a fan and the Kitchen God wearing a headscarf, along with other members of the Eight Kinds of Divine Beings bearing various weapons in attendance. Although the painting's inscription does not record a date, its stylistic features and the painter-monks involved suggest it was produced at the same time as the accompanying Ksitigarbha and the Ten Kings Painting (1870), with which it is enshrined. The format of depicting the heavenly host and the Eight Kinds of Divine Beings in a single painting, the appearance of the Mountain Spirit and Kitchen God as attendants flanking Skanda, and the presence of celestial musician-maidens are all typical features of nineteenth-century guardian-deity paintings. It is further notable for its detailed rendering of the various deities, its balanced composition, and the skilled brushwork of the painter.

AI Translation

Where it is

Region

Seongbuk-gu, Seoul

Designation

Provincial Tangible Heritage · 시도유형문화유산