Bodhisattva under an Eight Headed Naga at The Art Institute of Chicago, Illinois

myminifactory

In Mahayana Buddhism, a bodhisattva is the term for anyone who has generated bodhicitta, a spontaneous wish to attain buddhahood for the benefit of all sentient beings. A bodhisattva achieves one of four sublime states in life (the others being an arhat, a buddha or pratyekabuddha). Over time, the term bodhisattva has evolved; in early Indian Buddhism, it was primarily used to refer specifically to Gautama Buddha in his former lives. The Jataka tales depict various attempts of the bodhisattva to embody qualities like self-sacrifice and morality. Naga is a Sanskrit and Pali word for a deity or class of entity that takes the form of a very great snake, specifically the king cobra, found in Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism and Sikhism. A female naga is a nagini or nagini. Traditions about nagas are common in all Buddhist countries of Asia; many have merged with local traditions of great and wise serpents or dragons, such as the Burmese nat. In Tibetan religion, the naga was equated with the klu that dwell in lakes or underground streams and guard treasure. The Chinese dragon is also associated with the naga. The Buddhist naga generally has the form of a great cobra, usually with a single head but sometimes many. Some nagas are capable of using magic powers to transform themselves into a human semblance. In Buddhist painting, the naga is portrayed as a human being with a snake or dragon extending over his head. One naga in human form attempted to become a monk; when told that such ordination was impossible, the Buddha instructed it on how to ensure rebirth as a human, able to become a monk. (Credit: Wikipedia) This object is part of "Scan The World", a non-profit initiative introduced by MyMiniFactory. Scan The World creates a digital archive of fully 3D printable sculptures, artworks and landmarks from across the globe for public access at no cost. It is an open-source community effort; contributors with interesting items can email stw@myminifactory.com to learn how they can assist. Scanned: Photogrammetry (Processed using Agisoft PhotoScan)