The Spirit and Tiger of Bukhan Mountain with a Girl and Boy. 2000. Mixed Media (Stone Color, Gold Leaf, and Silver leaf) on traditional Korean paper, 39 X 78“. The painting is in the AvalokiteÅ›vara Bodhisattva meditation hall at Simgok- Am, Seoul, South Korea. In the picture plane, a girl and boy are worshipping the goddess of Mt. Bukhan. The sun and moon brighten the scene.
Simgog-Am is a Buddhist temple on Mt. Bukhan in Seoul. The chief monk of Simgog-Am invited me to create an altarpiece for the Avalokiteśvara Bodhisattva meditation hall.
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He asked me to depict the spirit of Mt. Bukhan. As soon as I arrived, he described it to me: “Every mountain in our country has a guardian spirit. Mt. Bukhan is no exception. Unlike other mountain gods, this one is a goddess. She always carries a brave tiger and has an extraordinary ability to bless those who pray for conception.” He added, “We want to help people who wish to have children.”
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Later, I learned that Korean Buddhism has long embraced the ancient shamanistic traditions of the region, including the worship of mountain spirits.
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