CHINESE SUPERSTITIONS - University of Oregon

frog under the left arm (1) ; Cuda-Panthaka
— 377 —
has a broom concealed
beneath his mantle. The "Monk with the Calico Bag" has a sack
suspended from a staff placed over the shoulder, or it lies sometimes
at his feet (2). This monk is the patron of tobacco-sellers, and his
jolly, fat little image often adorns their shop-fronts {'A). Four of
the Arhats, in the Wuwei-chow list, wear a ring on the ear /4), as
a badge of honour. Incarnations of Maitreya, the Future Buddha,
are represented as big-bellied, smiling, and generally in a sitting
posture (5).
Some modern artists seem to confound the Lohans with the
Immortals, and represent them crossing the bitter sea of human
life to the happy shores of Nirvana, or enjoying lives of endless bliss
amidst groves of pines on misty mountain-tops.
The Lohans are generally represented as old, with white hair,
Inng-lobed ears, and extremely long eyebrows (6). The Chinese call
Pindola the "long-eyebrowed monk". Some are depicted standing,
others sitting on a mat or the ledge of a rock; those who propagated
the Law, are represented with a book or scroll in the hand, and a
small disciple at the side; others hold in the hand an alms-bowl, a
fan, or a mendicant's staff (7).
2°. The 16 Lohans. — Pindola was early represented in Chinese
art. The first picture of him dates back to about A.D. 465 or
470 (8). At this date, the monks Fah-yuen j£ Jgfj, and Fah-king
(1)
See Chinese Superstitions. Vol. VII. p. 346.— Watters. The 18 Lohan
of Chinese Buddhist Temples, p. 16.
77.
(2) See Chinese Superstitions. Vol. VII. p. 371-372.
(3) Watters. The 18 Lohan of Chinese Buddhist Temples, p. 29.
(4) See Chinese Superstitions. Vol. VII. Illustrations n os 61, 64, G8 and
(5) Chinese Superstitions Vol. VII. Illustrations n os 75 and 78.
(6) See Chinese Superstitions. Vol. VII. Illustration n° 76.
(7) Watters. The 18 Lohan of Chinese Buddhist Temples, p. ltf, and
26.— Waddell. The Buddhism of Tibet, p. 376-377. —Chinese Superstitions.
Vol. VII. Illustration n os 62, 67, 73, 74 and 76.
(8) See Chinese Superstitions. Vol. VII. p. 345. — Journal Asiatique.
Sept. -Oct. 1916. p. 205.