Shoukannon　聖観音

KEY WORD :　art history / iconography

Sk: Aryavalokites'vara. Also written 正観音. This is the term for the simplest form of *Kannon 観音. Shou is a translation of the Sanskrit "arya", which means, simply, "holy", a common epithet of deities. It is an accident that it has come to distinguish a simple form of Kannon. In addition, the appellations Shoukannon and *Guze Kannon 救世観音 could be used interchangeably, especially at an early date. The appearance of the deity, apart from the fact that it should have just one head and two arms, is not fixed. Usually, Shoukannon holds an unopened lotus bud in his left hand and is white. He is one of the Six Kannon *Roku Kannon 六観音 and one of the Thirty-three Forms of Kannon *sanjuusanshin 三十三身.

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