Buddha pendant, Ghau, Gau, ancient Tibetan. Chenrezi, Portable Altar of Protection, Prayer Box, Buddhist Altar, Mantra of Compassion.

Ghau, Gau, ancient Tibetan. Bodhisattva of compassion, Chenrezi, Guan Yin, Butsu kannon. Portable Altar of Protection Prayer Box Buddhist Altar, Mantra of Compassion

Approximate date 1940s.

Dimensions of the ghau: height of 61mm, width of 444mm, thickness of 22mm Weight of 76 grams.

The ghau is a kind of portable altar in which the image of the possessor's chosen deity is kept, wrapped in silken garments. The vast majority of Tibetans use ghau at home and carry it on their travels. They keep it on a real altar at home. When traveling, it is attached to the back belt. It serves as a protective symbol during travels and also allows its owner to prove his devotion to his deity.

The interior contains a representation of the Bodhisattva of compassion Cherezi as well as mantras of compassion "om mani padme hum" inscribed on fabrics.

BODHISATTVA GUAN YIN / CHENREZI

Bodhisattva Avalokiteshvara (Hindi अवलोकितेश्वर Avalokiteśvara “lord who

observe from above”, Chinese 觀世音 Guānshìyīn or 觀音 Guānyīn, Shanghainese Kueu(sy)'in, Korean Gwanseeum 관세음, Japanese 観音 Kan'non, Tibetan Chenrezig, Vietnamese Quán Thế Âm, Indonesian Kwan Im, Khmer ល ោកេស្វរ Lokesvara), is without doubt the most revered and popular great bodhisattva among Great Vehicle Buddhists. He is also used as a yidam (tutelary deity) in tantric meditations. Protean and syncretic bodhisattva (he can represent all other bodhisattvas), embodying ultimate compassion, he can be feminine in China, Korea, Japan and Vietnam, in the form of Quan Yin. He is considered the protector of Tibet where King Songtsen Gampo and later the Dalai Lamas are seen as his emanations. This is also the case with other tulku such as the karmapa.

Also called Padmapāṇi or Maṇipadmā, he is invoked by the famous mantra Om̐ Maṇipadme hūm (ॐ मणिपद्मेहूम्). Chenrezi is the bodhisattva of love and compassion.

The aim of Chenrezi Puja is to develop loving friendship and compassion for all living beings without distinction. Chenrezi manifests in different forms: the 10-headed, 1000-armed Chenrezi of compassion is the best known: he promised his spiritual father, Amitabha Buddha, to expend all his energy to liberate all living beings and not to rest until all living beings are delivered from

their suffering. Should he ever doubt his mission, 'then may my head splinter into ten and my body into 1000'. When, after meditating on

deep way and reciting the Mani Mantra continuously, he saw that the ocean of suffering was still not emptied, so he fell into a

deep despair and broke his head in 10 and his body in 1000. The six-syllable mantra OM MANI PEME HOENG is the best known mantra of Tibetan Buddhism