Guardian King of the West (Gwangmok cheonwang)

The Guardian King of the West (Korean: Gwangmok-cheonwang; Sanskrit: Virupaksha) is one of four heavenly kings who protect the cardinal directions in Buddhist cosmology. The guardian king holds a spear in his left hand, and in his right, a thunderbolt on a lotus throne encircled by rays of light. In temples, paintings of the Four Guardian Kings were often hung behind sculptures of the same images. The deities are the first that a visitor would see when entering a temple and would ward off evil spirits to help visitors prepare to enter the Buddhist world.

The inscription at the upper right reads: “The Heavenly King who sees all and protects the western direction of the world.” Judging from several markings in the lower part of the painting, it once belonged to Songnimsa Temple, a sub-temple of the Donghwasa Monastery in southeastern Korea. Some who viewed this painting long ago wrote their names and date in the bottom-left corner when they viewed it.