Chinese Buddhist Holy Figure: "Guanyin"

This is a Chinese Buddhist holy figure, called Guanyin. Guanyin is the Chinese name for Avalokitesvara Bodhisattva. Guanyin means "observing the sounds and cries of the world."

Avalokiteshvara, the Bodhisattva of Infinite Compassion, may be the most well known and beloved of the iconic bodhisattvas. Avalokiteshvara is venerated as the ideal of "karuna." Karuna is the activity of compassion in the world and the willingness to bear the pain of others. Avalokiteshvara resolved to postpone his own buddhahood until he helped very sentient being on earth achieve liberation from suffering and the cycle of death and rebirth. The name Guanyin means "Observing the Sounds (or Cries) of the World".

Avalokitesvara was originally depicted as a male bodhisattva, but is more often depicted as a woman in China. In China, Guanyin is sometimes shown in a white flowing robe and usually wears necklaces of Indian/Chinese royalty. In her left hand is a jar containing pure water, and the right holds a willow branch. The crown usually depicts the image of Amitabha Buddha, Guanyin's spiritual teacher before she became a Bodhisattva.

Buddhism is a religion in which people follow the teachings of the Buddha (Siddhartha Gautama) who lived and taught about 2500 years ago. Buddhists do not believe in a personal creator god. Buddhists believe in the Four Noble Truths, including that life is suffering because we are attached to our desires, but that suffering and attachment can be ended by living according to the Noble Eight-fold Path (ex. right thinking, right working, right speaking). The holy book is called the Tripitaka. It contains the teachings of the Buddha. Buddhists believe in rebirth after death (reincarnation). Their goal is to become Enlightened, to achieve Nirvana, and break the cycle of birth and death.
Source:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Guanyin
https://www.khanacademy.org/humanities/art-asia/beginners-guide-asian-culture/buddhist-art-culture/a/bodhisattva-avalokitesvara-guanyin