Guanxiu

The state of the Former Shu had acted as the traditional western sanctuary ever since Emperor Xuanzong had sought refuge there during the An Shi Rebellion in 755.

Wang Jian, the founding emperor of the Former Shu, bestowed upon him the honorific title Great Master of the Chan Moon (Chanyue dashi), however he is still known by his monk's name Guanxiu, which means "a string of blessings".

Chinese artists had been depicting them with great expressiveness and power since the sixth century, however Guanxiu's interpretations are often seen to have captured another dimension.

An additional theme in these paintings were that they were portrayed as being unkempt and "eccentric" which emphasizes that they are vagabonds and beggars who have left all worldly desires behind.

The paintings were donated by Guanxiu to the Shengyin Temple in Qiantang (present day Hangzhou) where they are preserved with great care and ceremonious respect.

[4] The Chan Buddhist tradition of painting sought to express the immediacy and intensity of the artists intuition as well as to record moments of truth in the form of Buddhas or arhats.

[5] Even by the end of the Tang dynasty Chan painters were practicing wildly eccentric works, which unfortunately have only survived through contemporary descriptions.