Painting: The long-living deity at the South Pole

(Clearharmony.net) The painting “Long-living deity at the South Pole” is also called “Elderly long-living deity”. The poem says, “There is a long-living deity at the South Pole, whose life is as long as those of the heaven and earth. The old Taoist sacred birds only live to one thousand years, which is much less compared with the deity himself.” In the ancient Chinese fairy tales, there is a star named “long-living star”, or “elderly long-living star”, and when that star appears the world will enjoy peace and harmony.

Traditionally Chinese painters have been describing the long-living deity on canvas as a kind looking senior man, whose back was slighted arched, and whose hand carries a walking stick. The deity’s forehead is high and rounded, his hair silver-white but his complexion is as delicate as a child's. His ear loops are long and big, and his eye
brows are long and drooping. The deity always shows a compassionate face, with a big smile. In paintings the deity carries peaches of longevity, with a sacred bird in the Taoist school. According to fairy tales, in North-East China there is a gigantic peach tree, whose height is over 50 yards, and whose leaves are eight yards long and 5 yards wide. The peaches are 3 feet in diameter, while the stone small and thin. Whoever eats the peaches shall obtain wisdom and long life. In fairy tales the long-living deity also rides the sacred bird sometimes, therefore the bird is also regarded a symbol of long life. Together with pine trees, the birds are said to “extend the ages”.

For Chinese people, the long-living deity is the symbol of longevity.