Statues of the Life-Extending Bodhisattva（yanshoumingpusa 延寿命菩萨） is a theme of Chinese Buddhism that first appeared in the Tang and Song dynasties that was mainly prominent in Gansu（Dunhuang）, Sichuan and Xinjiang from the 9th to the 11th centuries. The historical process that led to the emergence of this Bodhisattva was very long and complicated. In the canonical origins of the Life-ExtendingBodhisattva, which can be found in its earliest form in the Sutra on Prolonging Life（foshuoyanshoumingjing 佛说延寿命经）, this Bodhisattva was born with the ability to extend the life spans of Buddhist believers and was depicted in highly simplistic pictures. The powers of the Life-Extending Bodhisattva were catered to concepts in local Chinese Buddhism related to prolonging life, and reflect the complex process of sinicization and secularization that Buddhism underwent in China.
