Bhutan's Cerebral Palsy "Foot" Artist Pema Tshering
He was diagnosed with cerebral palsy when he was a child, but that has not stopped artist Pema Tshering from being one of the most recognized painters and wood-carvers in Bhutan.
Using only his feet, Pema holds a chisel and hammer, nimbly carving his way through a piece of wood as he tells us his story about being abandoned at birth, encountering the Queen Mother who subsequently adopted him, and how he eventually became an artist.
Paralysed from the hip up, the 31-year-old artist has lived almost his entire life using his feet as his hands. Despite his handicap, Pema has managed to eke out a living selling his creations at a small shop set up inside the compounds of Simply Bhutan museum in Thimphu.
The Auspicious Drawing:
The Auspicious Drawing signifies the union of wisdom and compassion; the inseparability of the Emptiness, the Path, and the Enlightenment
These associations surround the mystical knot with mysterious powers said to bring happiness and attainments.
The Endless Knot has no beginning or end, therefore symbolizes the infinite wisdom of the Buddha. As a secular symbol, it represents an assured continuity of love. The knot is also the infinity symbol shown thrice. The infinity symbol also corresponds to the symbol of 8.
