In Mahayana Buddhism, historical persons are also regarded as the rebirth of an enlightened being, the so-called Bodhisattva. The Budai heshang (hemp sack monk, ca. 9th century) is regarded as the embodiment of the future Buddha Maitreya and is still one of the most popular Buddhist figures of salvation in East Asia. With a big belly, laughing and dressed in ragged clothes, he is depicted as a vagabond living out his days without any interest in studying holy scriptures. He thus questions the ascetic ideal of the studying monk and shows that enlightenment and liberation from the cycle of birth are also possible without strict rules.

Buddha Maitreya (chin. Milefo), here in the form "Laughing Maitreya (xiaokou milefo 笑口彌勒佛)", on the left side of the robe there are Chinese characters that have already been carved into the mould of the figure: "Luzhou lucheng xian nan (cheng shan?) li zao. Fo xinshi nan shanren Chang Yue qi Niu shi nan Chang Lian "潞 川川 潞城顯南(乘山?)里造佛信士男善人常鉞妻牛氏男常璉 "Made in Luzhou Prefecture south of (Chengshan?) with funds from the devout Buddhists and benefactors Chang Yue, his wife (née) Niu and his son Chang Lian. "The prefecture mentioned was located in the present-day province of Shanxi.The figure was gilded, remains of the gilding can be found, for example, on the left part of the back or between the characters on the figure.(M. Schwedes, 2006).Publ. Müller, Claudius, Wu, Shun-chi: Weg der Götter und Menschen, exhibition catalogue, Berlin (SMPK), Museum für Völkerkunde, 1989, p. 93.