to grasp the Buddha’s foot in an emergency to seek help at the last moment; 
Literally:
Meaning:
to make a frantic last-minute effort
This comes from a longer phrase which runs:
When idle he neglects to burn incense,
yet when in trouble he desperately clutches the Buddha’s feet.
For example:
惠州学院中文系一老师则认为，考试前临急抱佛脚，对这学生掌握知识没什么好处，不可取。
However, a teacher at the Chinese Language Department of Huizhou College believes that such desperate cramming [=Buddha leg clutching] just before the exams in no way contributes to the students’ understanding of their subjects, and thus is undesirable.
Edit:
Chinese friends told me that actually it’s much more common to say:
临时抱佛脚
lín shí bào fó jiǎo
And this fits better with the whole phrase:
平时不烧香, 临时抱佛脚
píng shí bù shāo xiāng, lín shí bào fó jiǎo
Entered on:
August 13th, 2007
Hey, I know what this means. What a nice surprise to see an illustration of a Chinese slang in IF. The drawing is great too.
August 13th, 2007
Very appealing. Love the style and the concept of your blog
August 13th, 2007
wow. that’s a great image really. applaud!
August 14th, 2007
Thanks for all the positive comments!
This was my first Illustration Friday picture, so cheers for the response - I’ll definitely have another go next weekend.
August 15th, 2007
great illo and great saying.
There’s a lovely fresh lighthearted feel to your illo. Look forward to seeing more.
August 15th, 2007
um, i dunno know what to say except that i lovveee the buddha and is the longer phrase FROM THE BOOK OF CHANGES? the “ee-ching?” wow….talent AND far eastern wisdom on IF! :)))