Divine Energy

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Green Tara is slim and slender and has lovely young face. Her lips are painted red and her earlobes are elongated. Her neck has three folds signifying that her speech is as sacred as the voice of a conch. Her hair is partly upswept in knots and partly falls loose on her shoulders. She is wearing a beautiful crown of flowers and is adorned with the costumes and ornaments of a Bodhisattva. The ornaments she is wearing include earrings, necklaces, armlets, bracelets, waistbands and anklets. Her drape is made up of flowing silk scarves, a beautiful skirt and silk leggings, the latter made of two coloured bands.

There is a mandorla behind her body and a halo behind her head, painted in gold and silver colours. Above her head there is an image of Amitabha Buddha in clouds. The upper right and left corners are filled with stylized clouds. The middle ground of the painting is populated with mountains, trees, plants and stylized clouds. On proper left side a pair of antelopes on a mountain, waterfall, plants on high peaks, etc. are depicted. The bottom centre is filled with offerings – elephant tusks, fruits, sacred wheel, flowers, etc. and the landscape with plants and lake. The composition, colour-combination and lining of the painting, all reveal the skill of the anonymous artist behind it.

The worship of goddess Tara, a female Buddha and meditational deity, is very popular in Tibet, Mongolia, Nepal and China. She is recognized as a savior goddess who protects her worshippers from all the evils of existence and fear. It is said that the cult of Tara was introduced into Tibet in the 7th century A.D. and was greatly propagated in the eleventh century A.D. with the arrival of the great Indian Master Dipankara Atisha. It is believed that Green Tara's special powers help devotees to overcome dangers, fears and anxieties, and she also grants wishes. She helps her devotees to cross over from danger to safety or from suffering to happiness. Her femineity imbues her with soft and compassionate feelings, and she acts very quickly and directly as a savioress. She also protects her devotees from the sixteen perils.

This description by Dr. Shailendra Kumar Verma, Ph.D. His doctorate thesis being on the "Emergence and Evolution of the Buddha Image (from its inception to 8th century A.D)."

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Unveiling the Divine Art: Journey into the Making of Thangkas

A Thangka is a traditional Tibetan Buddhist painting that usually depicts a Buddhist Deity (Buddha or Bodhisattva), a scene, or a mandala. These paintings are considered important paraphernalia in Buddhist rituals. They are used to teach the life of the Buddha, various lamas, and Bodhisattvas to the monastic students, and are also useful in visualizing the deity while meditating. One of the most important subjects of thangkas is the Bhavacakra (the wheel of life) which depicts the Art of Enlightenment. It is believed that Thangka paintings were developed over the centuries from the murals, of which only a few can be seen in the Ajanta caves in India and the Mogao caves in Gansu Province, Tibet. Thangkas are painted on cotton or silk applique and are usually small in size. The artist of these paintings is highly trained and has a proper understanding of Buddhist philosophy, knowledge, and background to create a realistic and bona fide painting.

The process of making a thangka begins with stitching a loosely woven cotton fabric onto a wooden frame. Traditionally, the canvas was prepared by coating it with gesso, chalk, and base pigment.

After this, the outline of the form of the deity is sketched with a pencil or charcoal onto the canvas using iconographic grids. The drawing process is followed in accordance with strict guidelines laid out in Buddhist scriptures. The systematic grid helps the artist to make a geometrical and professional painting. When the drawing of the figures is finalized and adjusted, it is then outlined with black ink.

Earlier, a special paint of different colors was made by mixing powdered forms of organic (vegetable) and mineral pigments in a water-soluble adhesive. Nowadays, artists use acrylic paints instead. The colors are now applied to the sketch using the wet and dry brush techniques. One of the characteristic features of a thangka is the use of vibrant colors such as red, blue, black, green, yellow, etc.

In the final step, pure gold is coated over some parts of the thangka to increase its beauty. Due to this beautification, thangkas are much more expensive and also stand out from other ordinary paintings.

Thangka paintings are generally kept unrolled when not on display on the wall. They also come with a frame, a silken cover in front, and a textile backing to protect the painting from getting damaged. Because Thangkas are delicate in nature, they are recommended to be kept in places with no excess moisture and where there is not much exposure to sunlight. This makes them last a long time without their colors fading away. Painting a thangka is an elaborate and complex process and requires excellent skills. A skilled artist can take up to 6 months to complete a detailed thangka painting. In earlier times, thangka painters were lamas that spent many years on Buddhist studies before they painted.