Shakyamuni Buddha Mandala

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The Buddha Shakyamuni is seated in the centre of the mandala. His right hand is in bhumisparsha-mudra and the left hand, held in meditation position, holds a pindapatra. The inner circle of the Buddha is surrounded by eight lotus petals, symbolizes eight-fold path of Buddha's teachings, the way to freedom, consisting of the three spiritual educations – moral, meditative, and intellectual. The bhumisparsha-mudra of the Buddha symbolizes his victory over evil and the attainment of enlightenment at Bodhgaya. Buddhists meditate on this mudra of the Buddha mainly for protection from evil and also for the removal of obstacles in material and spiritual life. Outside the lotus circle there is a square divided into four triangles. The walls of square are decorated with geometric and floral designs. There are four gates in square in cardinal directions. Over the gates are houses in which live the protector deities. A Dharma Wheel flanked by deer is depicted in the upper centre. Vases with plants in them, treasure vases with banners stand on either side of the gate outside the wall. Over each corner of the square there is an umbrella. The square is surrounded by three circles. The inner most is a red circle, followed by circle of lotus petals. The outer circle is of fire fence.

In the row across the top, Amitabha Buddha is in the centre. Either side of him is sun and moon, respectively. Goddess White Tara is seated on his right. She is seated on moon disk on lotus flower on clouds. She is the goddess of long-life. Goddess Green Tara is seated on the left of Amitabha Buddha. She is also seated on moon disk on a lotus throne in clouds. Goddess Green Tara helps devotees overcome dangers, fears and anxieties. Moreover she helps one cross over from danger to safety or from suffering to happiness. On the lower register, Arapachana Manjushri is seated in the left corner; Manjushri is the Bodhisattva of Transcendent wisdom. His right hand holds a flaming wisdom sword and left holds a lotus flower over which is scripture of divine wisdom. With his flaming sword, Manjushri ensures that humans will gain knowledge and insight. He cleaves the clouds of ignorance with it but also uses it in the morning to chase away the demons of night and thus brings light into the darkness. This darkness-ness a double meaning, is thus spiritual darkness, ignorance. The bottom centre depicts brown Tara, who is seated in Lalitasana on moon-disk on lotus throne. Her hand is in Varada-mudra and the left hand is in vitarka-mudra and holds a slight bigger lotus flower. Wrathful Vajrapani, a celestial Bodhisattva, who represents the concentrated power of all Buddhas is standing in alidha posture on a yellow disk on lotus throne against wisdom fire aureole. His left hand holds a vajra, the indestructible weapon and his left hand is in threatening gesture (tarjani-mudra). The extended silk brocade is decorated with stylized vishva vajra and lotus.

This description is by Dr. Shailendra K. Verma. His Doctorate thesis being: "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.