Vaishravana and The Eight Masters of the Horse

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Here he is sitting on a white lion with dark green mane and tail in his palace in his legendary abode of Chang-lo-chen. His right hand holds a victory banner. A jewel-spitting mongoose is in his left hand. The lion stands on a moon disk on a lotus flower. The moon disk also contains auspicious offerings.

Above the central figure, there is an image of Vajrapani. On the right of Vaishravana, there is a figure of Vasudhara, goddess of abundance. She is holding a vase with jewel in the left hand, and a spike of grain in her right hand. On the left of Vaishravana, Green Tara is seated on a throne. Her right hand is in preaching gesture holding a stem of lotus flower with a jewel, and her left is in the varada-mudra of presenting a boon. Surrounding Vaishravana, eight yaksha leaders are riding on miraculous horses in the clouds. They are usually called Eight Vaishravana Masters of the Horse, and are Vaishravana's assistants. All are dressed in armour, carry weapons, and wear many ornaments. Each figure has two eyes and a powerful aspect, and carries a jewel-spitting mongoose in his left hand. The horses are exquisitely adorned.

The eight yaksha leaders, starting from left bottom and proceeding clockwise around the thangka are:

1. Jambhala, who lives in the east, is golden yellow, carries a jewel in his right hand to dispel poverty, rides a golden horse, and will grant wealth.

2. Purnabhadra, who lives in the south, is yellow (here he is depicted in golden yellow), carries a vase and will grant any desired objects.

3. Manibhadra, who lives in the west, is the colour of the full moon, carries the wish-fulfilling jewel, and will grant all wishes completely.

4. Kubera, who lives in the north, is dark blue and wrathful in form, carries a sword, and will cut through all obstacles.

5. Samprajana, who lives in the southeast, is yellow, carries the golden wisdom sword (in this painting, he carries a knife), and will dispel ignorance and impart knowledge.

6. Guhyasthana, who lives in the southwest, is black (here he is shown in dark blue complexion) and of wrathful aspect, carries a spear, and will eliminate harmful spirits or demons.

7. Pancikaye, who lives in northwest, is yellow colour, carries a many-storied building, and will increase what one has.

8. Pincikundali, who lives in the northeast, is the colour of a conch shell carries a chopper (in this painting, he carries a slight long knife) and will protect against enemies.

The middle ground and foreground of this handsome thangka depict green landscape and is slight crowded with figures and auspicious offerings. The drawing and colour combination is excellent.

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.