The Wheel of Existence

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The beings who follow the path of Dharma attain nirvana, shunyata, in a single human life span, less skilled people will take seven lifetimes to do it, and the slowest people will be born sixteen times before the liberating curtain finally parts. The revelation no longer takes place on Earth, but in heavenly paradise.

Three animals can be seen in the centre of the chakra (wheel), which visually represents the three major sins, the most important toxins that are the causes of samsara. The animals are cock, snake and a pig. They represent desire, hatred or venom, and stubborn ignorance, respectively. The circle around this has a dark half and light one and can be divided into two parts. Those with bad karmas descend to one of the three underworlds, in the light segment, those with good karmas climb toward one of the three positive heavens. As it happens, people can be reborn into six worlds. The six worlds have been depicted in the main body of the wheel.

The first and upper one is region of the wheel is heaven in which the palace of gods have been depicted. The palace is situated on the centre of mount meru surrounded by ocean. A lute Buddha is standing in this region to help the gods. According to tradition, gods who born from lotus blossoms enjoy heavenly delight. They are subject to the law of anityata, of birth, life, death and rebirth. They may live for millions of years in heaven, but when their merits are exhausted they have to come down.

The realm of heaven is followed by the world of asura (titan) who were expelled from heaven because of their pride. They fight the gods for the fruits of the whish-giving tree whose roots are in their realm but fruits are in the world of gods. The jealous titans also attack the gods to oust them, from their heaven. Avalokiteshvara in the guise of a monk present in this is to help and show the right path to the beings of this realm.

The third is the world of humans. Here generally, birth, disease, old age, death, struggle for existence, and so on are depicted. The world of humans is good point of departure for attaining nirvana because the human possesses intellect. Avalokiteshvara as a Buddha is present in this world to help the suffering beings. Monks, sentient beings and stupa etc. are shown in this realm. The fourth position in the Bhavachakra is given to the animal world. The animals (tiryag-yoni) live in a fearful world of uncontrolled instincts. A Buddha is standing here for their rescue and help. This world is depicted here below the world of titans. The fifth position is the world of Tantalized ghosts (preta) or hungry spirits. The pretas whose un-satiable greed in past births has given them tantalizing thirsts and hunger. Thus hunger and thirst prevail nonstop because the inhabitants have minuscule mouth and an esophagus that is as thin as a needle. Their bloating bellies in indicate oedema caused by starvation. Avalokiteshvara is here also for their help.

The lowest world is the hell (naraka), presided by Yamaraja, the king and judge of the dead. He has the scales to weigh out the deeds of the deceased. The hell has been divided into two segments – cold and hot; cold hell is on the right side and the hot hell, on the left side. Yamaraja is standing at top centre of this world. The compassionate Avalokiteshvara also present in this world for their help.

After death, the spirit, which is eternal, leaves the temporary husk of the body, and enters what is known as Bardo Land, an intermediary world between death and birth. Here, the spirit has all kinds of visions, both pleasant and terrifying, which can be handled or not, depending on how one lived during one's earthly existence and how adept one was in religious knowledge and techniques.

The rim of the wheel is made up of twelve segments, illustrating the twelve nidanas or interdependent causes of rebirth -

1. A blind woman symbolizes delusion, ignorance (avidya)

2. Potter, symbolizes creative activity (karma), as a potter moulds clay into pots so we shape our karmas

3. Monkey plucking fruits, consciousness (vijnana)

4. Two individual in a boat, symbolizes name and form (nama-rupa) ; spirits and body (separation between the conscious and subconscious mind)

5. Empty house with five windows and one door, symbolizes six senses (sadayatana); the sense is the capacity to think

6. Man and woman in embrace, symbolizes sparsha (contact). Contact arises through the feeling (vedana)

7. Arrow piercing a man's eye symbolizes feeling (vedana) . Feeling (distinction between pleasant and unpleasant)

8. Man drinking liquor, symbolizes desire, thirst (trishana)

9. Person plucking fruits and filling his basket with nature's bounty, symbolizes clinging to worldly objects (upadana)

10. Couple in bed, symbolizes the process of becoming (bhava) . In Japan this nidan is illustrated by four-faced Brahma standing on a lotus-leaf as the creator of all living beings

11. Birth, new life and consciousness (being), symbolizes jati (birth)

12. Dead person carried away, symbolizes marana (death). At this stage there are two possibilities. Rebirth will take place after a stay in one of the six worlds, and the cycle will recommence or extinction will have been attained. Here, this is rendered as a Buddha and a Bodhisattva in higher realms or as a direct track (a white path as shown in the present painting) to emptiness which has been depicted as Buddha world; the Buddha is in a heavenly palace.

The symbolic wheel of life is held by Yamaraja. At the top right Buddha Shakyamuni is standing, who taught the way and opposite on the left is Avalokiteshvara in the guise of Buddha to help the beings to attain the way. The wheel is generally painted near the main entrance to a temple to instruct those who come to worship. The foreground depicts charnel ground and bottom centre auspicious offerings.

Select Bibliography

Ben Meulenbeld, Buddhist Symbolism in Tibetan Thangka, Holland, 2001

H. Kern, Manual of Indian Buddhism, Delhi, 1968

L.A. Waddell, Buddhism and Lamaism of Tibet, Delhi, 1978 (reprint)

This description is by Dr. Shailendra K. Verma, whose Doctorate thesis is on "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.