At the center of this work is the red, twelve-armed, dancing Ganapati standing on a jewel-spitting rat, a form of the elephant-headed deity known only in Buddhism. This painting is directly related to a meditation practice in which religious devotees visualize themselves as the “spirit subduing” deity Bhutadamara, shown here immediately above Ganapati, trampling a white elephant-headed deity. As Bhutadamara, they then imagine Ganapati standing in front of them, all in a mountain cave of blue vaidurya rock. This form of Ganapati belongs to a set of three powerful deities known as the “Three Great Red Ones” within the Sakya School of Tibetan Buddhism. Two Sakya lamas, presumably key figures in the transmission lineage of this practice, appear in the upper corners of the composition.Warm reds dominate the palette and the contrasting cool blues of the stylized rocks framing the central deity and his flames lend vitality to this dynamic figure. Both the surface of the figure’s body nimbus and the dark area outside the rocks are filled with scroll patterns of Nepalese inspiration. Nepalese painting styles were used in areas bordering Nepal and within the Ngor branch of the Sakya School long after they had fallen out of popularity elsewhere.

Artwork Details

Title
Red Ganapati, One of the Three Great Red Deities
Dimensions
17 1/4 × 14 1/8 in. (estimated)
Medium
Pigments on cloth
Origin
Tsang Provence, Central Tibe
Classification(s)
paintings
Date
16th century
Credit Line
Rubin Museum of Himalayan Art
Object number
C2005.11.1
Bibliography
Collection Highlights: The Rubin Museum of Art
HAR Number
89964
Published references
  • Caron Smith, "Building the Rubin Museum of Art Collection,” Orientations 37, no.2 (March 2006): 114.
  • Divine Incarnations (Carlton Rochell, 2005), cat. no. 22.
  • J. Van Alphen, Collection Highlights: Rubin Museum of Art (Rubin Museum of Art, 2014), 204-205.

Begin your search...

Ritual

Concepts

Prescribed practices that carry symbolic meaning and value within a specific tradition and are intended to attain a desired outcome. Rituals are usually done as part of a ceremony or regular routine.

See more

Power

Concepts

A kind of energy that can be used, individually and collectively, to effect change.

See more

Tibetan Regions

Region

Today, Tibetans primarily inhabit the Tibetan Plateau, situated between the Himalayan mountain range and the Indian subcontinent to the west, Chinese cultural regions to the east, and Mongolian cultural regions to the northeast. During the 7th to 9th century, Tibetan rulers expanded their empire across Central Asia, and established Buddhism as the state religion.

See more

Sign up for our emails

Get the latest news and stories from the Rubin, plus occasional information on how to support our work.

Discover artworks, articles, and more by typing a search term above, selecting a term below, or exploring common concepts in Himalayan art.