Zanabazar
Mongolia
late 17th century or early 18th century
This relaxed posture is commonly associated with regal leisure.
Zanabazar
Mongolia
late 17th century or early 18th century
The Buddhist goddess Marichi appears in many forms. As the Goddess of the Dawn, one of her most common forms, depicts her in the chariot of the sun pulled by seven pigs, removing obstacles with her radiant light. This sculpture presents her as an attendant to the goddess Tara, holding a vajra in her right hand and a branch of the ashoka tree in her left.Her round face and fleshy “bee-stung” lips, the patterned etching on her garments, the warm patina of the gilding, the finesse of the ornaments, such as her distinctive lotus-jewel crown and S-curve armlets, as well as the multileveled lotus base are all characteristic of Mongolian sculpture attributed to the exceptional Mongolian artist Zanabazar (1635–1723) and his workshop. Zanabazar was Mongolia’s first incarnate lama and leader of Mongolian Buddhism, who founded a sculptural style that continues to have a profound influence to this day.This figure was most likely placed to the right of a sculpture of Tara, which would have stood at the head of a set of twenty-one sculptures representing her various forms. This Marichi might have once been part of an existing set in the collection of the Bogdo Khan Palace Museum in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia.
This relaxed posture is commonly associated with regal leisure.
A vajra is a ritual scepter used in tantric practices and an attribute of tantric masters and deities. It generally symbolizes method, the male aspect of enlightenment.
A kind of energy that can be used, individually and collectively, to effect change.
While the primary religious goal for followers of Buddhism is enlightenment, many of the practices also serve secular goals related to daily life, including ethical conduct and cultivating well-being.
Female bodhisattvas and tantric deities embody specific enlightened qualities such as wisdom, power, and protection, and can be peaceful or wrathful in appearance.
Mongolians have been widely active in the Tibetan Buddhist world, playing a key role in Tibetan culture, politics, and relations with China. In the 13th century, the Mongol Empire—the largest contiguous empire in world history—facilitated the spread of Tibetan visual culture.
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