Tibet
early to mid-17th century
This is the gesture of the Buddha calling the earth to witness his awakening.
Tibet
early to mid-17th century
Tsuklak Gyatso (1567–1633) was the Third Pawo Rinpoche, an important and high-ranking teacher of the Karma Kagyu School of Tibetan Buddhism. He is represented in this painting not only by the central figure but also by his handprints and footprints. The size and unevenness of the handprints suggest that they are based on actual prints made by the Third Pawo, helping to confirm that this painting dates to his lifetime. The handprints and footprints of a master are considered to be a portable form of transmitted blessing, akin to a touch relic. They could even stand in for the teacher in his absence.Beginning in the fifteenth century the indigenous Tibetan painting traditions of Menri and Khyenri—named after their Tibetan founders, Menla Dundrup and Khyentse Chenmo respectively— incorporated Chinese landscape elements into an otherwise dominant Newar painting tradition. Here figures are depicted following Indo-Nepalese models and are robed in bright reds and oranges. They are symmetrically placed in a simple, thickly painted blue-green landscape of Chinese inspiration. However, the landscape is not designed to suggest spacial depth, but instead mountains and clouds are densely stacked on top of one another as framing devices for the figures.
This is the gesture of the Buddha calling the earth to witness his awakening.
The passing down of authentic Buddhist teachings from a teacher to a disciple or student, often in the form of a text in a ritualistic context.
The transmission of teachings from one generation to the next, from teacher to student, traced all the way back to the Buddha without interruption. A complete lineage is essential in Tantric Buddhist practices as it makes the blessings of the teaching more powerful.
Himalayan art includes portraits of legendary and historical humans, including accomplished religious teachers (lamas), the Buddha’s original disciples (arhats), and spiritually accomplished tantric masters (mahasiddhas).
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.
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