Kham Province, Eastern Tibet
19th century
The hands form the shape of a wheel, symbolizing the “turning of the wheel of dharma,” a reference to teaching the Buddha’s doctrine.
Kham Province, Eastern Tibet
19th century
The hands form the shape of a wheel, symbolizing the “turning of the wheel of dharma,” a reference to teaching the Buddha’s doctrine.
Also known as vajra position, this posture is associated with meditation.
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.
The antidote to ignorance, with the highest form of wisdom being an understanding of the true nature of reality and all phenomena. In Buddhism studying the nature of interdependence and emptiness is considered an important step for attaining wisdom.
The idea that everything is interconnected and arises from both conscious and unconscious interactions and relationships. Thus happiness and suffering are interlinked, dependent, and relative.
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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