Amdo Province, Eastern Tibet
19th century
Amdo Province, Eastern Tibet
19th century
Shri Devi as “the Queen who Repels Armies,” or Magzor Gyalmo in Tibetan is a wrathful protector deity popular in Tibetan Buddhist traditions. She rides a mule with a bridal of snakes and holds a club in the right hand and skull cup in the left. Above her head is a canopy of peacock feathers. She is adorned with the garland of severed heads which in this painting are all individuated with different expressions. In this vibrant painting Magzor Gyalmo’s four female attendants at lower left are particularly dramatic in their poses, dismembering corpses, eating hearts, and pulling out entrails. In the opposite lower right corner is the depiction of lay life. Four women are shown in casual poses and objects from everyday material culture appear alongside the incense burner.
Protectors of Buddhist teachings who destroy obstacles that impede the path to enlightenment. The more frightening and gruesome their appearance, the greater their power.
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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