Guru Padmasambhava as Dorje Drolo who Took Buddhism to Bhutan

$255
Item Code: TN72
Specifications:
Tibetan Thangka Painting
Dimensions Size of Painted Surface 14.5" X 21.0"
Size with Brocade 25.0" X 36.0"
Handmade
Handmade
Free delivery
Free delivery
Fully insured
Fully insured
100% Made in India
100% Made in India
Fair trade
Fair trade
Padmasambhava was a great yogi, originally from Swat Valley of northwest region of modern Pakistan. He was invited to Tibet by the Tibetan king Trisong Detsen (8th century A.D.) and the famous Buddhist acharya, Shantirakshita to help in the establishment of Buddhism in Tibet. Padmasambhava helped them in the establishment of Samye monastery in Tibet. He tamed many local deities and initiated Tantric Buddhist teachings in Tibet. He is said to have subdue all the malignant gods, sparing only those that became converted to Buddhism and that promised to be defenders of the doctrine. Padmasambhava, in his turn, promised to enroll them in the Mahayana Pantheon and to see that they were properly worshipped. He thus succeeded assimilating parts of local Bon religion into Vajrayana Buddhism. Padmasambhava claimed to have received from the Dakini the books from which he acquired his miraculous powers. Padmasambhava is regarded as a major spiritual ancestor of all Tibetan Buddhists in general and the father of the Nyingma sect in particular. Tibetans usually call him Guru Rinpoche, or Precious Teacher with reverence and consider him as a second Buddha. He founded Lamaism in Tibet. In course of time Padmasambhava was deified and incarnated into eight forms, one for each of eight important actions he performed during his lifetime. The eight manifestations of Padmasambhava are as follows:

1. Vajradhara or Mahavajradhara

2. King Padmaraja

3. King Loden Chogsay

4. Suryaprabha (Nyima Odzer)

5. Dorjeyy Drolod (In this form he introduced Buddhism in Bhutan)

6. Guru Dradog

7. Padmasambhava as a Nyingma monk

8. Shakya Senge (Lion of the Shakya Clan).

As mentioned above, one of the forms of Padmasambhava is Dorjey Drolod. It is said that Padmasambhava took this form at the Tiger's Lair (Tagtsang) cave in Bhutan in order to subdue demons that were troubling the people of Bhutan. Guru flew there mounted on the back of his consort, the Mon princess Tashi Kyidren, who transformed herself into flying tigress and subdues the demons and negative forces of Bhutan. In this way Padmasambhava also brought Buddhism to Bhutan where he is still much venerated today.

Padmasambhava is shown here as a stocky figure with a brown body. He holds a vajra and a phurpa. His expression is wrathful. He rides, as mentioned above, a tigress, which tramples a body over the ocean of blood. Guru is wrapped in heavy, expensive robes, and wears a garland of severed human heads, earrings and bracelets. The vigor of the bold flame pattern serves, on his back to enliven and add force to the image.

In the top centre perhaps Padmasambhava is seated in his usual form in clouds. The top left depicts a meditating yogi lama, above his seat in rainbow light, perhaps practicing a higher level of yoga. Below in the left region a lama is on a cushion with scriptures. The bottom left depicts a commentary writing lama, while the lower right corner is filled with the figure of a meditating lama. The bottom ce4ntre depicts rocks with flowers and charnel ground. The central figure is surrounded with green mountainous landscape with natural vegetation and blue lakes etc. The painting is very much suitable for the ritual, sadhana and practices of Rinpoche.

This description is by Dr. Shailendra K. Verma. His Doctorate thesis being: "Emergence and Evolution of the Buddha Image (From its inception to 8th century A.D.)".

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Unveiling the Divine Art: Journey into the Making of Thangkas

A Thangka is a traditional Tibetan Buddhist painting that usually depicts a Buddhist Deity (Buddha or Bodhisattva), a scene, or a mandala. These paintings are considered important paraphernalia in Buddhist rituals. They are used to teach the life of the Buddha, various lamas, and Bodhisattvas to the monastic students, and are also useful in visualizing the deity while meditating. One of the most important subjects of thangkas is the Bhavacakra (the wheel of life) which depicts the Art of Enlightenment. It is believed that Thangka paintings were developed over the centuries from the murals, of which only a few can be seen in the Ajanta caves in India and the Mogao caves in Gansu Province, Tibet. Thangkas are painted on cotton or silk applique and are usually small in size. The artist of these paintings is highly trained and has a proper understanding of Buddhist philosophy, knowledge, and background to create a realistic and bona fide painting.
The process of making a thangka begins with stitching a loosely woven cotton fabric onto a wooden frame. Traditionally, the canvas was prepared by coating it with gesso, chalk, and base pigment.
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After this, the outline of the form of the deity is sketched with a pencil or charcoal onto the canvas using iconographic grids. The drawing process is followed in accordance with strict guidelines laid out in Buddhist scriptures. The systematic grid helps the artist to make a geometrical and professional painting. When the drawing of the figures is finalized and adjusted, it is then outlined with black ink.
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Earlier, a special paint of different colors was made by mixing powdered forms of organic (vegetable) and mineral pigments in a water-soluble adhesive. Nowadays, artists use acrylic paints instead. The colors are now applied to the sketch using the wet and dry brush techniques. One of the characteristic features of a thangka is the use of vibrant colors such as red, blue, black, green, yellow, etc.
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In the final step, pure gold is coated over some parts of the thangka to increase its beauty. Due to this beautification, thangkas are much more expensive and also stand out from other ordinary paintings.
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Thangka paintings are generally kept unrolled when not on display on the wall. They also come with a frame, a silken cover in front, and a textile backing to protect the painting from getting damaged. Because Thangkas are delicate in nature, they are recommended to be kept in places with no excess moisture and where there is not much exposure to sunlight. This makes them last a long time without their colors fading away. Painting a thangka is an elaborate and complex process and requires excellent skills. A skilled artist can take up to 6 months to complete a detailed thangka painting. In earlier times, thangka painters were lamas that spent many years on Buddhist studies before they painted.
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