Kubera with Jewel and Nakula (Mongoose)

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According to Hindu tradition, Kubera was the son of a sage, Vishravas, hence he is also known as Vishravana or Vaishravana. It is said that Kubera performed austerities for a thousand years, Lord Brahma in reward gave him immortality and made him god of Wealth (Nidhipati), guardian of all treasures of earth, which he is to give out to whom they are destined. The abode of Kubera was Kailash, when Brahma appointed him God of Wealth, he gave him Lanka as his capital and presented him Pushpaka Vimana which was of immense size and moved at the owner's will at marvellous speed. Later on Kubera's brother Ravana seized Lanka and Pushpaka Vimana from him. Kubera then made his abode in mount of Kailash in Himalaya

As mentioned above, Kubera is also worshipped by the Buddhists, and he is one of the Lokapalas,guardians of Mount Sumeru, centre of Universe; as well as one of the Regents of the Four Cardinal Points. As a Regent of North, he is called Vaishravana and his abode is in Alaka, in the Himalayas, abounding in wealth and magnificence, where he is attended by Yakshas and Kinnaras. The cult of Kubera is also popular in Nepal, Tibet, Mongolia, China and Japan where he is called Bishamon. Though Kubera carries many attributes - a sword, a banner, a lemon flat vessel etc, but his most common attribute is mongoose symbolizes Kubera's victory over Nagas, sometimes mongoose is merely a bag made of its skin. He is always to be fat and pot-bellied in appearance.

In Tibet he has been worshipped as one of the primarily protectors of the Gelugpa sect since the fourteenth century. He has two main aspects, that of a warrior protector and that of god of wealth. It is believed that performing prosperity rituals to Vaishravana will increase wealth. There are many forms of Kubera, the present one he has been depicted as the god of wealth and his shakti is Vasudhara.As a god of wealth, he is holding a jewel and mongoose. When Kubera presses the two sides of the mongoose it vomits the treasures within. In Tantra he plays an important part. It is said that the tantra of Vaishravana as god of wealth was taught by Shakyamuni Buddha and it was translated into Tibetan language in the eleventh century by Zangkar Lotsawa who came from Zangkar in West Tibet. In the thirteenth century, the teachings passed to the noted scholar Buton Rinchen Gyaltsan, on this the history of Vaishravana is based.

In popular Buddhism also the cult of Kubera or Vaishravana is popular, devotees made their purses and bags in the shape of Nakula (mongoose) as it is considered auspicious. This fine sculpture is very much suitable for altar for the practice and ritual of Kubera, lord of treasures.

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

How are Nepalese copper statues made?

Nepalese statues and sculptures are best known for their unique small religious figures and ritual paraphernalia for over two thousand years. These are mainly cast in copper alloy. Nepal draws influences from the artistic styles of Buddhism and Hinduism, and therefore the sculptors of the country specialize in making the icons of both these religions. Over the years, Nepalese sculptures evolved into their own distinctive iconography. Some characteristic features of these sculptures that differ from other pieces are exaggerated physical postures, youthful and sensual features, languid eyes, wider faces having serene expressions, and ornate flourishes. The Buddhist deity icons of Nepal have tremendous demand in countries such as China and Tibet for ritual purposes in their temples and monasteries.

Nepalese statues and sculptures have a high copper content and therefore develop a slightly reddish patina on the surface as they age. However, the most unique feature of Nepalese copper statues is their decorative detailing. The pieces are heavily gilded and sometimes inlaid with semi-precious stones. This embellishment protects them from getting tarnished. The traditional lost-wax method for casting Nepalese copper statues remains the most practiced technique in Nepal for many centuries. This process involves many steps and requires skilled artists.

The first step in lost-wax sculpting is to make a wax replica of the desired Buddhist deity to be cast in copper. This replica is created by hand and therefore needs excellent artistic skills otherwise fine features will be lacking.

Once the wax replica is made, it is then coated with a special mixture of clay with a brush. This layer of clay is hardened when left to dry. A small hole is made on the base of the wax mould so that the wax flows away when it is heated.

At this stage, a hollow mould in the shape of the deity is obtained.

This is the time to pour liquid copper into the hollow mould which is then allowed to cool and harden inside a container of cold water. When the liquid metal has hardened, the mould is removed and the statue within is revealed.

The artist works on the details of the statue using various tools. It is then polished to get a shiny and lustrous surface.

Now comes the most important part of Nepalese art which is gold gilding. This is done by the traditional fire gilding method. A mixture of mercury and 18K gold is applied on the surface of the statue and heat is applied using a flame torch. The result is that mercury evaporates along with impurities, leaving a pure 24K gold finish.

The lost-wax method of sculpting is the most preferred technique

for artists to cast a metallic statue having intricate details. Since Nepalese copper sculptures require extraneous effort for giving a majestic look by adding special embellishments, it takes several weeks to complete one masterpiece. A 24K gold gilded copper sculpture retains its brilliant luster for many years and appears as like before. Nepalese sculptures continue to remain one of the finest specimens of the art of the East that have a strong aesthetic appeal that other sculptures cannot match.