Mandala of Peaceful and Other Deities of
the Bardo (Image)
Thangka, painting
Cotton support with opaque mineral pigments in waterbased (collagen) binder
21.0 x 27.0 inches
Central Tibet
Ca. 17th century?
Musuem #: 97.071
By Cathleen Cummings
26 May, 1998
The Bardo is the state of existence which comes between death and rebirth.
Bardo translates as "the Between" and every person who dies makes
a journey in the Between before reincarnation or enlightenment. Visions
of numerous deities, both peaceful and wrathful in appearance, confront
each individual there. These deity-visions are emanations of each person's
own internal buddha-nature, and they serve the individual as his or her
guide through the realms of the Bardo. Recognizing their true nature leads
the individual to enlightenment and liberation from the Bardo experience.
This painting is a mandala encompassing all of the forty-two peaceful Bardo
deities. The central figure is the Adibuddha Samantabhadra who is shown
in union with his consort. These two are the mandala's progenitors, the
source from which the rest of the deities in the mandala are considered
to emanate. Samantabhadra and his consort are usually depicted unclothed,
so their depiction here is somewhat unusual. Surrounding them are the Five
Archetype Buddhas and their Five Consorts; the eight male and eight female
bodhisattvas; and the four male and four female directional guardians. The
six Buddhas of the Six Realms of Existence at the top of the painting completes
the mandala of peaceful deities of the Bardo. Additionally, images of the
ten Vidhyadharas or Knowledge-Holding Deities, and of some of the guardian
and attendant deities of the wrathful deity cycle are also represented,
including the eight animal-headed dakinis.
Directly below Samantabhaddra is the white-bodied figure of Vajrasattva,
a symbolic deity who represents, and stands in for, the meditator. Vajrasattva
is also considered to be the embodiment of all one-hundred- and- ten deities
of the mandalas of peaceful and wrathful Bardo deities. Abhove Samantabhadra,
at top center of the painting, is a representation of Tsong kha-pa, the
founder of the Gelugpa sect, flanked by his two principle disciples. His
presence indicates that the Gelugpa patronage of this work.
Since recognition of the Bardo deities is essential for the achievement
of enlightenment and liberation upon death, one must practice visualizing
these deities during one's lifetime in order to become accustomed to their
appearance. Visualization practice helps the individual to combat the fear
and surprise that often accompany the experience of the Bardo visions. Paintings
of the peaceful and wrathful cycles of deities, such as the present example,
function as meditational devices to aid this practice.
References:
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