Magic Transistor

Garuda. Gelug Lineage, Tibet. 1700s.  

Having the face of a bird, two eyes, a beak and two horns raising above with a slight curve, his orange eyebrows and hair flow upward like flame. The arms are outstretched to each side holding the head and tail of a long spotted snake while biting the mid-section with the beak. On the crown of the head is a golden jewel plundered from the Naga Realms. He is adorned with gold and jewel ornaments in the form of bracelets, armlets and two necklaces. Behind and beneath the arms green and brown feathered wings are unfurled. From the waist up he is blue-black in colour. The waist and lower body are well covered in yellow plumage with dark brown tail feathers showing between the legs. With two red talons each clutching a green snake he stands above a sun disc and pink lotus seat. In front of a four tiered white structure symbolic of mount Sumeru, the king of mountains, Black Garuda stands completely surrounded by red and orange flames of pristine awareness.

Jain Tantric Painting. Gujarat, India. 1400s. 

An early tantric painting on cloth with cosmic imagery and meditation syllables. Finely painted against a red ground with two circular diagrams at center, one depicting the goddess Panchanguli at the center of a yantra composed of two interlocking triangles. The cobra-canopied Jina Parsvanatha at the top right corner, with numerous figures and celestials displayed in registers highlighted with gold leaf. Inscribed at the center is the seed syllable, Ohm Hrim, with mantras and invocations in prakrit.

Amoghasiddhi Buddha. The Patriarch of the Last Five Families of Transcendent, or Symbolic, Buddhas. Tibet. 1300s.

Cham Dancers

An Emanation of the Bodhisattva Avalokiteshvara. Nepal. 1859.  

An unusual manifestation of the Bodhisattva of Compassion, Avalokitesvara, here appears as Shrishtikanta Lokeshvara, “Beautiful Creation Lord of the World,” a form unique to Nepalese Buddhism. Shrishtikanta emanates the entire pantheon of Hindu and Buddhist deities, here indicated by the golden threads that lead to numerous beings in clouds that surround the multiarmed and multiheaded central figure. Shrishtikanta stands on a lotus floating in a river, above a large fish, and holds a white lotus flower in one of the principle hands, while the other makes the gesture of charity. The innermost layer of subsidiary arms holds white lotus, the next three layers hold deities and animal gods, while the outermost layer of hands holds various attributes. A crowned Bodhisattva surmounts the eleven rows of heads.

(Unknown). Buddhist Deities. Kathmandu Valley, Nepal. 1700s.

Kalachakra, Wheel of Time. Tibet. 1400s.

The painting depicts the mandala of the Buddha Kalachakra, with the multi-colored semi-wrathful god in union with his prajña Vishvamata, Mother of the Universe. The deities represent one of the most complex practices of the Unexcelled Yoga Tantras in Tibetan Vajrayana Buddhism.

Kalachakra is depicted with four heads and twenty-four arms, with his principal head and upper body in blue symbolising great wisdom. His red face represents passion, the white purity, and the yellow head facing rewards, single-mindedness in meditation. One leg is white and the other red, denoting two separate halves of the yearly cycle. In union with his golden eight-armed prajña with four heads in white, blue, red and gold, the couple represent the embodiment of wisdom and compassion, the goal of Tibetan meditational practice leading to enlightenment and salvation of sentient beings.

Taglung Tangpa Chenpo with Lineage. Taklung & Buddhist Lineages. Tibet. 1200s.

Taglung Tangpa Chenpo, Tashi Pel (1142-1210) is the founder of Taglung Monastery north of Lhasa in central Tibet, the head monastery for the Taglungpa sub-lineage of the Marpa Kagyu School of Tibetan Buddhism. There is an inscription and blessing sanctification on the back of the painting attributed to Onpo Rinpoche.

At the top center is the Tibetan Lama Pagmodrupa, the teacher of Tashi Pel. At the left are blue Vajradhara, followed by Tilopa and Naropa in the appearance of mahasiddhas. At the right side are Marpa, Milarepa and Gampopa.

Descending at the left are Shakyamuni Buddha, Sahaja Chakrasamvara, a lama figure performing the teaching gesture with the hands, followed by white Vajrasattva with the right leg pendant.

Descending at the right side are white Chaturbhuja Avalokiteshvara, red Vajravarahi, a lama figure with the two hands placed in the meditation gesture in the lap, followed by white Ushnishavijaya.

At the bottom left is a donor figure in the appearance of a monk and seated before an elaborate shrine. Following from the left is a blue heruka figure holding a vajra upraised in the right hand, blue-black Chaturbhuja Mahakala, white Aparajita, red sow-faced four-armed Vajaravarahi, red Kurukulla with four-arms and red Vajravarahi. -Himalayan Art

Chakrasambhava Mandala

Chore Bagan Art Studio. Jagannath. 1885.

Vishnu in Universal Form

Vishnu in Universal Form

Lord Ganesh

Garuda Returning with the Vase of Amrita. Rare Illustration Print. 1923.

The Vedas are said to be the very breath of the Supreme Lord and Garuda is hailed as the very embodiment of the Vedas. In the Vaishnava tradition of Hinduism, Garuda is celebrated as Periya Tiruvadi. He is said to be an avatar of Sankarshanan, a form of Vishnu, and is endowed with extraordinary powers through the grace and penance of his father Sage Kashyapa. It is held that Garuda earned the privilege of eternal service to the Lord through his devotion, humility and his prowess.

Santoshi Mata

E.S. Curtis. Haschógan. Navaho. 1904. 

Second in general importance only to Hasché̆ltĭ among Navaho deities is the House God, here shown. His position among the gods is quite parallel with that of peace chief among Indians in life.

The Dĭgí̆n made their homes near Chóĭli, close to the place of emergence. It was there that all ceremonies took place. From their homes the people saw a dark Cloud settle and cover the top of Chóĭli. For four days it kept lowering until the mountain was completely shrouded in dark blue fog. They did not know whether it portended good or evil, but realized that something of moment was at hand. Ástsĕ Hástĭn ascended the mountain through the fog to learn what it meant, but found nothing unusual. As he turned to descend, a faint, apparently distant cry reached his ears, but he paid no heed. Ere long the same sound came to him again; then a third and a fourth time, whereupon he turned and walked in the direction whence it came. On the eastern slope he found a tiny baby, and wrapping it in rays of sunbeams he carried it home to his wife.

The Cloud that descended was a portion of the sky which had come to meet the Earth; from the union of the two Yólkai Ĕstsán, White-Shell Woman, was born. In twelve days the baby had grown to maturity, subsisting on pollen only. Ástsĕ Hástĭn and Ástsĕ Ĕstsán sent messengers to all the Dĭgín to tell them of the marvel and to summon them to a ceremony which would be held four days later. Word was sent also to the gods on the four sacred mountains.

Lord Murugan