Rahula and Bakula

In this lively painting, set in a fabulous landscape with temples, the arhat Rahula is shown at the upper right seated on a dragon throne in his paradise with an assembly of attendants and holding the golden crown.  The arhat Bakula is shown below, seated in the land of Uttarakuru and holding a nakula (wealth-bestowing mongoose).

Living as an ascetic, Bakula embraced the Buddhist path after meeting with the Tathagata Shakyamuni.  Receiving ordination as a monk and renowned for having a deep faith, he quickly attained the level of an arhat.  The special blessing that he bestows is the basic material needs and requisites for anyone seeking to follow the path of Buddha.  Rahula was the Buddha’s son and became one of his sixteen original disciples, or arhats.  This arhat’s chief identifying attribute is a crown, which he holds with both hands at his chest.

The pavilions serve as vignettes, housing secondary figures and monastic scenes that illustrate the Arhats' miraculous activities and their roles as protectors of the Dharma. The spatial organization utilizes a vertical perspective where distance is suggested through the layering of cloud banks and mountain peaks, creating a sense of a sanctified, otherworldly geography.

Beyond its aesthetic merit, the thangka functions as a visual liturgy, intended to inspire the practitioner through the contemplation of the "Elder" (Sthavira) tradition. The surrounding entourage—including attendants, deities, and monastic disciples—emphasizes the communal nature of the Buddhist path and the transmission of teachings. The preservation of the Buddhadharma is the central theme; the Arhats are believed to remain in the world until the coming of the future Buddha, Maitreya. This specific pairing of Bakula and Rahula highlights virtues of generosity and disciplined lineage, offering a complex iconographic map designed for both ritual veneration and the systematic instruction of the faithful.