Vajrapani Mahachakra Mandala

This mandala of Vajrapani Mahachakra is among the very finest examples of late-fourteenth and early-fifteenth-century central Tibetan thangka painting, a masterpiece of elegant design and vibrant color. The elaborate scrollwork throughout the mandala palace, the subtle shading of figures and background detail, and the predominant use of red in the palette are hallmarks of early Nepalese painting for Tibetan patrons, as seen in a set of late-fourteenth-century thangkas that includes the Jnanadakini mandala in The Metropolitan Museum of Art.[1] The composition is similar to the Jnanadakini, with deities contained within tendrils of scrolling vine in the quadrants outside the mandala circle and the officiant depicted next to a niche displaying offerings in the lower register. The elaborate style of the niches is similar to those on a mandala of the Six Chakravartin from a set of early-fifteenth-century mandalas painted by itinerant Newar artists for Ngor monastery.[2] Semi-avian figures (kinnara) perched on the pillars in the upper register are reminiscent of those on a late-fourteenth-century Vajradhatu mandala painted by a Nepalese artist.[3] Such close stylistic and compositional comparisons suggest that this Vajrapani mandala may be similarly dated to the late fourteenth or early fifteenth century and attributed to a Nepalese artist.

The clarity of composition and visual impact of the mandala is enhanced by the deep blue-black background from which the vivid color fields project. The sky-blue visvavajra-shaped arches at the center draw the viewer’s focus to the principal deity standing in a militant posture against a backdrop of fire. The dark-blue four-armed Vajrapani holds a diamond scepter (vajra) and bell (ghanta) and two snakes with their heads in his mouth and their tails trampled underfoot, together with a makara and a divinatory tortoise. Kalachakra, Hevajra, Chakrasamvara, and Amitayus are depicted in the corners outside the mandala circle. Inscriptions identify the Tibetan masters, Indian pandita, and deities in the upper register. Dahapatsa appears at the left with Kyungpo Naljor (circa 1050-1127), Atisha (982-1054) and the dancing lion-headed goddess Simhamukha. The bodhisattvas Ratnadhara and Vajragharbha are seated to the left and right of Shakyamuni Buddha, with Krishnavajra, Chokyi Wangchuk, Pakkutidesana, and Samyepa to the right. In the lower register the officiant is seated behind a low table bearing a vajra, ghanta, and ritual vases adorned with peacock feathers, and seated next to a niche with an array of offerings and butter-lamps, with Vaishravana, Virupaksha, Kala Jambhala, Ushnishavijaya, Manjushri, Avalokiteshvara, Vajrapani, Achala, and Tara to the right. The reverse of the painting is inscribed with consecratory mantras and sacred texts written in the shape of a stupa.

1  Steven M. Kossak and Jane Casey Singer, Sacred Visions: Early Paintings from Central Tibet, New York, 1998, pp. 163-164, cat. no. 46
2  Ibid., pp. 165-171, cat. no. 47a
3  Ibid., pp. 160-162, cat. no. 45