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18th Century Gilt Sino Tibetan Shadbhuja Mahakala browse these categories for related items... All Items: Antiques:Regional Art:Asian:Indian Subcontinent:Himalayas: Pre 1800: item # 986713 Please refer to our stock # 1145 when inquiring.
Boran Asian Art Grays, 1-7 Davies Mews, Mayfair, London, W1 0044 (0)795 422 8735 Guest Book Price On Request |
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Details: A powerful and dynamically fluid example of a late 17th to 18th century Sino Tibetan gilt copper alloy image of the Dharmapala Shadbhuja Mahakala. He is standing in an active posture, flexed arms, sprung stance, aggressive facial features framed by his fearsome flamelike hair which all convey a very real sense of imminent movement, agitation and danger. In his two central arms he is holding his characteristic Vajra chopper and skull bowl, symbolizing the destruction and transmutation of inner addictive and outer destructive obstructions of one’s quest for enlightenment. His other right hands are holding a rosary of skulls and a Damaru drum, his left hands usually hold a trident and a lasso (missing here). The two upper hands are also grasping the feet of the freshly flayed elephant skin which he drapes across his back. A tiger skin skirt is tied around his huge belly, which bulges with power. His other adornments are standard for a fierce deity: They included a garland of fifty severed heads, a live snake Brahman cord, snake bracelets, armbands and anklets, bone bead necklaces and a five skull diadem. A beautiful and elegantly modeled scarf flies lightly around him, emphasizing his vigorous stance. He is trampling on the prostrate figure of his own emanation as the elephant headed god Ganpati, who is holding a skull bowl in his right hand and a lotus in his left and is ornamented with jewels inset with turquoise. The huge head with its mass of fluid locks of hair and well defined features becomes the focus of this finely executed piece because of its stirring realism. Mahakala is one of the most popular Dharmapalas in Tibetan Buddhism. As with many other wrathful Himalayan deities he is often depicted in a gruesome and terrifying manner. These fiercesome guardians of the faith project an aura of overwhelming power in order to protect the faithful by eradicating unwanted obstructions to the realization of the enlightened mind. Mahakala frequently appears at the inner entrance of a temple and quite often is afforded a dedicated shrine of his own. His myth speaks of his having been tamed by the Bodhisattva of compassion and he is sometimes even considered to be a fierce manifestation him. Age: Late 17th – 18th Century. Height: 18.5 cm. Remarks: This piece has been consecrated and then sealed with wax in the groin region between Mahakala’s legs (additonal photos available on request). |
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