Mandala Roof Balcony, Lhakang Chenmo

The Mandala Roof Balcony of Lhakang Chenmo Monastery, Sakya Town, Tibet, is located on the 2nd to top floor and faces in towards the central open courtyard below. The mandala paintings are subject to a tremendous degree of weathering because they are exposed to the harsh elements with only a roof above and no wall or protection facing the courtyard. The subjects of the mandalas follow closely to the iconographic programs of the Shalu and Gyantse Monasteries.

Bamo Lhakang, Sakya Town

The Bamo Lhakang is located in Lhakang Chenmo Monastery in the north-west corner tower. The various rooms contain a number of sculpture of famous Throne Holders of Sakya along with various small protector chapels the foremost being the for the Three Witches (Bamo). The various wall towers also serve as residences for senior monks and abbots.

Maharakta Ganapati

There are a number of very good paintings and sculpture of Maharakta Ganapati. This however has to be the best of the late paintings, likely to be 18th century. As for the provenance, it was owned in the 1960s by the Kumar Galleries of New Delhi and later sold to the Guimet Museum in Paris sometime in the early 1970s. Also during this period the painting was made into a poster and offered for sale in both Europe and North America.

The painting was commissioned by someone of the Sakya Tradition. The composition has several unique features such as the Ratnasambhava Buddha at the top center accompanied by several Sakya teachers, the special form of Bhutadamara Vajrapani unique to the Maharakta practice, and the Yugu Chesum - three wealth sisters - at the bottom center. It is really a fantastic example both for art and iconography of an important Power Deity in the Sakya Tradition.

Virupa Page on the HAR Website - Updated

Virupa, the Lord of Yoga, 9th century (Tibetan: bir wa pa, nal jor wang chug); foremost in magical attainments amongst the 84 mahasiddhas of India. He can appear in a number of different forms and colours. He can also appear in different contexts such as a set of lineage images, a narrative scene, the set of Eighty-four Mahasiddhas, as a Guruyoga meditation form, etc. Virupa is not unique to any one tradition of Tibetan Buddhism and therefore can be found almost anywhere. In the Sakya Tradition Virupa is typically depicted in one or all of six textually documented forms that follow the major events in his life story.

The image of the sculpture on the left is from the Lamdre Lhakang at Gyantse Palkor Chode in Tsang, Tibet. In this form Virupa is displaying a teaching gesture (mudra).

When depicted with the right arm raised in the air and performing a wrathful gesture Virupa can easily be mistaken for the Nyingma teacher Shri Simha who appears in a similar posture and gesture.

"Reversing the Ganga and subduing the evil king; while holding the sun - drinking the liquor of the entire country, without being drunk; completely shattering the Linga and subduing the Chandali; to the renowned Lord of Power, I bow my head." (Sakya liturgical verse).

Sakya Tridzin Wangdu Nyingpo - New Images

Additional images have been added to the Wangdu Nyingpo main page. He was the 29th Sakya Tridzin and considered the second Padmasambhava of this Age. He was considered to be a rebirth of Ngor Khenchen Palden Chokyong and others. Most of his profound teachings were received from his father Kunga Lodro, the previous Sakya Tridzin. Wangdu Nyingpo constructed a new Vajrabhairava temple in Sakya with a bigger than life size central image along with the twelve wrathful retinue figures slightly larger than the size of a man. Along with that he constructed a new protector chapel with very large sculpture. Renowned as a 'treasure Revealer' (terton) his books are still available and read today.

Wangdu Nyinpo is sometimes employed as a guruyoga practice based on a text that he wrote himself. He is depicted in a wrathful form with either a black hat topped with a raven or a standard Sakya hat with lappets draped across the top.

The 69th Abbot of Ngor Evam Choden Monastery, Ngagwang Yontan Gyatso (1902-1963), was believed by some to be an incarnation of Wangdu Nyingpo, as is the current Sakya Tridzin, Ngagwang Kunga (born 1941).

The Pillars of Lhakang Chenmo, Sakya Town

The temple of Lhakang Chenmo in Sakya Town, Tibet, is famous for it very large and massive pillars. There are four principal pillars in the main temple of Lhakang Chenmo. Each of the pillars are named and have a special story relating their symbolic meaning and how they came to be in the main temple of Sakya.

- Yellow Pillar

- Tiger Pillar

- Wild Yak Pillar

- Black Blood Dripping Pillar

Bhutadamara Vajrapani

A new challenger has arisen to contest for the title of Best Bhutadamara Image. Those of you that are familiar with Bhutadamara and this website know that top spot has traditionally been held by the painting from the American Museum of Natural History. The strength of that painting is really in the form of the deity, the arms and legs along with the proportions. The image of Bhutadamara from Gonkar Choede Monastery is also good but not quite as wrathful. However, we have a new contender from the Gyantse Kumbum in Tibet. This form of the deity is very wrathful with great proportions. It now has the title of Best Bhutadamara Image.