Item: Mandala of Mahamaya (Buddhist Deity) - (right leg down)

Mandala of Mahamaya: A Tantric Buddhist Meditational Deity

Mahamaya, meaning 'great illusion,' is the name of a Tantric Buddhist Sanskrit text, the Shri Mahamaya Tantraraja, the name of a deity and a meditation system. The Mahamaya Tantra text was popularized in India between the 9th and 11th centuries and is most commonly associated with the mahasiddha Kukkuripa, also known as the 'dog lover,' and the Tibetan translator Marpa Chokyi Lodro - famed teacher of the great yogi Milarepa.

The Mahamaya Tantra, ritual practices and philosophy arrived in the Himalayas and Tibet through a number of different early sources but became famous primarily through the Vajravali literature of Abhayakaragupta, Bari Lotsawa, Marpa the translator, the Mitra Gyatsa of Mitra Yogin and through the Shangpa Kagyu Tradition of Khedeub Khyungpo Naljor. Mahamaya was also regarded as a very special meditational deity of the Ngog lineage of the Marpa Kagyu. Within the Shangpa Kagyu Tradition, Mahamaya is included as one of the principal Five Tantra Deities (gyu de lha nga) combined as a single, and unique, meditation practice found only in the Shangpa Tradition. Mahamaya is also practiced in the Sakya, Jonang, and other traditions, but with slightly less emphasis than the traditions mentioned earlier.

In both Tantric art and Tantric visualization practice Mahamaya is depicted with four faces and four arms, blue in colour, embracing the consort Buddha Dakini. The consort also appears with four faces and four arms. Both figures hold an arrow, bow, skullcup and katvanga staff. They stand in a dancing posture surrounded by the bright red flames of the fire of pristine awareness.

In the Shangpa Kagyu, Vajravali and Mitra Gyatsa traditions the consort can alternately be depicted as red in colour. In the Mitra Gyatsa system specifically there is a one faced two-armed form of Mahamaya embracing a consort.

In all of these different traditions Mahamaya and consort are accompanied by four attendant retinue figures called 'dakini' in iconographic classification: blue Vajra Dakini (east), yellow Ratna Dakini (south), red Padma Dakini (west) and green Vishva Dakini (north). Placed between the four dakinis at the intermediate directions are four nectar filled vases. From the central couple and the four retinue figures we get the official name 'Mahamaya Five Deity Mandala.'

It is common in the descriptions of Buddhist mandalas to count the central couple as one deity, although this is not a rule and not always consistent when counting the number of deities in a mandala. The retinue and attendant deities are then counted each individually although in many instances the door guardians, if present, are omitted in the final and total count.

The square enclosure surrounding the central two figures and four dakinis represents the celestial palace of the deity. Outside of that is a ring containing the Eight Great Charnal Grounds (cemeteries) of India. In the past and present these eight cemeteries are considered very auspicious when practicing wrathful Tantric deities. Although no longer commonly used, the eight cemeteries can still be located and are often destinations for pilgrims from Tibet and Nepal. Completely surrounding the mandala circle is another ring representing the five coloured flames of pristine awareness.

Along the top of the painting, beginning on the left side, is a register of lineage teachers starting with the primordial Buddha Vajradhara, blue in colour, followed by an Indian teacher wearing monastic dress, a white goddess-like figure, a row of Indian siddhas (wild ascetics) with Kukkuripa holding a dog. Tibetan teachers wearing monastic robes follow after the line of Indian siddhas and extend down the sides of the composition, alternating in chronological sequence.

At the bottom left corner of the composition there is an additional Tibetan teacher wearing robes. This is likely to be the donor figure responsible for the commissioning of the painting. To the right are three peaceful deity figures most likely to be three different forms of Manjushri. Continuing on the right is white Avalokiteshvara with four arms, White Tara, Green Tara, the long-life deity Ushnishavijaya, Yellow Jambhala, Black Jambhala, Panjarnata Mahakala, and finally the female protector deity Shri Devi, blue in colour, with four arms and riding a donkey.

The composition belongs to a larger set of mandala paintings of unknown number. It is also not readily apparent to which particular Tibetan system of practice and from which written compendium of mandalas this Mahamaya subject originates from.

Generally with mandala compositions it is not always easy to determine which religious school or tradition a painting belongs. The clues to identification are generally located in the top or bottom registers. For this specific painting there are no special identifying iconographic forms in the top register. However, the bottom register depicts the two forms of Jambhala which are commonly found together as a recurring iconographic theme on paintings created for the Sakya, Shalu, Jonang and Bodong Traditions.

To reenforce the likelihood of this possibility, Panjarnata Mahakala and Shri Devi in this particular iconographic form and location in the composition are common only to the traditions of Sakya, Shalu, Jonang and Bodong. Therefore, it is most likely and most probable that this painting originates from the Tsang Province of Central Tibet and belonging to the Sakya Tradition, or a tradition related to Sakya such as those also mentioned above.

Tibetan name: sgyu 'phrul chen mo lha lnga'i dkyil 'khor. Sanskrit source text: Shri Mahamaya Tantraraja Nama [Toh 425].

(Written for the publication and exhibition catalogue: Exhibition of Quintessence of Returning Tibetan Cultural Relics from Oversea. Beijing, China, July 2012).

Jeff Watt, June 24th, 2012

"Mahamaya, blue, with four faces, blue, yellow, red, green. The first two hands hold a skullcup and katvanga staff while embracing the consort. The lower two [hands] hold an arrow and bow. Standing with the left leg drawn up in a half posture dancing manner. Wearing a human skin upper garment. The consort, Buddha Dakini, is red, the same [in appearance], embracing, with a crown of dry skulls, head necklace and five mudra [ornaments]." (bod brgyud nang bstan lha tshogs chen mo bzhugs so, 2001. ISBN 7-5420-0816-1. Page 380-383).

Aside from the Vajravali lineage of Abhayakaragupta and the Mitra Yogin lineage there are several lineages from India that were passed through Marpa Lotsawa.
Lineage 1: Vajradhara, Nagarjuna, Aryadeva, Tilopa, Naropa, Marpa Chokyi Lodro, Ngog Choku Dorje, Shedang Dorje, etc.
Lineage 2: Vajradhara, Kukkuripa, Padmavajra, Tilopa, Naropa, etc.
Lineage 3: Vajradhara, Vajrapani, Nagarjuna, Aryadeva, Samantabhadra, Sumati, Gewai Gocha, Namgyal Wangpo, Marpa Chokyi Lodro, etc.

Jeff Watt [updated 6-2019]